CLEVELAND, Miss. -- Delta State University (20-10,13-5 GSC) hosts a three-game Gulf South Conference series against Christian Brothers University (7-23, 1-17 GSC) starting with a doubleheader on Saturday and a single Sunday at 2 p.m. each day.

The Statesmen enter the weekend on a seven-game GSC winning streak and have won eight of their last nine games. DSU is 13-5 in the GSC, tied for second with West Florida and trails UWA 15-3.

SCOUTING THE BUCS
Christian Brothers has lost five straight and are 2-8 in their last 10 contests entering the series.  The Bucs lost a three-game series to West Florida last weekend and dropped a midweek game to Divisoin III Rhodes College, 8-7, on Wednesday.

Lucas Castleberry leads CBU with a .344 average followed by Casey Goodwin with a .333 average. Michael Halley boasts a .304 average and a team-high16 RBIs. Caleb Goodwin leads in doubles  with six.

CBU is hitting .240 as a team with 38 doubles, three triples and three home runs. The Bucs have been outscored 218-114 this season and are fielding .953 as a team.

Jack Parker and Peyton Sanderlin have started eight and seven games on the mound. Parker leads the pitching staff with 44 strikoeuts while Sanderlin has 30 strikeouts.  

FAST STARTS
The Statesmen have outscored their opponents 33-8 in the first inning. DSU is 11-3 when scoring in the first inning and 14-5 when scoring first.  The Statesmen have outscored opponents 33-10 in the first two innings.

THE CLOSE ONES
Delta State is 8-4 in games decided by two runs or less. The Statesmen are 6-3 in one-run games and 2-2 in games decided by two runs.

PLUNKED!
The Statesmen have been hit by a pitch 54 times this season, ranking second in the GSC and seventh nationally.  Coker University leads the NCAA with 60 while West Georgia leads the GSC with 57. Ethan Gill and Will Robertson have been hit 10 times and are tied for fourth in the GSC. Brandon Cummins and Jacob Swiney are tied for sixth in the GSC with seven.

TWO OUT ATTACK
The Green-and-White has scored 17 of its last 39 runs with two outs and are hitting .299 (90-of-301) with two outs. DSU scored 9-of-18 runs in the UNA series with two outs and its lone run against Henderson State came with two outs in the third inning on Wednesday.

K FACTOR
Delta State's pitching staff has recorded 70 strikeouts in its last eight games. Statesmen hurlers recoded 13 strikeouts against Alabama-Huntsville (3.20) and 12 against Southern Arkansas (3.16) and North Alabama (4.26).   

Dalton Moats has 22 strikeouts in his last two starts including a career-high 12 against North Alabama (4.26) and 10 against Alabama Huntsville (3.26).  Moats has recorded nine or more strikeouts in his last three starts, including 10 twice.  The junior leads the GSC and ranks 10th in the NCAA with 61 strikeouts.

Tre Hobbs has 14 strikeouts in two seven inning starts, posting eight strikeouts against Alabama Huntsville  (3.19) and six against North Alabama (3.25). The junior lefty ranks ninth in the GSC with 46 strikeouts and 57th nationlly.

Junior Jacob Howell recorded a career-high seven strikeouts over six innings against Henderson State (3.29). DSU finished the day with nine strikeouts.

EXTRA, EXTRA
The Statesmen rank third in the GSC with 104 extra base hits behind Lee University (126) and West Alabama (110).  Valdosta State (91) is fourth followed by Alabama Huntsville (90), West Georgia (90), North Alabama (78), Shorter (70), West Florida (66), Union (57) and Christian Brothers (41).  Trent Giambrone leads the Statesmen with 21 extra base hits (13 doubles, 1 triple and seven home runs while senior Will Robertson follows with 16 extra base hits (14 doubles and three home runs.

DOUBLE THE FUN
Delta State is second in the GSC and 29th nationally with 52 doubles. Will Robertson's 14 doubles is second in the GSC and 11th nationally. Trent Giambrone has 13 doubles and is third in the GSC and 23 in the NCAA. Ethan Gill follows is tied for fourth in the GSC with 12 doubles.

CUMMINS LEADS GSC IN TRIPLES
Senior centerfielder Brandon Cummins's four triples lead the GSC and ranks 20th nationally Cummins is tied for fifth with nine career triples. Jacob Swiney has two triples and Trent Giambrone has one. The Statesmen rank fifth in the GSC with eigth triples.  

