GREENWOOD – The Lander baseball team returns to conference action on Thursday as it battles No.2/5 Columbus State on the road.

QUICK HITTERS

Location: Burger King Stadium at Ragsdale Field (Columbus, Ga.)

Time: Apr. 14 (7 pm) | Apr. 15 (5 pm) | Apr. 16 (1 pm)

Lander's Record: 19-20, 9-9 PBC

No. 2/5 Columbus State's Record: 31-6, 15-3 PBC

First Met: February 28, 1998 (12-2 CSU)

Last Met: February 28, 2021 (11-10 Lander)

Last 10 Against Columbus State: 3-7

Who's Next: At Newberry College (April 19)

STORYLINES

• The Bearcats are coming off an 8-5 loss in extra innings on the road to Francis Marion on Tuesday.
• Caleb Singleton, Mason Streater and Bradley Davis all had two hits, combining for six of the nine hits on the night for Lander.
• The Bearcats held a 3-0 lead going into the bottom of the eighth before allowing three Patriots to score to tie the game.
• Both teams traded runs until Francis Marion exploded for four runs in the bottom of the 12th that featured a walk-off home run to end the game for FMU.
• Lander and Francis Marion end the two-game series tied 1-1.
• The Bearcats have now lost its last three games, including losing the last two games against Flagler College.
• Columbus State is currently in sole possession of first place in the PBC with a 14-3 record. Flagler, North Georgia and Young Harris are all tied for second while Georgia College and Georgia Southwestern are tied for fifth. Lander and USC Aiken are tied for seventh with 9-9 conference records.
• Lander comes into the series against Columbus State with the third most hits by a PBC team this season with 372. The Bearcats are hitting .282 as a team.
• The Bearcats are also among the top teams in doubles (75), triples (11), RBI (252), slugging percentage (.442), walks (196) and on-base percentage (.388).
• Columbus State is second in the PBC in hits with 410 while leading the way in batting average with a .324 average clip. The Cougars are second in the PBC in triples (8) and lead the way with 73 home runs.
• Connor Droze leads the way for Lander with a .375 batting average. Droze had 30 hits, 23 runs, nine doubles, one triple and four home runs. Droze also has 28 RBI, a slugging percentage of .470 and is 3-for-3 in stolen bases this season.
• Ethan Wilder leads the Bearcats in hits with 45. Among those 45 hits, Wilder has 10 doubles, four triples and three home runs. He has 28 RBI, a slugging percentage of .497 and is 6-for-6 in stolen bases.
• Matthew Burgess is 9-for-9 in stolen bases along with having a .292 batting average. Burgess has 38 hits, 28 runs, four doubles, two triples and one home run.
• The Bearcats pitching staff has seen plenty of new faces join the ranks for starts this season, with nine different Bearcats recording a start. Among active starters, Nick Foray has made seven starts in his 11 appearances.
• Out of the bullpen, Kurt Rogers leads the way for innings pitched with 29.2. Zach Pellegrino leads the staff with total appearances, appearing in 24 games this season.
• The Cougars are 31-6 overall and 15-3 in conference action. Columbus State has not lost more than a single game in a conference series this season.
• They recently went 2-1 against North Georgia, winning 11-1 in the final game of the series. Columbus is 15-3 at home while owning an impressive 16-3 road record.
• Six Cougars are hitting .300 or better, with Robert Brooks leading the way with a 381 percentage. Brooks had 53 hits to lead the team along with seven doubles, one triple and 13 home runs along with 57 RBI. Brooks also had a .727 slugging percentage and is 4-for-4 in stolen bases.
• Issac Bouton has the team lead in doubles with nine and is tied with Colby Brabston in triples with two. Brooks leads the team in RBI and home runs as well.
• Peyton Burton leads the pitching staff with a 1.40 ERA through 14 appearances. He's 3-1 with two saves and 25.2 innings of work. Devin Dudal leads the Cougars with an 8-2 record through 10 starts and one complete game. Dudal has thrown 55.2 innings while striking out 70 batters.
• Columbus State travels to face Shorter in a non-conference matchup on April 19 while Lander travels to battle Newberry on April 19 as well.

#cLawsUp | @LanderBaseball