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Leathernecks to Play Host to Purdue Fort Wayne

The series will now include a single game Friday and a doubleheader Saturday.

Western Illinois (11-19, 5-7 Summit) vs. Purdue Fort Wayne (5-25, 0-12 Summit)                      
Date: April 12-13
Site: Macomb, Ill. / Alfred D. Boyer Stadium
Game Times:  3 p.m. (Friday), 11 a.m. (Saturday)

Schedule Change: Western Illinois and Purdue Fort Wayne will play their series opener Friday at 3 p.m., as scheduled, before a Saturday doubleheader beginning at 11 a.m. 

Alumni Weekend: Several Leatherneck greats will be returning to campus Saturday for Alumni Tribute Weekend. The former players span several decades, and will be recognized before the first pitch of Saturday's doubleheader.  

Watch Live: Friday's game will be live streamed via Twitter (@WIUBaseball), and Saturday's streams are TBD. Please follow the team's Facebook and Twitter accounts for updates. 

Western's Last Outing: Western Illinois and Bradley met for the second time in a week's span Tuesday (April 9), and the Braves claimed both games after a 4-1 decision inside Alfred D. Boyer Stadium.  

The Leathernecks went with freshman Chandler Fochs to start the game, and after a pair of early walks, the newcomer found his groove for a career-high seven strikeouts. He went five innings before Jordan Cheek and Justin Foy were tagged in to close the game. 

Cheek added four strikeouts of his own while Foy posted two in one inning of action.  

Weekly Awards: Western Illinois laid claim to the first teammates to sweep The Summit League's weekly baseball honors this season as Drue Galassi was named Player of the Week and Javin Drake Pitcher of the Week. 

The honor marked Drake's second of the season and the Leathernecks' fourth as Kevin Raisbeck was named Player of the Week on Feb. 25.

February 25
Player of the Week: Kevin Raisbeck
March 11
Co-Pitcher of the Week: Javin Drake
April 8
Player of the Week: Drue Galassi
Pitcher of the Week: Javin Drake

Sweep: Oral Roberts, the four-time reigning Summit League champions, has never been swept in league play. That is, until Sunday (April 7), when Western Illinois defeated the Golden Eagles, 11-7, inside Alfred D. Boyer Stadium to crown a series that also included an 8-5 and 7-3 win for the Leathernecks.
•    Drue Galassi (.600 BA, 9 H, 3 HR, 7 RBI, 3 SB)
•    CJ Schaeffer Jr. (.545 BA, 6 H, 3 RBI)
•    Kevin Raisbeck (5 H, 4 R, 3 RBI)
•    Starting pitchers Javin Drake, Jace Warkentien, and Jack Carberry all recorded a win, and Austin Emanuel was credited with a save

High Kudos: C.J. Schaeffer Jr. was one of 75 catchers nominated by their head coaches for the Buster Posey Award, given annually to the nation's top collegiate catcher. Schaeffer led the league with 19 runners caught stealing a year ago and already has a league-leading 12 in 2019.

He is Western's second watch list selection in three seasons and currently The Summit League's lone representation. Former catcher and Chicago White Sox free-agent signee Adam McGinnis was named a semifinalist (1 of 15 nationally) in 2017. 

Summit Standings: Leatherneck pitchers are currently 'Top 10' in several Summit League categories. 

Javin Drake 
Innings Pitched | 54.2 | 1st
Strikeouts | 61 | 1st
ERA | 3.79 | 4th

Jace Warkentien 
Innings Pitched | 41.0 | 9th 
ERA | 4.39 | 7th
Strikeouts | 38 | 9th

Bases Loaded: Highlighted by a pair of grand slams, Western is hitting .310 on the season when the bases are loaded. Bailey Montgomery and CJ Schaeffer Jr. have been most lethal with three hits apiece, and Schaeffer recently tabbed his first career grand slam, walk-off style in a 10-6 victory over South Dakota State (March 16).  

Deion Thompson previously accomplished the feat in an 11-1 victory over Fort Wayne a season ago and added his second at Omaha (March 31). 

Just Javin: Javin Drake has struck out at least five batters in seven of his nine appearances this year including a career-high 10 at Saint Louis (March 8) and Omaha (March 31). He currently guides all Summit League pitchers with 61 Ks, sitting 34th in the nation. 

B-Mont: Bailey Montgomery joined Western a season ago after transferring in from Wabash Valley. The senior is currently hitting .304 (the lone Leatherneck over .300 at the moment) and ties for second in RBI (16) with 21 hits. 

He recorded a career-high five RBI versus North Dakota State (March 23) and has three multiple RBI games this year. 

They'll Run: The Leathernecks have never been shy on the base paths, and currently lead The Summit League with 43 stolen bases. 

Steve McShane, Drue Galassi and Deion Thompson each have eight, and on the opposite side of the equation, catcher CJ Schaeffer Jr. has caught a league-leading 12 runners stealing.
 
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