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Baseball At Missouri Valley For 4-Game Series

April 3, 2009
Contact: Evangel University Athletics 865-2815, Ext. 7282

Evangel Crusaders (15-16, 7-9) at Missouri Valley Vikings (9-21, 7-12)
1pm – doubleheader, Friday / 1pm – doubleheader, Saturday

Games # 32-36

Probable Starters

Friday: RHP Craig Penley (3-2, 5.40 ERA)
RHP Andy Pfiefer (2-3, 5.53 ERA)
Saturday: LHP Chad Culpepper (5-2, 3.91 ERA)
RHP Rafael Frias (1-4, 8.92 ERA)

Crusaders Start 4-Game Series With Mo. Valley

Evangel starts a four-game road series with Missouri Valley Friday. The Crusaders are in sixth place in the Heart of America conference with a 7-9 record and are 15-16 overall. The Vikings are in ninth place with a 7-12 mark in the league and are 9-21 overall. The games will be Evangel’s first action since Mar. 25.

Friday’s Starters

Craig Penley will make his ninth appearance and sixth start of the season on Friday…Got a win in his last start on Mar. 21 against William Jewell: 6 inn, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 7 SO in a 13-4 win…Is 1-1 with a 3.60 ERA in his last three games…Was the starter in a combined shutout of Ottawa (Kan.) on Feb. 25 going four innings allowing three hits…Evangel is 3-2 in games he starts…A native of Plato, Missouri in his junior season.

Andy Pfiefer will also start on Friday…It will be his eighth appearance and fifth start…He got a win in relief in his last appearance on Mar. 25 against Graceland: 3 inn, 3 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 SO in a 6-5 Evangel win…Is 1-2 with a 5.68 ERA in his last three games…Both wins have come in relief…Is 0-3 as a starter with a 6.97 ERA as a starter…Evangel is 0-4 in games he has started…A product of Springfield-Hillcrest and in his sophomore season.

Saturday’s Starters

Chad Culpepper will make his ninth start on Saturday…He is looking for his first win since Mar. 13 after suffering back-to-back losses…Culpepper currently leads the HAAC in strikeouts with 57 K’s in 46 innings and has allowed just 18 walks and his five wins is tied for the conference lead…Lost to Graceland in his last start: 5 inn, 7 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 6 SO in a 7-1 loss…Evangel has only given Culpepper four runs in support during his last three starts (3 runs vs. Avila, none vs. William Jewell and 1 run vs. Graceland)…Is 1-2 with a 3.50 ERA in his last three starts…Has worked two complete games…Was the HAAC Pitcher of the Week for the week of Mar. 8-15 going 1-0 in a win over Avila where Culpepper went 7 innings allowing 2 hits, two runs, one earned run and nine strikeouts…Evangel is 6-2 when Culpepper starts…Is in his sophomore season from Harrisonville, Missouri.

Rafael Frias will make his eighth start on Saturday…Got a no-decision in Evangel’s game two win over Graceland on Mar. 25: 4 inn, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 3 SO…Has committed a balk in each of his last two games…Is 1-1 with a 7.31 ERA in his last three games…Has two complete games including a complete game win on Mar. 13 against Avila that featured a season high seven strikeouts…Evangel is 2-5 in games he starts…A senior from Orlando, Florida.

Quick Hits

OF Zach Farmer leads Evangel with a .347 average…Farmer had a 10-game hitting streak snapped last week against Graceland…Zach Johnson has a six-game hitting streak and has 28 RBIs in his last 26 games and leads the team with 5 home runs and 29 RBIs on the season…His 29 RBIs ranks second in the HAAC…Steve Miller is 8 for 14 at the plate in his last six games…Brandon Scott is 5 for 10 in his last four games…Evangel has lost six of their last eight games after going 5-2 in seven game stretch…Missouri Valley has won three straight games with a win over Central Methodist and a doubleheader sweep of MidAmerica Nazarene…The Vikings have also won six of their last eight games entering the series this weekend. 

Crusaders At a Glance

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