First Pitch: Baseball Hosts SFA to Open 2006

Baseball 2/8/2006 12:00:00 AM

Feb. 8, 2006

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GAMES 1-3 • FEB. 10-12, 2006

BAYLOR (0-0)

vs. STEPHEN F. AUSTIN (2-1)

BAYLOR BALLPARK • WACO, TEXAS

THE SERIES

Overall Record: Baylor leads 18-0

Waco: Baylor leads 14-0

Nacogdoches: Baylor leads 4-0

Neutral Site: Never Met

Smith vs. SFA: 2-0

First Meeting: at Baylor 17, SFA 12 [3/15/1948]

Last Meeting: at Baylor 14, SFA 1 [4/11/1995]

COACHES

BAYLOR: Steve Smith

Alma Mater: Baylor, 1986

Career Record: 418-258-1 [12th season]

Record at Baylor: 418-258-1 [12th season]

STEPHEN F. AUSTIN: Donnie Watson

Alma Mater: University of Dallas, 1978

Career Record: 0-0 [1st season]

Record at Rice: 0-0 [1st season]

BAYLOR RADIO NETWORK

1660 ESPN RADIO (Waco)

Tom Barfield, play-by-play

Lark Smith, color

INTERNET FEEDS

GameTracker: www.BaylorBears.com

Audio: www.BaylorBears.com

Video: www.BaylorBears.com

BAYLOR NATIONAL RANKINGS

Baseball America NR

Sports Weekly/ESPN/Coaches 25th

NCBWA RV

Collegiate Baseball 24th

PROBABLY PITCHING MATCHUPS

FRIDAY, FEB. 10

BU RHP Ryan LaMotta (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP, 0 K)

SFA RHP Brian Steinocher (0-0, 1.80 ERA, 5.0 IP, 4 K)

SATURDAY, FEB. 11

BU LHP Cory VanAllen (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP, 0 K)

SFA RHP Russ Fornea (0-1, 6.00 ERA, 3.0 IP, 2 K)

SUNDAY, FEB. 12

BU RHP Tim Matthews (0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.0 IP, 0 K)

SFA RHP Jake Leonhardt (0-0, 2.84 ERA, 6.1 IP, 0 K)

Baylor opens the 2006 season this weekend, hosting Stephen F. Austin for a three-game series at Baylor Ballpark. The Bears and the Lumberjacks meet Friday at 6 p.m. CST, Saturday at 3 p.m. and Sunday at 2 p.m. Tickets are available for all three games by calling the Baylor ticket office at 254.710.1000 or online at www.BaylorBears.com.

The Bears (0-0) enter the 2006 season unranked nationally by Baseball America. It marks the first time since 1999 that Baylor has not been ranked to start at season by the publication. That year, the Bears posted a 50-15 record, established a school record for wins in a season and reach its first NCAA Super Regional.

The Lumberjacks (2-1) won two of three games at home against Arkansas-Little Rock last weekend. Stephen F. Austin is in its first season of varsity baseball since the program was disbanded following the 1995 season.

All Baylor baseball games are broadcast live on Waco's 1660 ESPN Radio. Live streaming audio and GameTracker also are available for all Baylor baseball games online at www.BaylorBears.com, the official website of Baylor Athletics and a member of the CSTV Network.

Live streaming video also is available for the Stephen F. Austin series. For more information, visit the BearCasts link at www.BaylorBears.com.

QUICK HITS ...

• Since the start of the 2003 season, Baylor is:

- 89-27 (.701) when its starting pitcher last at least 5.0 innings

- 22-7 (.759) when its pitching staff records at least 10 strikeouts

- 88-24 (.786) when scoring first since

- 104-21 (.832) when out-hitting its opponent

- 87-24 (.784) when holding its opponent to fewer than five runs

- 88-18 (.830) when scoring at least six runs

- 77-13 (.856) when scoring at least seven runs

• Baylor has won 23 consecutive games when scoring at least seven runs

• Baylor has won 13 consecutive games when hitting at least two home runs

• 2006 marks the first season since 1999 that Baylor does not appear in the Baseball America Preseason Top 25. That year, the Bears entered the rankings in late February and reached as high as No. 7 before falling to Oklahoma State in the NCAA Waco Super Regional.

