HARROGATE, Tenn. -- This is an extensive preview of the 2015 Lincoln Memorial University baseball schedule, including a quick look at each opponent on tap for the Railsplitters.
The Railsplitters are set for 49 regular-season games, including 30 South Atlantic Conference contests. The 2015 slate features three opponents that qualified for the 2014 NCAA Tournament (USC Aiken, Catawba and Alabama-Huntsville), while both USC Aiken and Alabama Huntsville open the season ranked among the top 20 nationally in the Collegiate Baseball Preseason Poll. Alongside the Pacers and Chargers, Catawba, Wingate and Tusculum are receiving votes in the national preseason rankings.
Lincoln Memorial will play 24 of its 49 games within the friendly confines of Lamar Hennon Field. The Railsplitters host Wingate, Newberry, Lenoir-Rhyne, Carson-Newman and Mars Hill for three-game SAC series, while welcoming North Greenville, Virginia-Wise, Ohio Valley, Alabama-Huntsville and King in nonconference action.
Among their 25 road tests, the Railsplitters duel Tusculum, Catawba, Brevard, Coker and Anderson in league action. LMU's first four games will be played away from Harrogate, headlined by the annual season-opening trek to USC Aiken.
Senior Day will be celebrated on Saturday, April 4 against Mars Hill in the final home SAC doubleheader of the regular season. The Railsplitters officially close out the home schedule against King on April 15.
The Railsplitters wrap up the regular season on April 17-18 with a three-game set against the Anderson Trojans in Anderson, S.C.
The top eight teams in the final South Atlantic Conference standings qualify for the league tournament, which is hosted at McNair Field - home of the Forest City Owls - in Forest City, N.C. April 23-26. The winner of the SAC Championship receives an automatic bid to the NCAA Southeast Regional, which is hosted by the top seed as selected by a regional committee.
The 2015 baseball schedule can be viewed in its entirety at www.LMURailsplitters.com.
Opponent: South Carolina-Aiken Pacers
Dates: February 1 (Doubleheader at 12pm), February 2 (3pm)
Location: Aiken, S.C.
Notes on Pacers: -ranked 14th in Collegiate Baseball Preseason Poll
-have made back-to-back NCAA Tournament appearances
-compete in the Peach Belt Conference
Against LMU:-own a 30-14 advantage in the series since 2000.
-took two of three from Railsplitters in last year's season-opening series
Opponent: Claflin Panthers
Date: February 3 (3pm)
Location: Orangeburg, S.C.
Notes on Panthers:-finished 24-19 last season
-placed second in the East Division of the Southern Intercollegiate Conference with a 14-6 league mark
Against LMU:-owns a 3-0 mark against the Railsplitters
-defeated LMU 8-6 when the two teams last played in 2013
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Opponent: Wingate Bulldogs
Date: February 6 (4pm), February 7 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Lamar Hennon Field
Notes on Bulldogs:-finished 34-17 overall and 20-7 in South Atlantic Conference action
-shared the SAC regular-season title with Catawba
Against LMU:-owns a 20-6 advantage against the Railsplitters
-defeated Railsplitters 15-8 in only game of regular-season series in 2014 (Saturday's doubleheader was rained out)
-defeated Railsplitters 6-2 in the second game of the 2014 SAC Championship
Opponent: Newberry Wolves
Date: February 13 (4pm), February 14 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Lamar Hennon Field
Notes on Wolves:-finished fourth in the SAC with a 30-32 overall record and a 17-13 league mark
-Ryan Cranmer was selected in the 28th round of MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Miami Marlins
Against LMU:-Railsplitters lead the all-time series 15-10
-Wolves took two of three in first SAC series of 2014, but LMU defeated Newberry 7-2 in the opening round of league tournament
-two teams scored 74 total runs in last three-game series at Lamar Hennon Field (LMU won two of three games)
Opponent: Tusculum Pioneers
Date: February 20 (4pm), February 21 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Greeneville, Tenn.
