BILLINGS, Mont. – Playing at home for the second straight weekend, the Montana State University Billings baseball team will host Great Northwest Athletic Conference opponent Saint Martin's University in a four-game series starting Friday.
 
Doubleheaders at Dehler Park are scheduled to start at 1 p.m. both Friday and Saturday, and live video with play-by-play commentary and live statistics will be available online through MSUB's Stretch Internet portal here.
 
Saturday will be Little League Day at Dehler Park, with all Little Leaguers who wear their jersey receiving free admission and $1 admission for their parents. Youth players will have a chance to meet the Yellowjackets after Saturday's games, as the team will sign autographs in the dugout upon the conclusion of the doubleheader.
 
The Yellowjackets (14-24, 12-16 GNAC) are coming off a 1-3 weekend against conference leading Western Oregon University. MSUB remains in fourth place in the league standings, and is three games ahead of Saint Martin's (12-20, 9-15). "It seems like a long time ago that we played these guys in The Dalles, and those were tough fought games," said MSUB head coach Aaron Sutton referring to his team's meeting with SMU on the road in March. "They are a good club and are very well coached, and they put a lot of pressure on you from a defensive standpoint. Hopefully we can come out and execute a game plan, and get started off on the right foot in Game 1."
 
MSUB is fighting for one of the top four spots in the regular-season standings, to win a berth into the 2017 GNAC Baseball Championships running May 11-13 in Portland, Ore. After this weekend's series, MSUB heads to the site of the championship tournament for a four-game series against Concordia University, before closing the regular season at home with four games against Central Washington University on May 5-6.
 
MORE HARDWARE FOR COOP: For the second consecutive week, senior right-hander Cody Cooper was named the GNAC Pitcher of the Week as he logged back-to-back complete games. Cooper notched six strikeouts in MSUB's 18-2 thumping of WOU, and threw 134 pitches to finish his sixth career complete game. The six Ks brought Cooper's career total to 212, as he remained No. 6 in GNAC history. It was the senior's fourth career weekly honor, after winning it once each as a sophomore in 2015 and a junior in 2016.
 
GNAC Career Strikeout Leaders

Rank	Name	SO	School	Seasons
1	Nick Waechter	269	WOU	2004-06
2	Roger Evenson	246	NNU	2003-05
3	Brady Muller	232	MSUB	2012-15
4	Steven Schutte	231	NNU	2002-04
5	Mike Ward	223	WOU	2007-08, 2010-11
6	Cody Cooper	212	MSUB	2014-17
7	Mike Eisenhauer	185	WOU	2007-09
8	Kirk Lind	179	WOU	2009-12
9	Neil Elder	175	NNU	2000-03
10	Spenser Watkins	171	WOU	2013-14

 
HISTORY FOR ROBINSON: In a historic trip around the bases on Friday, senior centerfielder Zach Robinson worked his way into the GNAC record books by stealing four bases in Game 2 against the Wolves. The senior stole three of those bases in a single inning, capped off by a daring straight steal of home after swiping second and third.
 
After going a perfect 5-for-5 on the base paths this weekend, Robinson upped his season total to 14 which ranks second in the league. It also puts him three steals shy of the MSUB single-season record of 17, held by

Kyle Pryor in 2007. Robinson also hit his second home run of the year, and maintained his lofty on-base percentage at .450 with a GNAC second-best 27 walks.
 
MSUB Single-Season Steals Leaders

Rank	Name	SB	Season
1	Kyle Pryor	17	2007
2	Kyle Pryor	16	2006
3	Colby Robison	15	2012
	Willie Crtalic	15	2006
5	Nick Hoskyn	14	2007
	Zach Robinson	14	2017
7	Cole Pryor	13	2008
8	Colby Robison	12	2011

 
MYERS TOP ON-BASE MAN IN THE GNAC: Getting on base in 9 of 17 plate appearances last week, junior first baseman Ryan Myers elevated his conference-leading on-base percentage to .466. He leads the team and ranks second in the league with eight home runs, and he is No. 4 in the GNAC with 28 RBIs. 
 

