Feb. 19, 2009
RUSTON -- The Louisiana Tech Bulldogs will take the field at J.C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park for the first time this season on Friday at 6 p.m. as they will square off against the Grambling State Tigers in a home-away-home series.
After Friday's 6 p.m. start in Ruston, the series will shift to Grambling on Saturday where the Bulldogs will play on the Tigers' turf for the first time this season at 3 p.m. The weekend series will wrap up on the campus of LA Tech Sunday at 1 p.m.
After concluding their offseason workouts, head coach Wade Simoneaux and his players are looking forward to beginning the 2009 season.
"We are anxious to start the season," Simoneaux said. "Since we have a lot of young guys, we are going to need to throw them into pressure situations right away and see how they respond.
"I was not pleased with our focus in this week's practices. With saying that, I believe we can relate the loss in focus to our team being eager to play other schools, since we have been playing against each other for quite a while."
The Bulldogs concluded their 2008 season with an overall record of 23-31. The team went 7-23 in the Western Athletic Conference and finished in seventh place. Sixteen letterman return from last season's team, including six seniors: Matt Combs, Nick Grunenwald, Chris Kersten, Dylan Moseley, Patrick Thomas and Kevin Winn. The seniors will be expected to be leaders for 12 newcomers.
Grambling State went 23-31 last season, and they finished in second place with a record of 15-9 in the Southwestern Athletic Conference. In the conference tournament, they made it all the way to the quarterfinals before suffering an elimination loss to Jackson State. The Tigers welcomed back seven position starters, however their starting rotation will be brand new as they lost all four starters.
Junior John Anderson (1-0, 6.61 in 2008) will start for the Bulldogs Friday night. Anderson should be familiar with at least a few of the Tigers as he faced Grambling State in Grambling on April 29, 2008. In a 13-3 victory, the right-hander pitched two innings, allowed two hits, one earned run and struck out five.
On Saturday, freshman Jeb Stefan will make his first collegiate appearance and start for the Bulldogs. The 6-3, 200-pound right-hander lettered three years at Acadiana High School and was named first team all-district as a pitcher his junior and senior seasons.
In the final game of the series, Moseley (1-5, 6.43 in 2008) will make his 30th start for Tech. Even though the native of Texarkana, Ark. did not have the season he expected in 2008, he allowed five runs or more in only one of his 11 starts. Furthermore, in seven of his starts, Moseley allowed three runs or less. Needless to say, he will look to start off the season right Sunday.
LA Tech leads Grambling in the overall series, 7-3. Last season, the Bulldogs defeated the Tigers by a score of 10-4 in March and 13-3 in April.
Season tickets are still available by calling the Tech Ticket Office at 318-257-3631 or by emailing TechTickets@latech.edu. Single-game chairback seats ($8 adults, $4 children) and bleacher seats ($8 for adults, $4 children) will be available at the ticket booth at J.C. Love Field at Pat Patterson Park prior to the start of each home game. Gates will open 1 1/2 hours prior to first pitch for each game, as well. The roof of the first-base (visitors') dugout is reserved for Tech students, who are admitted free with a valid student ID.
The parking lot on W. Alabama Ave. adjacent to the stadium is reserved for season ticket holders and those with handicap tags/stickers. Fans showing their season tickets at the gate will be allowed to gain entry to the first-come, first-served lot. All other fans may park across Tech Drive at the Lady Techster Softball Complex.
Live stats through CSTV's GameTracker will be available for Tech's games on Friday and Sunday at www.latechsports.com.