Notes on Pioneers: -tallied a 31-21 overall record with an even 14-14 mark in SAC play
-advanced to the final day of the 2014 SAC Championship before falling to Wingate
-responsible for five SAC regular-season championships since 2005
Against LMU: -in 54 regular-season meetings, the Railsplitters and Pioneers are an even 27-27 against one another
-Railsplitters took a pair of one-run games at Lamar Hennon last season, winning 4-3 and 3-2 on
Josh Coker's heroics
Opponent: North Greenville Crusaders
Date: February 24 (Doubleheader at time TBA), March 4 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Tigerville, S.C. (2/24), Lamar Hennon Field (3/4)
Notes on Crusaders: -finished 8-35 in 2014, which included two separate 10-game losing streaks
-hired former MLB player and University of South Carolina standout Landon Powell as head coach in May, 2014
-roster features 20 transfers from the NCAA or JUCO ranks
Against LMU: -Railsplitters have lost just one time to North Greenville in 15 meetings since 2002
-LMU swept doubleheader in last meeting on March 3, 2009
Opponent: Lenoir-Rhyne Bears
Date: February 27 (4pm), February 28 (Doubleheader at 1 pm)
Location: Lamar Hennon Field
Notes on Bears: -struggled through a 20-28 season with a 10-18 record in SAC play
-finished red hot down the stretch, winning nine of their last 10 games
-return All-American Ivan Vieitez, who led the SAC with a .451 batting average
Against LMU: -the Railsplitters lead the all-time series 16-11
-LMU swept L-R in Hickory in 2014, winning 4-3, 4-1 and 9-2 ('Splitters have won four straight over Bears heading into this season)
Opponent: Carson-Newman Eagles
Date: March 6 (4pm), March 7 (Doubleheader at 1 pm)
Location: Lamar Hennon Field
Notes on Eagles: -won seven of first eight games, but floundered after that start, finishing 21-25 overall and 11-17 in SAC play
-eliminated from the league tournament on the final weekend of the regular season after falling to Catawba
-return seven of their top eight hitters from last season's team, including outfield Bo Ausmus (finished fourth in league with .617 slugging percentage)
Against LMU: -Carson-Newman leads the series 26-23 since the 1994 season, the earliest recorded dates in the all-time matchup
-Railsplitters won two of three in Jefferson City, Tenn. in 2014, scoring 10 runs in wins in game one and three
Opponent: Virginia-Wise Cavaliers
Date: March 11 (2pm), March 18 (2pm)
Location: Lamar Hennon Field (3/11), Wise, Va. (3/18)
Notes on Cavaliers: -fell 13 games below .500 with a 16-29 record; finished 13-22 in Mountain East play
-hit only eight home runs all of last season, ranked 174th in the nation
-return top slugger Mike McCollum, who hit a shade under .400 in 44 appearances
Against LMU: -LMU won both meetings in 2014, defeating the Cavaliers 11-6 on February 11 and 13-1 on April 9
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Opponent: Catawba Indians
Date: March 13 (6pm), March 14 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Salisbury, N.C.
Notes on Indians:-shared the SAC regular-season title with Wingate, finishing 20-7 in league play and 34-17 overall
-defeated Wingate to win SAC Championship, advanced to the NCAA Tournament (lost to Columbus State in semifinals of Southeast Regional)
-pitcher Joe Watson and Paul Kronenfeld were taken in the MLB First-Year Player Draft
-receiving votes in the Collegiate Baseball Preseason Poll
Against LMU: -Railsplitters have beaten Catawba just five times in 32 tries since 2004
-LMU ended a 12-game losing streak to the Indians by taking two of three at Lamar Hennon last season, but Catawba eliminated Railsplitters from the SAC tournament with a 4-2 win on April 26
Opponent: Ohio Valley Fighting Scots
Date: March 20 (4pm), March 21 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Lamar Hennon Field
Notes on Fighting Scots:-turned in a 19-31 record last season, placing fifth in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference
-hit just .262 as a team while compiling a 5.40 earned run average
Against LMU: -the Railsplitters have dominated the series against Ohio Valley, posting a 14-5 mark from 2004-09
-split doubleheader with Ohio Valley in previous meeting on March 11, 2009
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Opponent: Alabama-Huntsville Chargers
Date: March 25 (Doubleheader at 2pm)
Location: Lamar Hennon Field
Notes on Chargers: -ripped off a 41-16 record with a 22-7 mark in GSC play; appeared in the NCAA South Regional
-ranked 21st in Collegiate Baseball's preseason national poll
-finished 16th in the nation in 2014 with 387 runs scored
Against LMU: -Alabama-Huntsville has owned the series against LMU, winning 30 of the 41 games since 1996
-Railsplitters have fared much better of late, winning six of the last 10 meetings
Opponent: Brevard Tornados
Date: March 27 (2pm), March 28 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Brevard, N.C.
