April 28, 2009

Oklahoma State Game Notes

ARLINGTON, Texas -
FIRST PITCH
UT Arlington is looking to bounce back after dropping three games last weekend at Stephen F. Austin. The Mavericks are currently in a four-way tie for third place in the Southland Conference. Oklahoma State lost two of three games in College Station last weekend against Texas A&M. The Cowboys are currently in ninth place in the Big 12.

INSIDE THE SERIES
UT Arlington and Oklahoma State meet for the 21st time on Tuesday. The Cowboys lead the all-time series 15-5, including a perfect 8-0 record in Stillwater. The Mavericks defeated Oklahoma State 7-3 last season in Arlington, marking their first win over the Pokes since 2004 (1-0 in Arlington). Since 2002, Oklahoma State is 5-2 against UT Arlington.

UT ARLINGTON MAVERICKS
Overall Record: 23-20
Conference Record: 14-10
Last 5/Last 10: 2-3/5-5
Streak: Lost 3
Rankings: BA: NR/CB: NR/NCBWA: NR/ESPN: NR
Website: www.utamavs.com
Head Coach: Darin Thomas
Career Record: 49-51 (2 years)
Record at UTA: 49-51 (2 years)

OKLAHOMA STATE COWBOYS
Overall Record: 28-17
Conference Record: 6-11
Last 5/Last 10: 3-2/7-3
Streak: Lost 2
Rankings: NCBWA: #26/BA: NR/CB: NR/ESPN: NR
Website: www.okstate.com
Head Coach: Frank Anderson
Career Record: 227-125 (6 years)
Record at OSU: 227-125 (6 years)

First Pitch: Tuesday: 6:30 p.m.
Series History: OSU leads, 15-5
Last Meeting: UTA defeated OSU, 7-3 (Arlington) 4/15/08

Stadium: Allie P. Reynolds Stadium (Capacity: 4,000)
Dimensions: 330 (LF), 398 (CF), 330 (RF)
Live Stats: (GameTracker): www.utamavs.com
Press Box : (405) 744-5757

PROBABLE STARTERS

UT ARLINGTON
DayPitcher Cl. W-L ERA K/BB
Tues. Rett Varner (RHP) So. 2-1 2.57 30/16

OKLAHOMA STATE
DayPitcher Cl. W-L ERA K/BB
Tues. TBA N/A N/A N/A N/A

UT ARLINGTON LOOKS FOR SECOND BIG 12 WIN
- UT Arlington will look for its second win over a Big 12 opponent on Tuesday after the Mavs split a midweek series with then-No. 7 Baylor two weeks ago. The Mavericks are 7-12 on the road this season and 0-3 against Big 12 opponents on the road with losses against Texas (4-3, 10 inn.), Texas A&M (11-8) and Baylor (10-7).

MAVS NEED ONE WIN FOR .500 MONTH OF APRIL
- UT Arlington needs a victory on Tuesday to close out the month of April with a .500 overall record. The Mavericks posted a 6-6 Southland Conference record during the month and are currently 8-9 overall. The core of the Mavericks lineup has once again been the key to their success during the month as Andrew Kainer (.456), Matt Otteman (.413) and Michael Choice (.384) have all hit above .380 during the month and combine for 45 percent of the Mavericks hits during April. The Mavericks have also posted a strong fielding percentage in the month committing only 15 errors in 17 games with a .977 fielding percentage.

Darin Thomas LOOKS FOR 50TH CAREER WIN
- UT Arlington second-year head coach Darin Thomas is one win away from earning his 50th career victory as head coach of the Mavericks. UT Arlington's next victory will make Thomas the third Maverick coach to win his 50th game in his second season at the helm. Thomas has led UTA to a 23-20 record in 2009, a year after going 26-31 in 2008 - a win total that doubled the Mavs' total in 2007 (13-40). His 26 wins during his first season rank second in school history for most wins in a first season as head coach.

The following is a list of UT Arlington head coaches and how long it took for them to reach win No. 50 and their overall record when reaching the milestone.