THE LONG BALL
The Statesmen are fourth in the GSC and 45th in the NCAA with 20 home runs. DSU hit a season-high seven home runs in game one against Lee University (2.27.16).  Eight of the total are lead off home runs, six have come with two outs and nine have happened in the sixth inning or later.  Trent Giambrone (7), Ben Pickard (7) and Colton Welch (5) lead the Statesmen.  Four of Giambrone's seven home runs have led off an inning.

MISSION COMPLETE
The Statesmen have 11 complete games in 18 GSC games this season. Tre Hobbs has six straight complete games and is 5-1 during the stretch.  Dalton Moats has three complete games in his last four starts and is 3-0. Justin Vincent has two complete games (Lee 2.27/Alabama Huntsville/3.19).

BETTER AT THE END
Jake Brumfield's move to the bullpen has paid dividends so far. Brumfield recorded his first career save against North Alabama (2.25) and is 1-0 in his first three relief appearances.  The senior has a 0.00 ERA with five strikeouts, one walk and has not allowed a run in 3.2 innings since his move to the bullpen.  In his last 5.2 innings, Brumfield has a 0.00 ERA with nine strikeouts, no runs on two hits that includes one start and three relief appearances.

STATESMEN IN NCBWA REGION POLL
Delta State is ranked second in this week's National Collegeiate Baseball Writers Poll (NCBWA) and is ranked 14th in the NCBWA National Poll.  

1.     West Alabama       
2.     Delta State           
3.     Tampa                  
4.     Florida Southern    
5.     West Florida    
6.     Lynn     
7.     Nova Southeastern   
8.     Valdsota State
9.     Florida Tech
10.   Alabama Huntsville

FIVE STATESMEN TO OPEN SPRING WITH MLB CLUBS
Delta State Baseball will have five active players and one coach open Spring Training this February with MLB clubs. Witt Haggard (Mets) and Drew Milligan (Royals), a pair of 2015 draftees, and Garrett Pickens (Blue Jays) and Carlos Leal (Brewers) have reported to Minor League training, while Brent Leach (Dodgers), who recently signed a contract with L.A., is awaiting assignment.

NOTEWORTHY

• Strength Of Schedule The Statesmen has the strongest strength of schedule in the GSC and the 30th strongest in NCAA Divsion II.  West Florida is 35th followed by Valdosta State (49th), West Georgia (58th), Lee (65th), North Alabama (88th), Alabama Huntsville (95th) and West Alabama (116th).
• We Are Going Streaking: Colton Welch is currently riding a six-game hitting streak entering the weekend. Welch is hitting .319 with five doubles and five home runs.
• Multiple RBI Games: Will Robertson leads the team with 10 multi-RBI games followed by Ben Pickard with nine.  Trent Giambrone and Jacob Swiney with eight.
• Striking Out The Opposition: LHP Dalton Moats is first in the GSC and 10th in the NCAA with 49 strikeouts.
• Multi-Hit Games: Left fielder Will Robertson leads the Statesmen with 19 multi-hit games this season. The Falkner, Miss., native has 14 two-hit performances and five three-hit outings. Trent Giambrone is second with 14 multi-hit games, while Brandon Cummins has 13. Ben Pickard and Jacob Swiney have 10 each.
• RISP Production: Ethan Gill (.438/14-of-32) and Trent Giambrone (.400/10-of-25) are batting .400 or better with runners in scoring position followed by  Will Robertson (.382/13-of-34) and Ben Pickard (.359/14-for-39).
• Will Robertson and Erick Santiago are two of the toughest batters to strikeout ranking third and fifth in the GSC through 30 games. Santiago has six strikeouts in 100 plate appearances (19.5 at bats) while Robertson has struck out six times in 136 plate appearances (18.7 at bats).
• Ben Pickard has reached base safely in 14 consecutive games for the Statesmen. The senior from Biloxi, Miss., is batting .327 and is tied for the team lead with seven home runs and 29 RBIs.
• Dakota Glore is 16-for-24 (.667) this season when attempting to advance runners on base. He is also 3-for-4 (.600) in pinch-hit opportunities.  
• The Statesmen hold the distinction of being the most successful baseball program in Gulf South Conference history. DSU owns an all-time record of 1,902-932-11 and a 555-202-1 mark in league play. Delta State owns 12 Gulf South Conference titles, including five under head coach Mike Kinnison.
• The Statesmen have made 29 NCAA postseason appearances, claiming 11 regional championships and the 2004 NCAA Division II National Championship.
• Former Statesman head coach Dave "Boo" Ferriss, a member of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame and Boston Red Sox Hall of Fame, was a standout pitcher for Mississippi State and the Red Sox. His injury-shortened professional career included the 1945 American League Rookie of the Year Award, three 20-win seasons, and a career record of 65-30. He still holds a share of the MLB record for consecutive victories with 13.