GAME DAY INFORMATION
(4) ARKANSAS TECH WONDER BOYS 28-15 (23-10 GAC)	(3) MINNESOTA STATE-MANKATO MAVERICKS 37-8 (28-6 NSIC)
Friday, May 27 | 11 a.m. Warrensburg, Mo. | Crane Stadium at Tompkins Field LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO

WARRENSBURG, Mo. – The NCAA postseason bubble did not burst for the Arkansas Tech baseball team as the Wonder Boys earned an at-large berth as the No. 4-seed in the upcoming NCAA Division II Central Region Tournament which will be held at Crane Stadium at Tompkins Field, the home of top-seeded Central Missouri.
 
This will be the Wonder Boys' second NCAA Central Region Tournament with the first coming back in 2014 when they were the top-seed and hosted the regional.
 
As the No. 4-seed, the GAC Regular Season Champion Wonder Boys will be the visiting team in their opening game against No. 3-seed Minnesota State-Mankato on Friday, May 28. First-pitch of the game is scheduled to take place at 11 a.m. The winner of the game will take on the winner of the game between No. 2-seed Augustana and No. 5-seed Southern Arkansas while the loser will face elimination the following day and face the winner of No. 1-seed Central Missouri and No. 6-seed Henderson State.
 
The Wonder Boys (28-15, 23-10 GAC) will enter the Central Region Tournament play hitting .330 as a team (472-for-1432) and have a team slugging percentage of .526 and a team on-base percentage of .409. Collectively, the offense has scored 310 runs and hit 95 doubles, 15 triples and 52 home runs.
 
Seven of the lineup regulars are currently hitting over .300 with four over the .350 mark. The leading hitter in terms of average is Trace Maddux at .412 (61-for-148). He also leads the team in RBIs with 44 and has the team's second-best slugging percentage at .696 thanks to 17 doubles, five triples and five home runs. In terms of home run threats, the Wonder Boys are led by Jonathon Arrieta with 12. Evan Hafley and Josh Detweiler are also long-ball threats as each have nine.
 
On the mound, the Wonder Boys have a 4.07 team ERA and have registered 378 strikeouts in 347.0 innings pitched. In the rotation, Tech has used the same three starters all season with Hayes Cox, Patrick Miner and Riyan Rodriguez all having made at least 14 starts so far. That trio has combined for a 20-10 record and 215 strikeouts in 220.0 innings. Miner paces the rotation in ERA and wins with a 3.46 ERA and nine wins. He also ranks in the top-20 in DII in strikeouts with 100 and is two Ks away from setting a new Arkansas Tech record.
 
Out of the bullpen, the Wonder Boys have had two relievers appear in the most games in Mason Griffin (Rogers, Ark.) and Nick Kovar. Griffin is 3-1 in 13 relief appearances and has 45 strikeouts in 29.2 innings of work (13.9 strikeouts/9inings). Kovar is 1-1 with six saves. In 21 relief appearances, he has a 1.38 ERA and has 25 strikeouts in 26.0 innings.
 
For the Mavericks (37-8, 28-6 NSIC), they are the No. 3-seed in the regional tournament and are coming off of a NSIC Regular Season and Tournament Championship.
 
The No. 13-ranked Mavericks currently have a .306 team batting average (435-for-1421) and have a team slugging percentage of .494 and a team on-base percentage of .405. As a team, the Mavericks have scored 435 runs and have hit 83 doubles, eight triples and 56 home runs.
 
Three of their everyday players are hitting over .300 with two over .350. The leading hitter in terms of batting average is Joey Werner at .439 (69-for-157). Werner also has the top RBI total on the team with 54 and leads the team in home runs with 12. The second-leading hitter for the Mavericks in all of those categories is Teddy Petersen as he has a .377 batting average (61-for-162), nine home runs and 34 RBIs.
 
On the mound, the Mavericks have a 3.03 team ERA, the best mark in NCAA DII, and have registered 431 strikeouts in 362.1 innings of work. Collin Denk and Jon Ludwig have been two of the primary starters this season with both making double-digit starts. Both have appeared in 13 games and made 10 starts and have sub-2.00 ERAs. Denk leads the team in wins and is an unblemished 10-0. In 64.0 innings, he has a 1.83 ERA and has registered 73 strikeouts. Ludwig has the most innings pitched for the Mavericks with 65.1 innings. He is 7-2 with a 1.93 ERA and has notched 103 strikeouts.
 
The top reliever for the Mavericks is Hunter Even. Even has appeared in 16 games, all in relief and is 1-0 with nine saves and a 1.31 ERA in 20.2 innings of work. He has 26 strikeouts and is limiting opponents to a .169 batting average against.