Head Coach Games Record at 50 wins
Jeff Curtis 94 50-44 (2nd season)
Clay Gould 94 50-44 (2nd season)
Fred Matthews 96 50-46 (3rd season)
Butch McBroom 107 50-57 (3rd season)
* Tom Beasley (16-34 record in two season as head coach)

FEAST OR FAMINE ON THE ROAD FOR MAVERICKS
- UT Arlington started its Southland Conference schedule with three losses at Sam Houston State (Mar. 6-8). Then, the Mavericks bounced back sweeping Nicholls (Mar. 28-30) and Central Arkansas (Apr. 17-19) in consecutive road series. This past weekend the Mavericks were on the wrong end of a sweep at Stephen F. Austin (Apr. 24-26) giving the Mavs a 6-6 road record during SLC play.

KAINER EXTENDS HIT STREAK TO 30 GAMES
- Kainer's streak began on March 7, during game two of the Mavericks' first conference series at Sam Houston State. During his streak he has batted .435 (54-for-124) with 14 doubles, two home runs, eight walks and 12 stolen bases. He has posted 18 multi-hit games during his 30-game streak, including five games with three or more hits. In fact, Kainer has seven multi-hit games in his last 10 games played. In addition, Kainer's streak has spanned 32 team games, due to Kainer not recording an official plate appearance during the Mavericks' 10-inning, 6-5 win over Nicholls on March 29. Kainer left the game in the bottom of the first inning after diving for a ball in the right-center field gap and left the game due to an injury. Kainer then sat out the Mavericks' next game on the road at TCU (4/1).

UP NEXT FOR KAINER...
- Andrew Kainer is now chasing the all-time Southland Conference hitting streak record set by Brett Lockwood of Nicholls, who recorded a 34-game streak in 1996.

DOWN THE ROAD FOR KAINER...
- Way off in the distance for Kainer is the NCAA all-time hit streak record set by former Major League and Oklahoma State standout Robin Ventura, who set the record in 1987 with a 58-game hit streak.

CHOICE INVITED TO USA BASEBALL TEAM TRIALS
- Center fielder Michael Choice has been invited to the 2009 USA Baseball National Team Trials in Cary, N.C., USA Baseball officials announced Tuesday, April 21. Choice will join an elite group of 36 of the top collegiate, non-draft eligible players in the country who will compete for a spot on the 22-man USA Baseball National Team roster that will be announced June 24. Choice made the list of the 17 initial invitees that will report to the National Training Complex for the trials that are scheduled for June 15-24.

KAINER BREAKS ALL-TIME HIT STREAK RECORD
- Andrew Kainer became the first UT Arlington player ever to record a 27-game hit streak on Tuesday, April 21, as the senior went 2-for-5, including the record-breaking single to left field in the fourth inning to break the previous 26-game record set by current teammate Matt Otteman (2009) and the late Clay Gould (1993), who the Mavericks' home stadium is named after.

CHOICE BECOMES 6TH MAV TO HIT FOR CYCLE
- Michael Choice became the sixth UT Arlington player to hit for the cycle on Tuesday, April 21. Choice went 4-for-4 with three runs and five RBI against Northwood. He accomplished the rare feat by hitting a triple down the left-field line in the first, hitting a line-drive double in the left-center gap in the fifth, a single to left field in the sixth and completed the cycle with a line-drive home run to left field in the eighth.

UT ARLINGTON PLAYERS TO HIT FOR THE CYCLE
Name Opponent Date
Michael Choice vs. Northwood 4/21/2009
Kyle Thomason vs. Northwestern State 3/11/2006
Ian Gutierrez vs. TCU 4/7/1999
Rahn Smith vs. Texas Wesleyan 2/11/1998
Clay Gould vs. Oklahoma State 3/10/1993
Karl Heckendorn vs. Nicholls 3/7/1993

LONG SETS THE PACE FOR "K'S" IN THE SLC
- Nathan Long continues to lead the Southland Conference in strikeouts with 76 in 68.0 innings. Long's closest competitor is Red Patterson of UTSA who has 64 strikeouts in 69.1 innings. In fact, Long is the only pitcher in the Southland Conference to rank in the top five in strikeouts (1st) and also ERA (4th, 3.31). In addition, Long leads the SLC in strikeouts during league play with 64 in 53.2 innings pitched.