HARTGRAVES COMING CLUTCH: Freshman second baseman Max Hartgraves was frustrated after grounding into an inning-ending double play in Game 1 of the series against the Wolves. He had a short memory however, delivering a huge two-out, two-run single with the bases full in his next plate appearance. He went on to pick up two more two-out hits, and drive in two more runs in a five-hit series that elevated his batting average 27 points. "We performed well offensively and we were really close to coming up with some big wins," Hartgraves said. "We have been playing well, and we just need to go out and continue to compete (this weekend). If we do that, I think we have a good chance to take the series."
 
MERRITT RISING ON MSUB CAREER CHARTS: Fourth-year senior Casey Merritt is peaking towards the end of his career, leading the team with a .331 batting average and 45 hits in 36 games. Entering this week, Merritt is in the MSUB career top-10 in batting average (.312, 7th), at-bats (404, 8th), runs (84, 7th), hits (126, 8th), RBIs (61, 7th), total bases (159, 8th), walks (52, 5th), stolen bases (20, 6th), and sacrifice bunts (23, 1st).
 
LINEBARGER ADDS TO AVERAGE: For the fifth series in-a-row, junior third baseman Conner Linebarger increased his season batting average, which now stands second on the team at .330. He is tied for the team lead with nine doubles, and has also driven in 14 runs while getting on base at .407.
 
WATSON HAS CAREER WEEKEND: Senior Tanner Watson had one of the best weekends of his career at the plate, racking up seven hits over his first 11 at-bats against the Wolves. His production at the plate included a pair of doubles and his third home run of the year, and he also drove in eight runs in the series including a career single-game best five in Game 3. Watson is batting .323 on the season, and ranks sixth on the team with 18 RBIs.
 
Watson also ate up 5 1/3 innings on the mound, pitching into the sixth inning for the second time in his career. The left-hander is currently second on the team with a 4.18 ERA, with 15 strikeouts against just seven walks in 23 2/3 innings.
 
Saint Martin's University Saints
Friday, April 21 – 1 PM – 9-Inning/7-Inning Doubleheader
Saturday, April 22 – 1 PM – 9-Inning/7-Inning Doubleheader – LITTLE LEAGUE DAY
2017 Record: 12-20, 9-15 GNAC (5th Place)
Head Coach: Ken Garland, 9th Season
2016 Record: 15-35, 12-28 GNAC (6th Place)
Last Series: MSUB 3, SMU 1 (at The Dalles, OR, 3/11-12) | MSUB 3, SMU 2 | MSUB 6, SMU 3 | SMU 8, MSUB 4 | MSUB 5, SMU 1
 
The Saints are coming off a series split at Central Washington University, during which they scored 41 runs over the four games against the Wildcats. SMU remains in the hunt for a GNAC tournament berth, occupying the spot directly below the 'Jackets in the league standings.
 
Five Saints are batting north of .300 on the year, with Steven Sordahl leading the way at .354. Veteran Adam Eskil is the team's leader in home runs with five, and his 30 RBIs are tied for second most in the GNAC. Brandon Witherspoon is another returning starter who is among the team's top offensive players, batting .329 and getting on base at a clip of .413.
 
Austin Feist is also over .300 at .319, with 23 RBIs and a team-best 11 doubles. He leads the team with six stolen bases.
 
On the mound, Ryan Dorney is the top starter with a 3.30 ERA and 30 strikeouts against 25 walks in 43 2/3 innings. Aaron Shoup leads the team with 53 1/3 innings pitched, while holding a 5.57 ERA and striking out a team-best 41 hitters.
 
SMU rides the reliable right arm of Luke Hare out of the bullpen, the sophomore carrying a stellar 1.13 ERA in 24.0 innings over 13 relief appearances. He has converted three save opportunities, while striking out 22 and walking 10, and holding opposing hitters to a .159 batting average.
 
The Series: MSUB is 32-42 all-time against Saint Martin's, and is 13-21 in home games against the Saints. The Yellowjackets have won 17 of the last 20 meetings overall between the teams dating back to the start of the 2015 season.
 
Last Time Out: Merritt tied for the team lead with four RBIs, and Kade Hall, Caje Golden, and Andrew Schleusner each hit home runs. MSUB had a stellar series defensively with just three errors in the four games, and had 27 strikeouts against just 14 walks on the mound.