SERIES INFORMATION
ARKANSAS TECH WONDER BOYS 8-9 (6-2 GAC)	ARKANSAS-MONTICELLO BOLL WEEVILS 10-8 (5-4 GAC)
Friday, March 7 | 3 p.m. | DH Weevils Field at Union Bank Park | Monticello, Ark. LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO Saturday, March 8 | 1 p.m. Weevils Field at Union Bank Park | Monticello, Ark. LIVE STATS | LIVE VIDEO

FIRST PITCH
The Arkansas Tech baseball team is back in action in conference play this weekend and will be on the road at Arkansas-Monticello.
 
The series is slated to begin with a doubleheader (9-7) on Friday starting at 3 p.m. and then conclude with a single game at 1 p.m. on Saturday.
 
The Wonder Boys and Boll Weevils have met 171 times historically in a series that dates back to 1948. In terms of the all-time series record, Tech holds a 114-57 lead over UAM.
 
The two teams met seven times last season with a mid-week game at UAM, a weekend series at Tech, twice in the conference tournament and once at the regional. Tech would win four of the games, but lost the last two, the conference tournament final and the first game of the regional.
 

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TECH(NICALLY) SPEAKING
The Wonder Boys enter their weekend series 8-9 overall and 6-2 in GAC play. This past weekend, Tech won their series at home against Southern Arkansas, winning game one, 3-2 and the rubber game, 6-3. Most-recently, the Wonder Boys played a non-conference mid-week game at home against Ouachita Baptist and won 8-5.
                                                                                                              
Entering play this weekend, the Wonder Boys are hitting .256 as a team (141-for-551) with 103 runs scored, 21 doubles, six triples and nine home runs. Cole Dawson currently leads the team in batting average at .339 (19-for-56) and leads the team in runs scored at 18. Sawyer Duddleston has the highest slugging percentage on the team at .547 thanks to five doubles and three home runs. Additionally, he is tied for third on the team in RBIs at with nine. Kirby Jenkins currently leads the club in RBIs with 13 while Tyler Sardelli is second with 10.
 
On the mound, the Wonder Boys have a team ERA of 6.36 and have struck out 125 batters in 140.0 innings of work.
 
Jack Rector, Emiliano Mata and Daniel Hutchison made starts over the past weekend in the games played against SAU and figure to be a part of this weekend's rotation as well.
 
Rector is 1-1 with a 4.81 ERA and 36 strikeouts over 24.1 innings. Hutchison is 1-2 with a 6.26 ERA and 21 strikeouts across 23.0 innings. Mata is 1-1 with a 6.92 ERA and five strikeouts in 13.1 innings.
 
Nine relievers have made multiple appearances with Austin Mittlestedt having the most with six. He is currently 2-0 with a 1.93 ERA and 11 strikeouts in 9.1 innings. JT Cafferty and Derek Rockett are next in relief appearances with five apiece.
 
Leading the Wonder Boys once more is Dave Dawson. The all-time winningest coach in Tech Baseball history, Dawson enters his 16th year in the dugout for the Wonder Boys. In his previous 15 seasons, Dawson has guided amassed a 450-314 record. He has also had eight seasons with 30 or more wins which includes the 2014 season in which he led the team a program-record 44 wins and hosting rights for that year's Central Region Tournament.
 
Overall, Dawson is in his 20th year as a head baseball coach at the collegiate level as he spent four years as head coach at Kansas Wesleyan and totaled 118 wins. His combined win total at Tech and Kansas Wesleyan have him with a career record of 576-411.
 

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SCOUTING ARKANSAS-MONTICELLO
Arkansas-Monticello enters this weekend series at home against Tech with a 10-8 overall record and a 5-4 mark in conference play. This past weekend, the Boll Weevils played on the road at Henderson State and lost the series, 2-1. UAM would drop the first two games of the series before salvaging the finale.
 
Most-recently, the Boll Weevils played a road mid-week game at Mississippi College and lost 3-0.
 
Offensively, the Boll Weevils are hitting .282 as a team (156-for-554) with 136 runs scored, 31 doubles, seven triples and 12 home runs.
 
Chaz Poppy leads the team in batting average early on at .458 (33-for-72). Poppy also leads the team in RBIs with 21 and is one of nine players that have scored double-digit runs. Aidan Garrett and Chase Cripps lead the team in home runs with three apiece.
 
On the mound, the Boll Weevils have a 5.44 team ERA and have struck out 138 batters in 144.0 innings of work.
 
This past weekend, the Boll Weevils had a starting rotation of Connor Irvine, Bryce Louis and maxim Mrakovic against Henderson State. Those three have been primary weekend starters for the Boll Weevils with all three having made five starts thus far.
 
Irvine is 3-2 with a 3.90 ERA and 24 strikeouts in 27.2 innings. Louis is 2-1 with a 7.48 ERA and 21 strikeouts in 21.2 innings. Mrakovic is 2-1 with a 3.68 ERA and 18 strikeouts in 22.0 innings.
 
The Boll Weevils have used 12 other pitchers in strictly relief roles. Five of those have made at least five appearances. Nelson Mercado has been the most-effective reliever and is 1-1 with a 3.97 ERA and three saves with 17 strikeouts in 11.1 innings.
 
The Boll Weevils are led by John Harvey, who is in his 15th season as head coach at Arkansas-Monticello and his 21st overall. In his time at UAM, Harvey is 388-288 and is 542-436 overall.