Game 1: Wichita State (6-9) vs. Rhode Island (2-8)
Friday, March 15 | 6 p.m. | Wichita, Kan. (Eck Stadium, Home of Tyler Field)
TV: COX YurView Kansas (Steve Strain, pxp)
Radio: KNSS 98.7 FM/1330 AM (Shane Dennis, pxp)
Promotions: Koozie giveaway - Eck Stadium koozie giveaway to the first 500 fans!
Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats

Games 2-3: Wichita State vs. Rhode Island
Saturday, March 16 | 1 p.m. (DH) | Wichita, Kan. (Eck Stadium, Home of Tyler Field)
TV: COX YurView Kansas (Steve Strain, pxp)
Radio: KNSS 98.7 FM/1330 AM (Shane Dennis, pxp)
Promotions: First Responders Day - FREE admission for all fire, EMT and police!
Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats (Game 1) | Live Stats (Game 2)

Game 4: Wichita State vs. Rhode Island
Sunday, March 17 | Noon | Wichita, Kan. (Eck Stadium, Home of Tyler Field)
TV: COX YurView Kansas (Steve Strain, pxp)
Radio: KNSS 98.7 FM/1330 AM (Shane Dennis, pxp)
Promotions: St. Patrick's Day - $5 admission when you wear GREEN to the game!
Live Video | Live Audio | Live Stats

Game Notes | 2019 Fact Book | @GoShockersBSB

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            SCENE SETTER: Wichita State baseball (6-9) welcomes the University of Rhode Island Rams (2-8) to Eck Stadium. Home of Tyler Field, for a four-game series March 15-17. The series opener is slated for 6 p.m. Friday, March 15, with a doubleheader scheduled for 1 p.m. Saturday, March 16. The series finale is slated for noon Sunday, March 17.
 
            MEDIA COVERAGE: Television - All four games of the series will air on COX YurView Kansas (channels HD 2022 Friday and Sunday, and HD 2122 Saturday) with Steve Strain calling the action ... Live video - A free, live stream of the series will be available at YurView.com/Kansas ... Radio - KNSS 98.7 FM/1330 AM will carry all four games in the series, with Pizza Hut Shockers Sports Hall of Famer and former WSU standout pitcher Shane Dennis providing play-by-play ... Live audio - Free, live audio will be available for every game at GoShockers.com/listen ... Additional coverage - Live stats will be available for every game at ShockerStats.com.
 
            SERIES RECORD: The four-game series against the Rams will mark the inaugural four meetings between the two programs in the all-time series.
 
            CATCHING UP WITH THE SHOCKERS: Wichita State is 6-9 overall entering the weekend after defeating Oral Roberts, 8-2, in a midweek game on Tuesday, March 12, at Eck Stadium ... Through 15 games, WSU is paced at the plate by senior infielders Luke Ritter (.407 avg., 15 R, 24 H, 5 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 12 RBI, .627 SLG%, 8 BB, .514 OB%, 4 SB) and Jordan Boyer (.404 avg., 13 R, 21 H, 3 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 9 RBI, 6 BB, .508 OB%, 2 SB), sophomore outfielder Hunter Gibson (.340 avg., 9 R, 16 H, 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 12 RBI, 9 BB, 2 SB) and freshman infielder Brady Slavens (.409 avg., 5 R, 9 H, 3 2B, 6 RBI, 3 BB) ... Ritter and Boyer are second and third in The American in hitting, while Gibson is 10th, respectively ... On the mound, the Shockers are led by junior right-handed starter Preston Snavely (5.48 ERA, 1-2, 23.0 IP, 25 H, 15 R, 14 ER, 10 BB, 24 SO) and right-handed reliever/closer Mitchell Walters (1.69 ERA, 0-1, 2 SV, 5.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 5 SO) ... As a team, Wichita State is hitting .286 with a 6.85 ERA and .956 fielding percentage.
 
            ABOUT THE RAMS: The Rhode Island Rams enter the weekend with an overall mark of 2-8 after being swept in a four-game series at UT Rio Grande Valley March 1-3 in Edinburg, Texas ... Rhode Island has dropped its last six contests ... The Rams were picked to finish seventh out of 13 teams in the A-10 preseason coaches' poll ... After 10 contests, Rhode Island is led offensively by sophomore first baseman/outfielder Jackson Coutts (.325 avg., 2 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 6 RBI, 5 BB) ... On the mound, the Rams are paced by sophomore right-hander Ryan Twitchell (4.09 ERA, 0-1, 11.0 IP, 14 H, 7 R, 5 ER, 0 BB, 11 SO) ... As a team, Rhody is hitting .236 with a 7.29 ERA and .948 fielding percentage ... The Rams are under the leadership of fifth season head coach Raphael Cerrato.
 
