- Live Stats

STEPHENVILLE - The Tarleton baseball team will return to Lone Star Conference play this weekend as it takes on Abilene Christian for a four-game set at Crutcher Scott Field.

The Texans and Wildcats will square-off with LSC Tournament implications on the line.  Tarleton is fighting to stay alive in the playoff race while ACU tries to improve their spot in the standings as well.

This season, the Texans are 18-18 with a 7-7 road record.  They are also 9-11 in the conference, which ties them for sixth place.  ACU on the other hand is 23-19, 16-11 at home and 10-10 in LSC play.

Overall, Tarleton is hitting for a .291 average with an on-base percentage of .385 and a slugging percentage of .424.  Noah Ringenberger leads the team with a .339 mark, 43 hits and a .438 on-base percentage.  Ryan Small's bat has come alive as of late with a couple of monstrous performances last week against Angelo State. On the year, the junior is batting .321 with a team-high seven home runs, 34 runs scored and 31 RBI's.  Andy Wolfe has added 29 RBI's and 10 stolen bases to the effort.

The Tarleton pitching staff has combined for a 5.18 ERA and 236 strikeouts in 291 2/3 innings.  Pete Perez has been lights out with a 6-2 record, a 2.88 ERA and a 57-14 strikeout-to-walk ratio.  Matt Buckmaster is right there with him, adding a 4-1 record, a 3.81 ERA and 37 strikeouts.  Britt Robertshaw, Kenneth Stockton and Kyle Supak are also potential starters for the Texans.

The Wildcats have had some success this season, thanks to a balanced attack of offense and strong pitching.  ACU has a team batting average of .299 with a .403 slugging percentage and a .396 on-base percentage.  Duncan Blades leads the team with a .377 mark, 16 doubles and a .508 slugging percentage, while Chuck Duarte is the reigning LSC Hitter of the Week with 32 RBI's, 16 extra-base hits and a .371 average.

As far as pitching is concerned, the Wildcats have a 6.26 ERA with 238 strikeouts in 332 1/3 innings.  Clint Cooper has been the ace of the staff with a 6-2 record despite a 5.88 ERA and only four starts.  Brady Rodriguez also boasts a 3-0 record with a 4.31 ERA.  ACU has been susceptible to giving up runs and extra-base hits, which is something Tarleton will be hoping to take advantage of.

First pitch on Friday is slated for 7 p.m., while the doubleheader Saturday will start at 2 p.m. and the Sunday finale at 2 p.m.

Live stats are provided by Abilene Christian Athletic Communications.

For results and more information regarding the 2012 Tarleton baseball season, check out TarletonSports.com.