Baseball | 4/20/2017 10:40:00 AM

The Mercyhurst baseball team takes on crosstown rival Gannon this weekend in a pair of Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West Division doubleheaders on April 21-22. The Lakers host the Golden Knights Friday with the action starting at 1 p.m. and travel downtown to Gannon on Saturday also at 1 p.m.
 
Scouting The Golden Knights
Gannon enters the weekend with a 16-18 overall record, including a 6-10 mark in the PSAC West. The Golden Knights rank sixth in the division and have lost their last three, including a doubleheader loss to Malone on Wednesday.

Gannon's lineup features three hitters with batting averages over .350. Kyle Cox leads the Golden Knights with 42 hits in 108 at-bats. Nate Cardy has provided the power with a team-high six home runs, 23 RBI, and a .655 slugging percentage.

Gannon's top three starting pitchers (David Cricks, Santiago Mendez, and Aaron Jackson) are a combined 9-4 on the season and each has at least 37.1 innings pitched.
 
Laker Outlook
Mercyhurst's Wednesday comeback win over Lake Erie extended its season-high win streak to 15 games. Mercyhurst remains at the top of the PSAC West at 15-1 in conference and 28-2 overall.
 
Chris Gonzalez holds the top spot nationally in batting average as of April 16 with a .466 batting average. He has hit safely in 13 of his last 15 games, during which he nine doubles, 16 RBI, and 21 runs scored.
 
Mercyhurst's pitching staff also maintains its nation-best earned run average at 2.18 as of April 16. The next closest in the category is Minnesota State at 2.51.

National and Regional Rankings Update
Listed below are the updated rankings for Mercyhurst baseball in multiple Division II national and regional polls. The Lakers now own the top spot in the NCBWA national poll after a number-two ranking last week. They received 11 of 17 first-place votes. The Lakers also hold the top spot in the D2 Baseball poll for the fourth-straight week while moving up to number two in the Collegiate Baseball News rankings.

	Collegiate Baseball	NCBWA	D2Baseball	Perfect Game	NCBWA (Atl. Region)	D2Baseball (Atl. Region)	Lakers' Record*
Preseason	#9	#12	#7	#16	#2	#2	0-0
Feb. 13-19			#6			#2	2-1
Feb. 20-26		#14		#16	#2		5-1
Feb. 27-March 5	#12	#13	#6	#13	#2	#2	7-1
March 6-12	#12	#8	#5	#13	#1	#2	8-1
March 13-19	#11	#6	#3	#13	#1	#2	8-1
March 20-26	#15	#6	#3	#13	#1	#2	12-1
March 27-April 2	#13	#6	#1	#12	#1	#1	18-2
April 3-9	#9	#4	#1	#7	#1	#1	22-2
April 10-16	#6	#2	#1	#5	#1	#1	27-2
April 17-23	#2	#1	#1	#5	#1	#1

RV – Received Votes; NR – Not Ranked; Blank – No Release/Update; * – Indicates record at conclusion of week
 
Coming Up Next
Mercyhurst completes its season series with Lake Erie on Tuesday, April 25 when it travels to Painesville, Ohio for a nine-inning game. The Lakers will then play PSAC West foe Pitt Johnstown on April 28-29. Mercyhurst will hold senior day on Saturday beginning at 1 p.m.