7th Inning Stretch: Battling for Position (Week 11)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville baseball program is continuing to show that they can win in a multitude of ways.

The Cardinals kicked off last week with a low-scoring midweek showdown against in-state rival Kentucky, and were able to prevail using their pitching. As for their weekend series against NC State, they were able to come from behind and mount late rallies not once, but twice to take the series two games to one.

While there have been some consistency issues with both hitting and pitching over the last few weeks, it was promising to see Louisville overcome this and post a winning record on the week - especially in a top 25 matchup against NC State

Next up, the Cards have a home rematch against Western Kentucky, a team they defeated 16-6 down in Bowling Green on Mar. 29. Then they have another stellar ACC series on tap, as Clemson comes to town

Like last week's series vs. NC State, this is another critical ACC series. With just 12 conference games left, Louisville (27-12, 11-7 ACC) is currently tied for the Atlantic Division lead with Notre Dame, and the Tigers (26-14 (6-11 ACC) will be looking to right the ship after a poor showing in the first half of ACC play.

Last Week's Recaps:

Game 36: Louisville Takes Down Kentucky in Battle of the Bluegrass
Game 37: Louisville Rallies Past NC State to Claim Series
Game 38: Louisville Drops Game Two vs. NC State
Game 39: Louisville Rallies to Clinch Rubber Match vs. NC State

News & Notes

Louisville ranks as high as No. 10 (Collegiate Baseball Newspaper) among the six major collegiate baseball polls.
Ben Metzinger ranks 22nd in the nation in home runs with 14, 23rd in walks with 35 and 36th in RBIs with 46.
Christian Knapczyk ranks third in the nation in runs with 57 and 19th in triples with four.
Michael Prosecky is 31st in the nation in saves with seven.
Levi Usher ranks 16th in the nation in stolen bases with 23.
Dalton Rushing ranks 17th in the nation in walks with 36.

The Week Ahead

Home (Jim Patterson Stadium - Louisville, Ky.)

Tuesday, Apr. 26 at 6:00pm vs Western Kentucky

ACC Network Extra
93.9 The Ville

Friday, Apr. 29 at 6:00pm vs. Clemson

ACC Network
93.9 The Ville

Saturday, Apr. 30 at 1:00pm vs. Clemson

ACC Network Extra
93.9 The Ville

Sunday, May 1 at 1:00pm vs. Clemson

ACC Network Extra
93.9 The Ville

Know The Foe

Midweek

School: Western Kentucky University
Nickname: Hilltoppers
Location: Bowling Green, Ky.
Total Enrollment: 15,286
Head Coach (school record): John Pawlowski (135-186-1)
2022 Record (conference record): 13-26 (4-14 C-USA)
All-Time Series Record: Louisville leads 32-16

Top Performers (Hitters):

INF Tristan Garcia (37 GP, 37 GS): .333/.380/.462, HR, 24 RBI, 13 2B, 2 3B, 10 BB
C Ty Batusich (37 GP, 37 GS): .318/.416/.561, 8 HR, 29 RBI, 8 2B, 15 BB
INF Aidan Gilroy (23 GP, 23 GS): .265/.311/.384, 3 HR, 15 RBI, 3 2B, 3 3B, 9 BB

Top Performers (Pitchers)

RHP Mason Vinyard (17 APP, 0 GS): 3.65 ERA, 1.34 WHIP, 24.2 IP, 40 K, 7 BB, .271 B/AVG
LHP Devyn Terbrak (10 APP, 10 GS): 5.55 ERA, 1.33 WHIP, 60.0 IP, 51 K, 10 BB, .288 B/AVG
RHP Jake Kates (12 APP, 7 GS): 5.68 ERA, 1.38 WHIP, 44.1 IP, 45 K, 15 BB, .253 B/AVG

Weekend

School: Clemson University
Nickname: Tigers
Location: Clemson, S.C.
Total Enrollment: 20,868
Head Coach (school record): Monte Lee (233-127)
2022 Record (conference record): 26-14 (6-11 ACC)
All-Time Series Record: Series tied 11-11

Top Performers (Hitters):

INF Max Wagner (40 GP, 36 GS): .366/.494/.851, 17 HR, 47 RBI, 12 2B, 29 BB
C/OF/INF Cooper Ingle (40 GP, 40 GS): .348/.448/.494, 5 HR, 29 RBI, 8 2B, 29 BB
INF Blake Wright (28 GP, 23 GS): .330/.394/.629, 8 HR, 22 RBI, 5 2B, 10 BB

Top Performers (Pitchers)

RHP Mack Anglin (9 APP, 9 GS): 3.18 ERA, 1.35 WHIP, 45.1 IP, 47 K, 31 BB, .191 B/AVG
RHP Casey Tallent (11 APP, 1 GS): 2.37 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 19.0 IP, 20 K, 7 BB, .224 B/AVG
RHP Jackson Lindley (22 APP, 0 GS): 3.04 ERA, 1.22 WHIP, 26.2 IP, 25 K, 8 BB, .235 B/AVG

Opponent Breakdown

Rankings:

WKU	Clemson	Louisville
D1 Baseball Ranking	NR	NR	16th
RPI	229th	35th	40th
SOS	121st	22nd	56th
Home Record	10-16	18-8	21-5
Away Record	3-10	5-6	5-6
Neutral Record	0-0	3-0	1-1

Hitting:

WKU	Clemson	Louisville
Base on Balls	261st (128)	22nd (208)	8th (230)
Batting Average	242nd (.251)	161st (.273)	10th (.313)
Home Runs	121st (37)	21st (61)	19th (63)
On Base Percentage	281st (.332)	97th (.382)	3rd (.428)
Scoring Average	228th (5.4)	63rd (7.3)	4th (9.5)
Slugging Percentage	179th (.408)	77th (.458)	7th (.534)

Pitching:

WKU	Clemson	Louisville
Earned Run Average	161st (5.75)	43rd (4.21)	128th (5.32)
Hits Allowed/9 Innings	241st (10.80)	51st (8.48)	85th (8.95)
Strikeouts/9 Innings	168th (8.4)	88th (9.2)	30th (10.1)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio	57th (2.46)	78th (2.30)	110th (2.14)
WHIP	159th (1.58)	51st (1.39)	122nd (1.52)
Walks Allowed/9 Innings	32nd (3.41)	89th (4.01)	188th (4.70)

(Photo of Dalton Rushing: Jared Anderson - State of Louisville)

You can follow Louisville Report for future coverage by liking us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram:

Facebook - @LouisvilleOnSI
Twitter - @LouisvilleOnSI
Instagram - @louisville_report

You can also follow Deputy Editor Matthew McGavic at @Matt_McGavic on Twitter