AIKEN, S.C. -- The Railsplitters kick off the 2016 baseball season by making their annual trip to Aiken, S.C. for a three-game set against the USC Aiken Pacers at Roberto Hernandez Stadium. Here's everything you need to know:
 
Schedule/Game Day Links:
 
Friday, February 5 (4 p.m.) - Live Stats | Video
Saturday, February 6 (2 p.m.) - Live Stats | Video
Sunday, February 7 (1 p.m.) - Live Stats | Video
 
Quick Hits:
-Lincoln Memorial completed the 2015 season with a 24-22 overall record, which included a nine-game winning streak that bridged the end of February and the beginning of March. The Railsplitters also ripped off a five-game winning streak in the middle of March. Coach Jeff Sziksai's bunch went 15-12 in South Atlantic Conference play, but posted a 9-10 mark outside of the conference.
-The Railsplitters return all three weekend starters from the 2015 team in junior right-hander Brandon Jean (Franklin, Tenn.), senior lefty Grant Painter (Knoxville, Tenn.) and senior right-hander Wes Todd (Thompson Station, Tenn.). Jean - a preseason All-SAC pick - led Lincoln Memorial last season with 71.2 innings pitched and 83 strikeouts while posting a 4-4 record. Painter went 5-5 in his debut season for the Railsplitters, accounting for a 5.55 earned run average over 60 innings. Todd struck out 39 batters over 55 innings, a span during which he went 4-2 with a save.
-Outfielders Wes Neiderland (Thompson Station, Tenn.) and Logan Augustine (Urbandale, Iowa) are expected to play a significant role for the Railsplitters' offense this season. Neiderland - LMU's second preseason All-SAC pick - hit .325 with five doubles, six triples (second in the SAC), four home runs and 33 RBIs last season. He started all 45 games and led the Railsplitters with 163 total at-bats. Augustine batted .317 with five doubles, three triples and a home run as a freshman. He hit safely in 15 of the first 18 games of his collegiate career, with multiple hits in eight games during that red-hot stretch.
-Lincoln Memorial brought in 17 new players in the offseason, including four catchers and seven pitchers. The Railsplitters got an influx of left-handed pitching with the addition of freshmen Ethan Elliott (Knoxville, Tenn.) and Matt Walczak (Levittown, Pa.) along with Indian Hills Community College transfer Cody Hinson (Taylor Ridge, Ill.).
-The pitching staff will also get a boost from the return of Zac Butler (Blue Springs, Mo.), Dominic Morabito (Vienna, Va.) and Timmy Wages (Moline, Ill.), who each missed the entire 2015 season due to injury. Butler was a weekend starter for the Railsplitters in 2014, when he compiled a 4-5 record with 40 strikeouts in 12 starts. Morabito posted a 2.16 earned run average over 16.2 innings of relief, a stretch during which he struck out 15 batters. Wages made eight mid-week starts in 2014 and fanned 15 batters in 23 innings.
 
Notes on the Pacers:
-The Pacers went 34-17 last season and just narrowly missed out on receiving a bid to the NCAA Tournament after dropping four of their last five games. USC Aiken was picked to finish fourth in the Peach Belt Conference preseason coaches' poll behind North Georgia, Armstrong State and Columbus State.
-The Pacers boasted one of the most prolific offensive units in the nation last season, ranking fifth out of 250 Division II teams with 8.7 runs per game. Additionally, USC Aiken ranked 10th in the nation in batting average with a .338 clip, seventh in total hits with 635 and 24th in on-base percentage with a .409 mark.
-USC Aiken lost five of its top six hitters off of last year's team in terms of total hits, as juniors Sean Miller and Tyler Moore were both selected in the MLB Draft, while Ty Barkell, TJ Costen and Kody Belcher graduated. Miller hit .326 with 13 doubles, four home runs and 37 RBIs last season, while Moore compiled a .362 average, six doubles, one triple, three home runs and 32 RBIs. Barkell could very well be the biggest loss out of the group, though, as he hit .444 with 10 doubles, six home runs and 46 RBIs in just 32 games of an injury-riddled season. Costen had 14 doubles, 36 RBIs and a .344 batting average, while Belcher produced a team-leading nine home runs with 37 RBIs in 51 appearances.
-Senior outfielder Chaz Pal is back for the Pacers after leading the team with 79 hits, 19 doubles and 58 RBIs last season. He finished with a .393/.466/.617 batting split.
-Head coach Kenny Thomas' team features 17 pitchers on the roster, including senior right-hander Trevor Hutto, who went 6-3 last season with 43 strikeouts in 61 innings. Junior righty Nick Yobbi is also back after striking out 39 batters in 43.2 innings last season, which he finished with a 2-1 record.
 
Series History:
-USC Aiken has controlled the all-time series against Lincoln Memorial to the tune of a 33-14 record. The Pacers have especially dominated in recent years, winning 13 of the last 14.
-The Railsplitters were swept by the then 14th-ranked Pacers in the season-opening series in 2015, falling by scores of 11-8, 15-5 and 8-2 at Roberto Hernandez Stadium. Lincoln Memorial last defeated USC Aiken on February 3, 2014, snapping a 10-game losing streak in the series with an 8-5 win.