Notes on Tornados:-finished with the second-worst overall record in the SAC last season with an 18-28 mark; turned in a 9-17 league ledger
-were the hardest team to strikeout in the SAC in 2014, fanning only 241 times in nearly 1,500 at-bats
-15 of the 26 players on this year's roster are either redshirt or true freshmen
Against LMU: -the Railsplitters are 20-9 against the Tornados since the turn of the century
-LMU swept Brevard at Lamar Hennon last season, winning by scores of 11-8, 8-3 and 14-6
Opponent: King Tornado
Date: March 31 (3pm), April 15 (4pm)
Location: Bristol, Tenn. (3/31), Lamar Hennon Field (4/21)
Notes on Tornado: -finished 24-29-1 overall and 11-10 in Conference Carolinas play
-won three games in Conference Carolinas tournament, but were eliminated with two losses to Mount Olive
-hit .302 as a team with an otherworldly 176 extra-base hits in 2014
Against LMU:-LMU owns a 21-18-1 advantage in the series
-Railsplitters and Tornado finished in 6-6 tie last season; game called due to darkness after 10 innings
Opponent: Mars Hill Lions
Date: April 3 (4pm), April 4 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Mars Hill, N.C.
Notes on Lions:-just missed out on SAC tournament with an 18-27 overall record and an 11-15 league mark
-ranked 11th in the SAC with 202 runs scored while recording the third-worst ERA with 6.01
Against LMU: -Railsplitters lead the series 15-12 since the first meeting during the 1995 season
-did not play in 2014 after the entire three-game series was washed out by rain and snow
-LMU took two of three at Lamar Hennon during 2013 campaign
Opponent: Kentucky State Thorobreds
Date: April 8 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Frankfort, Ky.
Notes on Thorobreds:-went 15-38 overall and 9-12 in SIAC play in 2014
-hit just .242 as a team; allowed 488 runs with an 8.64 earned run average (238th out of 243 teams in NCAA DII)
Against LMU:-Railsplitters have won all 19 meetings against Kentucky State
-LMU has scored 13 runs or more in 15 of the 19 head-to-head encounters
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Opponent: Coker Cobras
Date: April 10 (6pm), April 11 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Hartsville, S.C.
Notes on Cobras: -a year removed from winning the NCAA Southeast Regional, Cobras finished dead last in the SAC with a 21-21 overall record and a 9-18 league mark
-recorded the second-fewest hits in the league with 359 in nearly 1,300 at-bats
-lost five of their top seven hitters including former All-American Fico Kondla
Against LMU: -Railsplitters took two of three last season at Lamar Hennon, headlined by a 6-5 win via a walk-off home run from
Nick Morabito
Opponent: Anderson Trojans
Date: April 17 (6pm), April 18 (Doubleheader at 1pm)
Location: Anderson, S.C.
Notes on Trojans:-finished 19-32 overall, but compiled a 13-16 mark in SAC play
-ranked second in the league with 41 home runs and 142 extra-base hits
-return slugger Steven Cooper, who was top three in the league in doubles (18) and RBI (48)
Against LMU: -an evenly matched series with LMU holding a narrow 7-6 advantage since 2009
-Trojans combined for 34 runs and took two of three from the Railsplitters at Lamar Hennon in 2014
2015 Baseball Schedule Â