• By virtue of a No. 23 ranking in the Collegiate Baseball Preseason Top 30 and a No. 25 ranking in the preseason USA Today/Sports Weekly Coaches' Poll, this marks the ninth consecutive season in which Baylor has been ranked in at least one of the four major national polls to begin the season.

• Baylor's 2006 schedule was rated as the nation's 10th toughest, according to preseason rankings at www.BoydsWorld.com. Georgia, which ranks ninth, joins Baylor as the only non-California school in the top 10.

• Baylor plays 18 games against teams ranked preseason by Baseball America and 22 against teams ranked preseason by Collegiate Baseball. The Bears posted school records last season for number of games against ranked opponents (28), number of wins against ranked opponents (18) and number of wins against top-10 opponents (9).

• From the weekend of Feb. 17-19 to March 3-5, Baylor plays three consecutive weekend series against opponents ranked preseason.

• Baylor plays 21 games against eight teams that appeared in the 2005 NCAA Regionals. The Bears play 11 games against four teams that appeared in the 2005 NCAA Super Regionals and nine games against three teams that reached the College World Series last season.

• Baylor Ballpark has ranked 21st or better nationally in average attendance every year since the facility's opening in 1999, including a program-best ninth in 2001. Baylor ranked 16th nationally in total attendance last season with a school-record mark of 109,621 and 17th nationally in average attendance at 3,045 per game, second all-time at Baylor.

• Since the start of the Big 12 in 1997, the Bears have the league's best conference record at 156-91 (.631). Baylor leads all conference schools in total first- and second-team All-Big 12 selections (42), first-team Academic All-Big 12 selections (45), NCAA appearances (7) and Major League Baseball draft selections (51).

• The Bears are the only Big 12 Conference program to have been ranked in the top 10 nationally at some point during each of the past eight seasons (1998-2005).

• Baylor is the only Big 12 school to have never suffered a sub-.500 season in conference play.

• The Bears join Oklahoma and Oklahoma State as the only programs to have qualified for every Big 12 Tournament.

THE STEPHEN F. AUSTIN SERIES

Baylor and Stephen F. Austin meet for the 19th, 20th and 21st times this weekend. The Bears have won each of the first 18 meetings, going 14-0 in games played in Waco. This is the teams' first meeting since the Bears defeated the Lumberjacks 14-1 April 11, 1995, in Waco. SFA's program disbanded following that season.

The Bears and the Jacks first met March 15, 1948 in Waco; Baylor won that game 17-12 and then defeated SFA 21-1 the following day. The next season, the Bears opened the season with two wins at Nacogdoches, followed by a pair of wins against SFA at home. The teams did not meet again until the Bears swept a three-game series in Waco to open the 1991 season.

BAYLOR IN SEASON OPENERS

The Bears are 6-5 in season openers under head coach Steve Smith, including last year's 8-6 victory over Houston at the Minute Maid Park College Classic in Houston, Texas. That win snapped a four-game losing streak for Baylor in season openers. In the recorded history of Baylor baseball (since 1920), the Bears had never lost five straight season openers.

Since 1970, Baylor is 21-15 in season openers.

This is the fourth time Baylor has opened a season against Stephen F. Austin. The Bears also opened the 1948, 1949 and 1991 seasons against the Lumberjacks. In two of those seasons, 1948 and 1991, Baylor made an NCAA Regionals appearance.

BAYLOR IN HOME OPENERS

Baylor is 7-4 in home openers under head coach Steve Smith; however, the Bears have lost three consecutive such games after a 9-6 loss to Texas-Arlington last year. Since 1960, Baylor is 34-12 in home openers. The Bears won nine consecutive home openers from 1991 to 1998.

This marks just the fourth time since 1998 the Bears have opened their season at home. Baylor defeated Northwestern State 7-0 in 2000 but lost to Texas State 9-5 in 2003 and to Loyola Marymount 8-7 in 2004.

GET COMFORTABLE: WE'LL BE HERE FOR A WHILE

Baylor is scheduled to play each of its first 11 games at home. That is the most consecutive home games to start a season for a Bears' team since the 1991 squad played its first 12 in Waco. Ironically, Baylor opened that season with a three-game series against Stephen F. Austin.

