7th Inning Stretch: Hitting the Road (Week 6)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The Louisville baseball program might have seen their double-digit win streak come to an end, but they are still a red-hot ball club right now.

The Cardinals went 3-1 last week, holding off Miami (Ohio) in their midweek matchup, then winning their weekend series against Georgia Tech to kick off ACC play.

While Louisville's offense is still in a bit of a lull, their pitching continues to surge, and is arguably the team's biggest strength at the current moment. Despite giving up 20 runs to Yellow Jackets this past weekend, 20 of their 27 innings pitched against them were scoreless.

The staff is continuing to round into form, too. Of the 20 runs surrendered to GT, only seven of them came from the bullpen. Relievers such as Evan Webster, Tucker Biven, Will Koger and Tate Kuehner are anchoring a solid bullpen behind Louisville's starting rotation.

However, the staff and the offense will have to work together this week. Following their midweek matchup against WKU, Louisville resumes ACC play, and will be playing in their first true road games of the season when they travel up to South Bend to face Notre Dame. While the Irish aren't exactly a great ball club right now, it'll be the Cards' first test as to their resolve on the road.

Last Week's Recaps:

Game 16: Louisville Holds Off Miami (Ohio), Wins 10th Straight
Game 17: Louisville Walks Off Georgia Tech in ACC Opener
Game 18: Louisville Stumbles to Even Series vs. Georgia Tech; Streak Snapped at 11
Game 19: Louisville Claims Rubber Match vs. Georgia Tech

News & Notes

Out of the six major collegiate baseball polls, Louisville ranks as high as the No. 2 team in the nation, courtesy of Collegiate Baseball Newspaper.
Shortstop Christian Knapczyk ranks sixth in the nation in hit by pitches with 12, and 32nd in stolen bases with 12.
Catcher Jack Payton ranks 47th in the nation in batting average at .427.
RHP Carson Liggett ranks 38th in the nation in in earned run average at 1.75.
LHP Greg Farone ranks 44th in the nation in strikeouts per nine innings at 13.28.

The Week Ahead

Home (Jim Patterson Stadium - Louisville, Ky.)

Tuesday, Mar. 21 at 6:00 p.m. vs. Western Kentucky

ACC Network Extra
93.9 The Ville and 970 WGTK

Away (Frank Eck Stadium - South Bend, Ind.)

Friday, Mar. 24 at 8:00 p.m. at Notre Dame

ACC Network
93.9 The Ville or 970 WGTK

Saturday, Mar. 25 at 3:00 p.m. at Notre Dame

ACC Network Extra
93.9 The Ville or 970 WGTK

Sunday, Mar. 26 at 1:00 p.m. at Notre Dame

ACC Network Extra
93.9 The Ville or 970 WGTK

Know The Foe

Midweek

School: Western Kentucky University
Nickname: Hilltoppers
Location: Bowling Green, Ky.
Total Enrollment: 11,112
Head Coach (school record): Marc Rardin (15-6)
2023 Record (conference record): 15-6 (1-2)
All-Time Series Record: Louisville leads 75-69

Top Performers (Hitters):

INF Drew Reckart (19 GP, 19 GS): .394/.489/.648, 2 HR, 20 RBI, 10 2B, 13 BB
OF Ty Crittenberger (21 GP, 21 GS): .372/.481/.605, 3 HR, 13 RBI, 9 2B, 14 BB, 7 SB
INF Aidan Gilroy (20 GP, 17 GS): .381/.468/.508, 17 RBI, 6 2B, 10 BB, 4 SB

Top Performers (Pitchers)

LHP Devyn Terbrak (5 APP, 5 GS): 2.17 ERA, 0.90 WHIP, 29.0 IP, 33 K, 5 BB, .194 B/AVG
RHP Dawson Hall (6 APP, 2 GS): 2.50 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 18.0 IP, 12 K, 5 BB, .206 B/AVG,
RHP CJ Weins (9 APP, 0 GS): 3.38 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 10.2 IP, 13 K, 3 BB, .194 B/AVG, 3 SV

Weekend

School: University of Notre Dame
Nickname: Fighting Irish
Location: South Bend, Ind.
Total Enrollment: 13,139
Head Coach (school record): Shawn Stiffler (9-8)
2023 Record (conference record): 9-8 (2-4)
All-Time Series Record: Louisville leads 36-9

Top Performers (Hitters):

Danny Neri (13 GP, 11 GS): .286/.348/.595, 3 HR, 11 RBI, 2 2B, 3 BB
Zack Prajzner (17 GP, 17 GS): .274/.416/.339, 4 RBI, 4 2B, 10 BB
Carter Putz (17 GP, 17 GS): .274/.343/.452, 3 HR, 12 RBI, 2 2B, 5 BB

Top Performers (Pitchers)

Aidan Tyrell (5 APP, 0 GS): 1.56 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, 17.1 IP, 17 K, 6 BB, .150 B/AVG
Jack Findley (6 APP, 1 GS): 1.99 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, 22.2 IP, 35 K, 4 BB, .163 B/AVG
Blake Hely (6 APP, 0 GS): 3.93 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 18.1 IP, 12 K, 10 BB, .229 B/AVG

Statistical Breakdown

Rankings:

WKU	Notre Dame	Louisville
Highest Poll Ranking	NR	NR	2nd
RPI	219th	58th	53rd
SOS	289th	83rd	172nd
Home Record	13-4	0-0	14-2
Away Record	2-2	7-8	0-0
Neutral Record	0-0	2-0	3-0

Hitting:

WKU	Notre Dame	Louisville
Base on Balls	68th (102)	226th (69)	115th (90)
Batting Average	24th (.316)	290th (.205)	21st (.318)
Hits	21st (219)	281st (114)	48th (202)
Home Runs	193rd (14)	207th (13)	94th (21)
On Base Percentage	28th (.421)	263rd (.332)	21st (.427)
Runs Per Game	60th (7.9)	227th (5.2)	50th (8.2)
Slugging Percentage	70th (.469)	280th (.324)	37th (.509)

Pitching:

WKU	Notre Dame	Louisville
Earned Run Average	73rd (4.65)	101st (5.03)	15th (3.25)
Hits Allowed/9 Innings	88th (8.70)	58th (8.32)	9th (6.71)
Strikeouts Per 9 Innings	126th (9.1)	123rd (9.2)	36th (10.7)
Strikeout-to-Walk Ratio	43rd (2.68)	71st (2.35)	53rd (2.50)
WHIP	47th (1.35)	52nd (1.36)	18th (1.22)
Walks Allowed/9 Innings	28th (3.41)	66th (3.91)	99th (4.26)

(Photo of Louisville Players: Jared Anderson - Louisville Report)

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

Facebook - @LouisvilleReport
Twitter - @UofLReport
Instagram - @louisville_report

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

Add us as a preferred source on Google