THE HITS AND THE RUNS JUST KEPT ON COMIN'
- UT Arlington scored a season-high 23 runs - only the second time since 2002 scoring over 20 runs - with a season best 22 base hits in its victory over Northwood. The Mavericks also scored 13 runs in the eighth inning, which marks the most runs in a single inning for UTA this season.

RARE COMPANY
- Andrew Kainer and Matt Otteman are only the third set of teammates in the nation (NCAA D-I) this season that have recorded a 20-game hit streak. Cal Poly and UT Martin also have teammates who have recorded 20-game streaks this season.

HASN'T HAPPENED SINCE 1994
- UT Arlington has swept two straight Southland Conference series, taking three from Nicholls (March 28-30) and sweeping their first ever meeting at Central Arkansas (April 17-19). The last time UT Arlington has swept back-to-back conference road series was in 1994 against Texas State and Louisiana-Monroe.

WIN OVER BAYLOR MARKS 22 OVER TOP 10 TEAMS
- UT Arlington has posted 22 victories over teams that have been ranked in the top 10 in the nation at the time of the contest. The Mavs added to their total with a 5-4 victory over Baylor (No. 7 - Baseball America) on Tuesday night at Clay Gould Ballpark. Last season, the Mavs grabbed a 16-8 victory over then-No. 7 Texas A&M at Clay Gould Ballpark (May 13).

04/14/09 vs. #7 Baylor 5-4
05/13/08 vs. #7 Texas A&M 16-8
04/11/06 @ #6 Texas 6-3
03/08/05 @ #9 Texas A&M 6-4
02/15/05 @ #8 Baylor 9-6
01/26/01 @ #6 Arizona State 5-3
02/19/94 vs. #6 Oklahoma State 6-4
04/06/93 vs. #2 Texas A&M 8-6
03/10/93 vs. #8 Oklahoma State 26-13
03/28/92 @ #5 Texas 5-4
02/21/89 @ #7 Texas 2-0
03/05/88 vs. #10 Oklahoma 5-4
03/06/88 vs. #10 Oklahoma 11-10
02/16/85 @ #3 Texas 14-13
02/17/85 @ #3 Texas 7-1
02/19/83 @ #1 Texas 10-6
02/20/83 @ #1 Texas 8-5
03/20/81 @ #5 Texas 6-1
02/27/76 vs. #7 Oral Roberts 6-4
02/27/76 vs. #7 Oral Roberts 5-3
02/28/76 vs. #7 Oral Roberts 9-1
02/20/76 @ #10 TCU 3-0

Michael Choice NAMED SLC HITTER OF THE WEEK
- Michael Choice was named Southland Conference Hitter of the Week on Monday, April 13, giving him his second SLC hitter of the week award this season. Choice batted .526 with five extra-base hits, including a pair of two-run homers against Oral Roberts, and tallied six RBI and eight runs scored. Choice posted a 3-for-5 performance and a 4-for-5 game against McNeese State as he helped the Mavs to two victories and their fourth series win of the season. The selection is the fourth for the Mavericks this season - most for any team in the SLC - after Choice (twice), Nathan Long and Andy Sauter have been honored.

GOT TIME FOR ONE MORE?
- The Mavericks have played eight extra-inning games this season, recording a 4-4 record in games exceeding nine innings. All of the Mavericks' extra-inning games have been 10 inning games. UTA has defeated four conference opponents in extra-innings (UTSA, Northwestern State, McNeese State, Central Arkansas) and lost non-conference games to No. 4 Texas and Oral Roberts and fell 2-1 at home to McNeese State and 4-3 at Stephen F. Austin. The Mavericks played only one extra-inning game last season, defeating Texas State 6-5 in 10 innings in game-one of a three-game series.

FIRST TIME SINCE 1990...
- UTA suffered a 1-0 shutout on Saturday, April 4, against Southeastern Louisiana and then blanked the Lions 9-0 on Sunday. It was the first time since UTA's SLC title season in 1990 that the Mavericks played in back-to-back shutout contests against the same opponent and picked up a win and a loss in the two games.

