Box Score Despite 14 of its first 21 games coming against teams ranked in the preseason NAIA Top 25, Patrick McCarthy's Faulkner baseball team has continued its strong start to the season. Following Wednesday afternoon's 3-0 victory over 14th-ranked Tennessee Wesleyan, the Eagles were 17-4 and riding an eight-game win streak. The Eagles are 10-4 against teams in the poll. The first regular season rankings come out next week.
Faulkner's two-game sweep of Tennessee Wesleyan came despite having three starters out of the lineup. The Eagles opened Southern States Athletic Conference play last weekend, sweeping a road three-game series from Middle Georgia State. McCarthy's team will host Blue Mountain (Miss.) Thursday and Friday in a series moved up a day and from Mississippi in an effort to dodge inclement weather. Thursday's single game will start at 6 p.m. at Harrison Field, with Friday's doubleheader set for a 1 p.m. first pitch.
"We're playing solid baseball right now, and I think the schedule we've faced has our confidence up," McCarthy said. "It's a marathon not a sprint, however, and obviously we have a long way to go. We're not far out of the gate, but I am pleased with how these guys have responded early on."
In Wednesday's victory, starting pitcher Phillip Anderson was brilliant, allowing just four hits in the complete-game victory. The hard-throwing right-hander struck out 11 Bulldog batters. Dennis Morton's two-run homer in the second inning provided all the runs the Eagles would need, although Alexis Cruz doubled in an insurance run in the seventh. Deivy Palmeiro had two of Faulkner's five hits in the game.
Faulkner has six regulars hitting over .300 – Darrius Jennings (.489), David Palenzuela (.406), T.J. Condon (.383, currently out with an injured hand), Mario Amaral (.375), Nick Cain (.333) and Alexis Cruz (.306). The Eagles are hitting .320 as a team, and have already hit 26 home runs in averaging more than seven runs a game. Amaral leads the way with five homers, while Cain and Cruz have four apiece. Amaral's 26 RBIs also leads the team.
McCarthy's pitchers have also shined, recording a team ERA of 2.95. Mark Vasquez is 4-0 in five starts, and has a team-best 1.78 ERA among starters. Victor Arche has six starts and leads the team in victories with five.
