ELLENSBURG, Wash. – Central Washington is set to make its final road trip of the season to Montana State Billings for the final four-game Great Northwest Athletic Conference series of the season on Thursday and Friday.
INTO THE 'JACKETS NEST
Currently in the hunt for the final of three spots in the Great Northwest Athletic Conference Tournament, the Yellowjackets own a 22-24 record with a 13-15 conference mark.
Last weekend MSUB made the trip to Nampa, Idaho, and were swept by the Northwest Nazarene Nighthawks in a four-game series by way of 9-4, 9-4, 4-3, and 5-2.
Cooper Dulich headlines the Yellowjacket offense with a .329 batting average, and .437 on-base percentage. The freshman short stop owns 46 hits, 27 runs batted in (RBI) and is 5-7 on stolen bases.
On the mound Matthew Houlihan leads the Yellowjackets with a 5-4 record through 13 appearances. The sophomore right-hander owns a 5.49 earned run average (ERA) with a team-leading 64 strikeouts.
LAST TIME OUT
Central Washington (13-32, 7-21 GNAC) is coming off of dropping a four-game series to Saint Martin's three games to one. The Wildcats captured its lone win of the series Saturday morning by a score of 9-1.
Heading into the final week of the regular season, the Wildcats still maintain the top offense in the GNAC. With a combined team batting averaging of .290 backed by the top-two highest individual averages, Central is always a threat to put up a crooked inning.
Zach Berryman and
Adam Fahsel have yet to relinquish the top individual averages in the conference. Berryman leads the GNAC in average (.353), total hits (65), second in runs scored (40), and sits fourth in doubles with 13. Fahsel on the other hand holds the lead for runs scored (52), second in doubles (15), and third in RBI's with 38.
Although his average has dropped to .295,
Austin Ohland continues his dominance as the GNAC-leader in slugging. Ohland is third overall in all of NCAA Division II with 22 doubles, averaging 0.5 per game. Additionally, Ohland is tied for second in home runs (9), first in RBI's (48), and is first in total bases (100) in the GNAC.
Nolan Milliman (2-3) has been a dark horse on the rise for Centrals pitching staff. The freshman from Yorba Linda, Calif., threw 7.0 innings in last week's matchup with the Saints, allowing just one run on nine hits alongside eight strikeouts.
First pitch on Thursday is schedule for 12:00 p.m. PST, and first pitch Friday is scheduled for 11:00 a.m. PST.