            SLAVENS SURGING: In his last four games, freshman infielder Brady Slavens is hitting a scorching .600, going 6-for-10 with a pair of doubles and four RBI. During that stretch, he has a .800 slugging and .667 on-base percentage. In the Shockers' 8-2 win over Oral Roberts Tuesday, Slavens went a perfect 3-of-3 at the plate with a ground-rule double, run and three RBI.
 
            NOTABLE STREAKS: Luke Ritter is riding a 27-game on-base streak dating back to last season (has reached base safely in all 15 games in 2019) ... Paxton Wallace is riding a team-best eight-game hitting streak ... Jordan Boyer has reached base successfully in all 14 games he has played in this season, while Wallace is on an 12-game reached base safely streak, and Mason O'Brien has reached base successfully in his last 10 contests.   
 
            PLATE CONSISTENCY: Luke Ritter is hitting a team-best .407 with 24 hits in 59 at bats and has five doubles, a triple, and two homers, going along with 12 RBI, a .627 slugging percentage and .514 on-base percentage. He has reached base safely in 27 consecutive contests dating back to last season. Entering the weekend, Ritter ranks second in The American in hitting.  
 
            HOT START: Jordan Boyer is off to the best start of his career at the plate. The Oklahoma City native is hitting .404 with 21 hits, including three doubles, a triple and homer, in 14 games and 52 at bats, going along with nine RBI and six walks. He ranks third in The American going into Friday's opener against Rhode Island.
 
            GIBSON HEATING UP: Hunter Gibson is hitting .429 with six hits in 14 at bats in his last four games. The Oologah, Okla., native has a double, triple, homer and three RBI during that span, going along with a blistering .857 slugging percentage.
 
            MILESTONE WATCH: Clayton McGinness is just five strikeouts away from 100 career Ks ... Luke Ritter is 12 RBI shy of 100 for his career, and currently is tied for third in career hit by pitch, having been hit 26 times.
 
            WEEKLY HONORS:  Luke Ritter was named to the American Athletic Conference's Weekly Honor Roll for the week of Feb. 18-24. It's his fourth career honor roll appearance.  
 
            NEW FACES: The Shockers have 21 newcomers to the program in 2019, including 19 freshmen and two junior college transfers. The freshmen on the active roster include Aaron Haase (RHP/UT), Calvin Marley (RHP/OF), Miller Pleimann (RHP), Connery Peters (RHP), Adam Stephenson (OF/LHP), Carson Cox (OF), David VanVooren (OF), Seth Morrow (OF), Ryan Koval (OF), Cal Carver (LHP), Brady Slavens (INF), Cooper Elliot (INF), Jack Sigrist (INF), Josh Killeen (C) and Jake Plastiak (3B). WSU's two junior college transfers are sophomore Tristan McCraw (RHP) and junior Mitchell Walters (RHP). Freshmen Jack Brimacombe (RHP), Reece Koon (LHP), Quinten Albrecht (C) and Mason Miller (C) are redshirting in 2019.
 
            PRESEASON HONORS: Senior infielder Luke Ritter was voted to the American Athletic Conference's preseason all-conference team. He is also ranked 31st on the D1 Baseball's list of 2019 Top Senior Prospects and 15th on the organization's preseason second base power rankings list. Fellow senior, right-hander Clayton McGinness, is ranked 65th on the D1 Baseball Top Senior Prospects list.
 
            UP NEXT: The Shockers host the Kansas Jayhawks in a midweek contest March 20, before opening American Athletic Conference play with a three-game series at Eck Stadium against the Memphis Tigers March 22-24.
 
            THE COACH: Todd Butler is in his sixth season as the head coach of the Wichita State University baseball team. He came to WSU in June 2013 after spending the previous eight seasons as the hitting instructor, outfield coach and recruiting coordinator at the University of Arkansas. During Butler's 26-year tenure as a NCAA Division I assistant or head coach, he has guided his teams to five College World Series appearances and four NCAA super regionals. In addition, his teams have been ranked No. 1 five times in his career. He has coached a combined 35 All-Americans and Freshman All-Americans, 167 players drafted in the MLB Draft and 45 Major League players. In his tenure at WSU, Butler has coached 26 student-athletes who were drafted, and five players who combined for 10 All-American and Freshman All-American honors. He played his college ball at McNeese State (1985-86) and Oklahoma (1987-88). A team captain for the Sooners in 1988, Butler still holds the OU single-season record for stolen bases with 46 steals in 1988, including 26 consecutive successful stolen base attempts. Butler was a third-team All-American in 1988 and also earned All-Big Eight Conference honors and all-region honors. He played on two NCAA Tournament teams for the Sooners for legendary coach Enos Semore. Butler's coaching career began as a student-assistant coach at McNeese State, where he earned his bachelor's degree in liberal studies in 1991. He was born in Alexandria, La., and is married to the former Melissa Borrel. The couple has two daughters, Caitlyn and Kendyll.