1-0 SHUTOUTS A RARE FOR MAVS AT HOME
- The Mavericks' 1-0 shutout loss against Southeastern Louisiana was their first shutout this season and their first time not scoring a run in 38 games dating back to last season's 3-0 loss at home against Nicholls. But what was even rarer was the Mavericks losing 1-0 at Clay Gould Ballpark. UT Arlington hadn't been shutout 1-0 at home since Louisiana Tech came in and knocked off the Mavericks 1-0 on March 15, 1986.

FEWEST RUNS ALLOWED IN AN SLC SERIES SINCE 2006
- UT Arlington limited Southeastern Louisiana to nine runs, marking the least amount of runs allowed by the Mavericks in a three-game Southland Conference series since holding Stephen F. Austin to just three runs in a road series, March 31-April 2, 2006. UTA knocked off SFA 6-0 in game one, 2-0 in game two and finished the sweep with a 5-3 win. UTA allowed Southeastern eight runs in the opener, one run in the second game and shut them out in the final game.

OTTEMAN'S STREAK: LONGEST IN NCAA TO START SEASON
- Matt Otteman had at least one base hit in all of the Mavericks' first 26 games this season, that streak ended on Wednesday, April 1, as Otteman went 0-for-3 with an intentional walk against No. 22 TCU in Fort Worth. The streak ties him with Louisiana Tech's Kevin Winn for the longest in the NCAA D-I to start the 2009 season. Otteman batted .459 (50-for-109) during the 26-game streak that lasted during the opening 40 days of the season (Feb. 20-Apr.1).

LONG NAMED A NATIONAL PLAYER OF THE WEEK
- Senior Nathan Long was named a Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper on Monday, March 30, after striking out 15 batters - the most by an SLC pitcher this season - against Nicholls last weekend in Thibodaux. Long's 15 strikeouts were one away from tying the school record that was set by Roger Lancaster in 1997 against UTSA. Long's efforts led the Mavs to a 7-2 win over Nicholls.

LONG GIVES THE MAVS 3 SLC PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
- Nathan Long was also named the Southland Conference Pitcher of the Week on Monday, March 30, after his 15 strikeout performance against Nicholls. It is the second straight week the Mavericks have had the SLC Pitcher of the Week.

LONG NAMED TO NATIONAL ALL-STAR LINEUP
- Nathan Long was named to the College Baseball Foundation National All-Star Lineup as one of the top 13 players - eight pitchers - from this past week. Long's 15 strikeout performance against Nicholls has earned him three awards this week.

UT ARLINGTON COLLECTS 1,100TH ALL-TIME WIN
- UT Arlington's 6-5 win in game one of the Mavs' doubleheader sweep over Nicholls was its program's 1,100th all-time win.

CHOICE VS. NATIONALLY-RANKED OPPONENTS
- Michael Choice is now batting .455 (15-for-33) against nationally-ranked teams this season. On April 1 he continued his success against the top-25 going 3-for-4 against No. 11 TCU in Fort Worth. In College Station, Choice went 2-for-3 with a double and RBI against No. 11 Texas A&M after going 3-for-5 with a run and RBI in the series finale against No. 25 Minnesota on March 18. Choice went 4-for-5 against No. 11 TCU on March 3 and went 2-for-5 against No. 4 Texas on Feb. 24 with three RBI, a game-tying double and go-ahead solo home run in the top of the 10th inning.

THE BEST IN THE METROPLEX
- Michael Choice has proved his ability to college baseball followers and fans in the Metroplex this season going 7-for-9 against cross-town rival TCU. Choice's .778 batting average against the nationally-ranked Horned Frogs came in a 4-for-5 effort in Arlington and a 3-for-4 outing at Lupton Stadium in Fort Worth.

SWEEPING THE NICHOLLS COLONELS
- The Mavs' three wins against Nicholls marks their first sweep over the Colonels in Thibodaux since 1999, and their first sweep over Nicholls since 2006 when they won three games in Arlington. UT Arlington has only swept Nicholls three times in their 19-year SLC history.

