Angelo State University Hosting Playoff Round Before College World Series

SAN ANGELO, TX – Hosting the South Central Super Regional, the top-ranked Angelo State University baseball team will face Colorado Mesa in a best-of-three series beginning Friday for a spot in the 2023 NCAA Division II Baseball Championship Tournament.

The following release is courtesy of Angelo Sports.

#1 (1) ANGELO STATE RAMS (50-9, 40-8 LSC) vs. #5 (2) COLORADO MESA MAVERICKS (48-9, 30-2 RMAC)
Game 1: Fri., May 26, 6:30 p.m. | Game 2/3: Sat., May 27, 3 p.m. (if necessary game following)
Foster Field at 1st Community Credit Union Stadium – San Angelo, Texas
Tournament Central 
Live Video: lonestarconferencenetwork.com/asu
Live Stats: angelostats.com

SERIES HISTORY:
All-Time Series: ASU leads 5-4
Last Meeting: May 28, 2022 – ASU, 16-6
The Rams hold a slight edge over the Mavericks in the all-time series, winning five of the nine contests. ASU is currently on a two-game win streak over CMU, outscoring the Mavericks 28-9 in both games combined.

SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS:
Entering the South Central Regionals as the No. 2 seed, the Mavericks advanced to the Super Regional after a comeback win over St. Edward's, downing the Hilltoppers 7-4 in the other bracket. CMU holds a 48-9 overall record this season and is fifth in the NCBWA Division II Top 25 poll.

The Mavericks hold the top batting average in Division II, hitting .375 as a team while also leading in hits with 736. CMU is also fourth in on-base percentage (.460), fourth in home runs (104) and first in runs scored (635). Robert Sharrar leads the Mavericks with a .447 batting average which is fourth in DII. On the mound, CMU holds an ERA of 4.91 with Liam Hohenstein leading the way with a 9-0 record and a 2.97 ERA.

QUICK HITS:
-The Rams are top five in Division II in both batting average and ERA, ranking third at the plate with a .348 average while holding the fifth-best ERA at 3.55.
-With a .984 fielding percentage, the Rams lead all of Division II.
-ASU is second in the country in on-base percentage at .462.
-The Rams have scored 564 runs this season which is third in DII.
-Kade Bragg leads all of Division II with a 1.11 ERA and is first in wins with a 13-1 overall record.
-The Rams have stolen 183 bases this season which is the fourth most in Division II.
-Jordan Williams is the eighth hardest batter to strikeout in Division II, averaging a strikeout every 23.4 at bats.
-Austin Beck has recorded the fifth most triples this season in Division II with seven.
-Thomas Cain ranks 11th in the country in stolen bases with 38 on the season.

SEASON HIGHLIGHTS:
LSC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK:
- Feb. 14 – Braxton Pearson, Angelo State (Pitcher)
- Feb. 21 – Jordan Williams, Angelo State (Hitter)
- Mar. 14 – Aaron Munson, Angelo State (Pitcher)
- Mar. 14 – Jacob Guerrero, Angelo State (Hitter) 
- Mar. 21 – Kade Bragg, Angelo State (Pitcher)
- Mar. 28 – Kade Bragg, Angelo State (Pitcher)
- Apr. 25 – Jackson Berry, Angelo State (Pitcher)

RAMS SET PROGRAM RECORD FOR SHUTOUTS IN A SEASON:
After closing out the series against St. Edward's with an 8-0 win, the Rams have tallied nine shutouts this season which set the program record. The previous record of eight was set during the 2012 season.

RAMS SET PROGRAM SCORING RECORD:
In a non-conference game against Southwestern, the Rams defeated the Pirates 33-4, setting a new program record for runs scored in a game. The previous record of 29 runs was set in 2021 against McMurry.

NEW HIT KING AT ASU:
Jordan Williams became the all-time hit leader for the Rams this season, surpassing 250 hits in his career.

WIN No. 700:
Against UAFS earlier this season, Head Coach Kevin Brooks tallied his 700th win at Angelo State.

CONFERENCE FAVORITES:
The Rams were selected as the favorites to take the 2023 LSC crown, earning the top spot in the preseason poll with 407 points, including 23 first-place votes. Coming in second was West Texas A&M followed by Texas A&M- Kingsville and Lubbock Christian.

NCBWA PRESEASON ALL-REGION:
The Rams had two players selected to the NCBWA Preseason All-Region Team, infielder Austin Beck and starting pitcher Aaron Munson. Beck was selected as the LSC Freshman of the Year last season after hitting .420 with 59 RBIs and 84 runs scored. He earned two All-American honors and led the Rams in stolen bases with 33. Munson led the Rams in wins a season ago, finishing with an overall record of 11-3 while collecting 81 strikeouts. He held opponents to a .277 hitting average while throwing 94 1/3 innings on the year.