In all, the Bears are scheduled to play 34 home games this season. Baylor was 25-11 in home games last season, going 19-10 during the regular season. The Bears are 167-65 all-time at Baylor Ballpark, winning at least 20 home games in each of the stadium's seven seasons.

LaMOTTA NEARS CENTURY MARK

RHP Ryan LaMotta is scheduled to appear in his 96th career game when he starts Friday's season opener. Of his previous 95 appearances, 92 were in relief. The senior drew three starts as a freshman in 2003, including the championship game of the NCAA Hattiesburgh Regional. In that game, he held Southern Mississippi to a pair of runs on six hits over 8.1 innings.

LaMotta aims to become just the second pitcher in Baylor history to appear in at least 100 games. Zane Carlson appeared in 111 games from 2000 to 2004, a mark that ranks first in Big 12 history and 20th in NCAA Division I history.

If LaMotta appears in 15 games this season, Baylor would join Georgia Tech, Miami (Fla.) and North Carolina as the only schools in NCAA Division I history to have two pitchers appear in at least 110 career games. LaMotta and Carlson, who played together in the 2003 and 2004 seasons, would be the first Division I teammates to both reach the milestone.

SCHEDULE AMONG NATION'S TOUGHEST

Baylor's 2006 schedule was ranked as the nation's 10th toughest in preseason rankings at www.BoydsWorld.com. The Bears and ninth-ranked Georgia were the lone non-California schools in the top 10.

Last season, Baylor's schedule was ranked seventh at season's end as the only non-California school in the top 10. The Bears' strength of schedule has ranked 11th or better nationally in each of the past five seasons, ranking 11th in 2004, fifth in 2003, seventh in 2002 and 10th in 2001.

2005 SEASON HIGHLIGHT DVD ON SALE

"Experience the Dogpile," a comprehensive season highlight DVD that chronicles Baylor's 2005 season, is on sale at the Baylor baseball office. The one-hour, 47-minute piece features highlights, interviews and commentary on the program's most successful season. To order, call 254.710.3029.

BAYLORBEARS.COM

Baylor's official athletic web site can be found at www.BaylorBears.com. The comprehensive site, which includes releases, photos, biographical sketches and audio broadcasts, is part of the CSTV Network, which currently hosts sites for more than 100 universities, including four Big 12 schools.

STREAMING VIDEO AVAILABLE FOR SELECT GAMES

Live streaming video is available for select games during the 2006 season. A total of 24 games will be available online at www.BaylorBears.com, the official website of Baylor athletics and a member of the CSTV Network. Thirteen of the 24 webcasts will be against Big 12 Conference opponents, including the Bears' three-game league sets against Kansas, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M and Nebraska, as well as the home game of the Texas series.

BAYLOR BASEBALL RADIO NETWORK

Catch every inning of Baylor baseball in 2006 on the flagship station for Baylor athletics, 1660 ESPN Radio.

Popular on-air personality Tom Barfield enters his fourth season as the primary play-by-play man for Baylor baseball. Barfield, the operations manager for KRZI/KRZX and KLRK-FM in Waco, is best known as co-host of the afternoon "You Make the Call" call-in show. Barfield also serves as host for the "Countdown to Kickoff" and "The Baylor Fifth Quarter Show" during football season. He has previously served as the radio voice for Tarleton State, McLennan Community College, Mary Hardin-Baylor and several high schools across the state.

Barfield is joined by Lark Smith in the booth. Smith, whose attachment to Baylor baseball dates back to the days of coach Dutch Schroeder, was sports director for the Baylor campus radio station in the late 1970s and served as play-by-play voice for the Bears' 1977 and 1978 College World Series teams. After nearly two decades in broadcasting, Smith now works for the Heart O' Texas Federal Credit Union in Waco.

Live audio for all Baylor baseball games also are available online at www.BaylorBears.com.

INSIDE BAYLOR SPORTS TV SHOW

Inside Baylor Sports, a half-hour look at the world of Baylor athletics, airs weekly throughout Central Texas and the region. The program, co-hosted by John Morris and Lori Scott-Fogleman, airs on KCEN-TV Channel 6, Fox Sports Net Southwest and the College Channel (Waco cable channel 18). KCEN carries the show at 10:30 p.m. Sundays, and it airs at 1 p.m. Wednesdays on FSN Southwest.