ROCHESTER, Mich. - The Oakland University baseball team is set to host its first pair of home games as Rochester University, along with Cleary University, visit the Oakland Baseball Field Tuesday (March 12) and Wednesday (March 13), respectively, before it heads to NKU Friday (March 15) for a weekend series.
 
The Golden Grizzlies (4-10, 0-0 HL) fell this past weekend against the UTRGV Vaqueros as it grabbed Saturday's match, but fell Friday and Sunday.
 
The team narrowly fell in its opener against UTRGV, 6-4, but answered back in a big way as it tallied 11 runs to even the series the following day. In the win, Erik Larsen led the Golden Grizzlies with a trio of hits, along with a trio of RBI, as he tallied one of Oakland's three doubles. Shane McAlinden earned the win in the midday contest as he struck out four with two earned in 3.2 innings pitched. The Golden Grizzlies fell in the rubber match, 8-3, as a late ninth inning rally wasn't enough to drop the series.
 
Ian Cleary leads the team with 20 hits, while Lucas Day paces the Golden Grizzlies in RBI with his 14. The Golden Grizzlies get outhit, 167-141, as it has given up 15 more home runs than it has hit. On the bump, Brandon Decker holds a 1-2 record with 22.2 innings pitched and has given up 27 hits with 21 earned. In total, Oakland has struck out 85 batters with 54 walks and hold its opponents to a .337 batting average.
 
SCOUTING THE WARRIORS
The Rochester Christian University Warriors (8-9, 0-0 WHAC) have streaked this season as it has gone on a four-game losing streak, along with a four-game win streak, and will enter Tuesday's game off a loss.
 
The Golden Grizzlies have played the Warriors five times and are 4-1 in that span. The sole loss came in 2011 as all five games were played at Oakland. In just the handful of games, the Golden Grizzlies have outscored the Warriors, 71-23, as it hit big in its matchup last season.
 
The team exploded for 14 runs in the first inning and didn't look back as the short, seven inning game saw Golden Grizzlies runs in all but one inning. Seven Oakland players had at least two RBI, while Ian Cleary led all current Golden Grizzlies with five RBI. Brandon Nigh also had a good showing as he tallied five hits with four RBI.
 
The Warriors hold a slight edge in total hits, as it has laid down 139 opposed to its opponents 136, and has tallied 48 extra-base hits. In the 48 is 35 doubles and 11 home runs as the team's been struck out 146 times.
 
Lucas Bateman leads the charge for the Warriors with 16 hits as Raymond Perez III has batted in 17 batters this season. He's tallied one of the teams two triples on the year and has the second most home runs with three. Only three Warriors have played in all 17 games this season as Bateman leads on the pads with eight stolen bases.
 
Ryan Polega leads the team with his three wins as he's started five games with just one loss. In 23.0 innings pitched, he's given up 27 hits and 18 earned runs, while striking out a team-high 24 batters.
 
First pitch from the Oakland Baseball Field is slated for 2:30 Tuesday, March 12.
 
SCOUTING THE COUGARS
The Cleary University Cougars (2-8, 0-0 WHAC) will enter Wednesday's games on a five-game losing streak as its last win came in February. The Cougars opened up its season with a win over Pikeville, 6-2, in seven innings, but have lost every series since. The team will hit the field for the first time in 10 days when it visits Oakland as a weekend series this past weekend was canceled due to weather conditions.
 
This marks the first matchup between the two teams as Oakland is set to take on two different opponents back-to-back at home for the only time this season.
 
In its ten games, the Cougars have totaled 40 runs with a pair of home runs and have a .244 batting average as a whole. The team allows an opposing batting average of .327 as the team has tallied 11 doubles and a sole triple on the year. The Cougars strike out significantly more than its opponents as a total of 75 get sent back to the dugout from the dish, while Cleary has struck out only 49.
 
Ben Cerven leads the Cougars from the plate with 10 hits and is the sole player on the team with a triple. In total, Cerven has four extra base hits with a pair of doubles and one of the teams two home runs, and is tied for the team-lead in runs batted in with four.
 
Nate Raniszewski leads the Cougars with a 1-1 record with 17.2 innings pitched. He's tied for the team lead with 14 K's and has only walked four batters with a 5.09 ERA. The only other pitcher on the team with a win is Will Roberts, also 1-1, as he's sent seven back to the dugout from the plate in 8.1 innings pitched.
 
First pitch from the Oakland Baseball Field is slated for 2:30 Wednesday, March 13.
 
SCOUTING THE NORSE
The Northern Kentucky Norse (7-8, 0-0 HL) face off against Dayton Tuesday (March 12) before it plays host to the Golden Grizzlies. Currently, the Norse are on a three-game win streak and recently won a series against Missouri of the SEC. The team went cold early as it dropped five-straight, but have rallied back with five wins in its last seven games.
 
The Golden Grizzlies look to even things up against the Norse as its 21-23 against the team, dating back to 2016. On the road, Oakland is 10-14 while the teams have split its last 10 games. Last season, the Golden Grizzlies were swept when it visited NKU, but got it back as it took its home series when the Norse visited Rochester. The team also took care of business in the Horizon League Tournament and defeated the Norse, 13-8, to advance in the tournament. NKU holds a slight lead in the run category as it averages 7.2 runs per game compared to Oakland's 7.05 per game.
 
The Norse get outhit by its opposition by one hit, 159-158, as the team has tallied 24 home runs on the season. In total, NKU has added 62 extra base hits with 31 doubles and seven triples. The team has struck out 115 times and have struck out its opposition 128 times, as the pitching core holds a 9.02 ERA.
 
Liam McFadden-Ackman leads the team with 24 hits and 29 RBI, as he has tacked on nine home runs and seven doubles, both a team-high, with a .414 batting average. He's also one of two on the team that has played and started in all 15 games this season, as Cleary Simpson is the only other player with 15 starts. Jake Paulick leads the team in batting average with a .488 average off 21 hits.
 
On the bump, Ben Carl holds a perfect 2-0 record and is second on the team with 7.32 ERA in four games and 19.2 innings pitched. Tanner Gillis, who is 2-1 on the season, has struck out 26 on the year for a team-high.
 
First pitch from the Bill Aker Baseball Complex is slated for 2:00 p.m. Friday, March 15.