LONG MOVES INTO 5TH ON ALL-TIME STRIKEOUT LIST
- Nathan Long's eight strikeouts against Stephen F. Austin moves him into 5th place all-time on the UTA career strikeout list with 201. Long jumps former Maverick Dillon Gee (198, 2005-07) and now trails Pierce Loveless (202, 1999-2003) by only one strikeout for fourth place. Below is a look at the all-time career strikeout list.

Name (Years) Total
1. Lonnie Salyers (1970-73) 279
2. Jimmy Stewart (1970-73) 225
3. Fred Wilburn (1980-83) 209
4. Pierce Loveless (1999-2003) 202
5. Nathan Long (2006-Present) 201
6. Dillon Gee (2005-07) 198

CHOICE TURNS IT ON AGAINST BIG 12 OPPONENTS
- Michael Choice is now batting .405 (17-for-42) with five doubles, three home runs and 12 RBI against Big 12 opponents in 10 games during his brief career. He is now 6-for-7 in two career games against Texas A&M. In his first game against Texas A&M last season (May 13), Choice went 4-for-4 with two runs scored, a double, a three-run home run and tied a career-high with five RBI. This season, Choice went 2-for-3 with a double and one RBI against No. 11 Texas A&M in College Station. He also went 2-for-5 with a double, home run and three RBI against No. 4 Texas in Austin.

FIRST TIME SINCE 1996...
- The Mavericks shutout Northwestern State in games one and three of their three-game series, marking the first time since 1996 that UTA has shutout a conference opponent twice in a home series. In 1996, UTA tallied three shutouts at home against Sam Houston State (9-0, 7-0, 9-0). The last time the Mavs had two shutouts in a conference series came on the road in 2006 against Stephen F. Austin (Game 1: 6-0; Game 2: 2-0).

FIRST TIME IN OVER 25 YEARS...
- The Mavericks swept No. 25 Minnesota with a 6-2 win on Tuesday and a 12-5 win on Wednesday, marking the first time UT Arlington has swept a top 25 opponent in a series in over 25 years.

SAUTER NAMED SLC PITCHER OF THE WEEK
- Andy Sauter was named the Southland Conference Pitcher of the Week on Monday, March 23. Sauter received pitcher of the week honors after tossing his first career complete-game shutout, limiting Northwestern State to three base hits in the 1 hour, 55 minute game. The Demons had six base runners during the contest, none of which advanced past first base. Sauter struck out six batters and walked one in the victory.

WELCOME TO CLAY GOULD BALLPARK!
- The Mavs have dominated their opponents at home this season, as UTA has posted an 15-6 record with a .348 batting average and 3.16 ERA. UTA has out hit its opponents 260-180 and has 67 extra-base hits while opposing teams have 35. The UTA pitching staff has enjoyed success at home allowing opponents to hit just .255. Three of the Mavs top pitchers at home have been Rett Varner (2-0, 0.76 ERA, 23.2 IP, 20 K), Ryan Robinson (1-1, 2.57 ERA, 21.0 IP, 11 K) and Matt Otteman (2-1, 1.42 ERA, 12.2 IP, 22 K)

CHOICE NAMED SLC HITTER OF THE WEEK
- Mavericks center fielder Michael Choice was named the Southland Conference Hitter of the Week after the first week of the season on Feb. 24. Choice started the season batting .529 (9-for-17) with a double, triple, home run and nine RBI to help the Mavs go 3-1. Choice went 1-for-3 on Opening Day with a three-run home run that helped the Mavs rally to a 5-4 victory over Arkansas State. In the final game of the week, Choice led all players going 4-for-5 with four RBI against Siena.

CHOICE NAMED TO SLC PRESEASON LISTS
- Sophomore center fielder Michael Choice has been named a Southland Conference preseason first team All-Conference selection by league head coaches and SIDs. Choice was one of 12 first team selections that the Southland Conference announced when releasing its preseason first and second team lists. Choice was the only sophomore named to the first team. Choice was then named to the Baseball America and Rivals.com preseason All-Conference team, as both publications previewed the Southland Conference.

CHOICE NAMED TO WALLACE WATCH LIST
- After being named to five Freshman All-American lists in 2008, sophomore center fielder Michael Choice was named to the 2009 Preseason Brooks Wallace Player of the Year Watch List. The Wallace Award is presented annually to the nation's top collegiate player.