The Matchup

Fresh off a successful road trip to Caldwell last weekend, the UBC Thunderbirds (7-9, 2-1) are back in Idaho for a four-game series against the three-time defending NAIA champion Lewis-Clark State Warriors (8-2, 0-0) starting Friday afternoon.

It marks the season-opening series for the No. 1 Warriors who had a solid start to non-conference play. It will be a good early-season test for the Thunderbirds who went 5-3 against L-C State last season including a 2-1 mark in Lewiston.



The Warriors have been dominant at home having lost just once at Harris Field in their last 12 games overall. Their last conference regular season loss on home field came courtesy of the T-Birds last April.

First pitch Friday is set for 3:00 p.m. PT with a doubleheader scheduled for Saturday starting at 12:00 p.m. PT. The series finale is set for Sunday at 12:00 p.m. PT, all at Harris Field.
 

Last Action

The T-Birds went 2-1 in their first conference series of the season against the College of Idaho Yotes last weekend in Caldwell. UBC split a Friday doubleheader before closing out the series with a convincing 15-4 win.
 

Robinson, Soper, Windeler help UBC to winning week https://t.co/nxOD9jq89z @ubctbirds pic.twitter.com/PJwDjVrUyz

— Canadian Baseball (@CDNbaseball) February 26, 2018

L-C State split their four-game series against Antelope Valley in California last weekend, snapping what had been an eight-game win streak to start non-conference play.
 

By the Numbers

6.63 – The average number of runs scored per game overall for the T-Birds. UBC has hit double digit runs four times overall and once in conference play courtesy of last Sunday's 15-4 rout over the Yotes.

.288 – UBC went a collective .288 at the plate in last weekend's season-opening series against the College of Idaho. On Sunday's 15-4 win, the 'Birds had a total of 17 hits with every position player recording at least a single.
 

Players to Watch

Lucas Soper (#11, OF) – The third-year outfielder leads UBC with a .378 batting average, good for sixth in the conference. Soper is also sixth in the conference with 1.42 hits per game, just behind teammate Mitch Robinson.



Mitch Robinson (#44, 3B/OF) – The senior picked up the Red Lion baseball player of the week award thanks to a five hit, two double, three RBI performance in the series against the Yotes. Robinson is batting .345 with 20 hits through 14 games.
 

Coach's Take

Heading into the second week of conference play, UBC head coach Chris Pritchett is happy overall with what he saw from his team last week but expects an even tougher test against the three-time defending NAIA World Series champions.

"We know when we go play L-C we have to play well defensively, we have to swing the bat, we have to pitch," said Pritchett who has an 8-7 regular season record against the Warriors. "You can't have two of the three, you have to have all three show up and it's a good test to let us know where we're at."



The 'Birds will need their pitching staff to be at their best against one of the best hitting teams in NAIA.

"We faced a division I team in San Diego and they got to see some of those hitters but when we go to play L-C you're going in to see a different calibre of hitter and you're not able get away with any mistakes," said Pritchett. "They'll have to be on their game. Our defence when presented with an out, we'll have to make that. It's a tough task but we always get excited to play them. Our guys look forward to this series all season so it should be fun."