By Mike Lehman, TTU Sports Information

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. – After two, much-needed days of rest following four straight games, the Tennessee Tech baseball team will head back to Bush Stadium Friday evening to kick start a three-game series with the top team in the Ohio Valley Conference.

Beginning with a 6 p.m. CT first-pitch, the Golden Eagles (9-9, 3-3) will play host to the red-hot SIUE Cougars (6-9, 6-0) on Friday, Saturday and Sunday. Saturday's contest will commence at 2 p.m. with a 1 p.m. tilt wrapping up play on Sunday.

The Cougars enter undefeated in OVC play this season, despite failing to win a non-conference contest. The Golden Eagles are coming off a 2-1 weekend at UT Martin where pitching took the spotlight for the Tech squad rather than the bats.

Fans can also follow all the action via live stats at TTUSports.com.

SERIES INFO
Dates: Mar. 20-22, 2015
Times: 6 PM | 2 PM | 1 PM CT
Location: Cookeville, Tenn.
Stadium: Bush Stadium
Radio: None
TV: None

SERIES HISTORY
Overall: Tech leads, 5-4
Bragga vs: 5-4
First Meeting: April 13, 2012
Last Meeting: March 30, 2014

MULTIMEDIA
Live Stats: Friday | Saturday | Sunday
Audio: None
Video: None
Webstream: None
Twitter Updates: @TNTech_Baseball

TENNESSEE TECH GOLDEN EAGLES
2015 Record: 9-9
2015 OVC Record: 3-3 (T-5th)
Head Coach: Matt Bragga
Career: 304-315-2 (12^th season)
TTU: 304-315-2 (12^th season)

STAT LEADERS
AVG: Dylan Bosheers (.358)
2B: David Allen/Bosheers/Ryan Flick (7)
HR: Bosheers (4)
RBI: Flick (22)
SB: Bosheers/Matt Cunningham (3)

SIUE COUGARS
2015 Record: 6-9
2015 OVC Record: 6-0 (1st)
Head Coach: Rick Robinson
Career: 37-68-0 (3rd season)
SIUE: 37-68-0 (3rd season)

STAT LEADERS
AVG: Keaton Wright (.435)
2B: Wright (7)
HR: Parker Guinn (5)
RBI: Guinn (15)
SB: Chase Green/Nick Lombardo/Denton Reed (3)

A STRIKING WEEKEND
There have been few weekends as dominating on the mound for the Tennessee Tech pitching staff as its most recent trip to Martin. The Golden Eagles combined to strikeout 40 Skyhawk batters last weekend, the most in a three-games set by a Tech squad in the past five years.

Instrumental in the strong weekend on the hill was Chris Chism's 17-punch out, one-hit shutout on Saturday. Freshman hurler Travis Moths chipped in with 11 Ks on Monday and five other Golden Eagle pitchers rounded the rest.

Here's a look at the each of Tech's 30-strikeout, three-game series over the past five seasons:

ALREADY IN MIDSEASON FORM
Preseason All-American Dylan Bosheers is starting to show just why he was given such a high honor. For the season, the senior is leading the Golden Eagles with a .358 average, 22 runs scored and four home runs. He's also tallied 17 RBI while slugging .672 and tallied a 11 walks for an on base percentage of .452.

Over his past seven games, Bosheers has been scorching hot, batting .480 thanks to 12 hits, including six extra base knocks. He's slugged .920 and reach base over 50 percent of the time in that span, striking out just once and walking five times. The shortstop has also scored 11 runs while driving in seven.

STRAIGHT UP DEALIN'
Fans at the series-opening contest against UT Martin over the weekend got the chance to witness history as senior Chris Chism unleashed the greatest performance of his career on the Skyhawks. The right-hander tossed a one-hit shutout in Martin, fanning a career-best 17 batters along the way.

After surrendering a hit to the leadoff batter of the game, Chism retired 23 straight Skyhawk players, amassing 13 strikeouts over that span. He allowed just one walk and a total of four base runners (he also hit a batter and an error allowed the other runner). With the victory, he moved to 3-0 on the year.

Just one year prior, Chism took on the Skyhawks in the friendly confines of Bush Stadium and enjoyed similar success. His first action against UT Martin resulted in a one-hit shutout with 10 strikeouts.

Chism's 17 strikeouts marked the most by a Golden Eagle hurler in nearly 30 years, falling just behind the program record of 19 tossed by TTU Sports Hall of Famer, Todd Kemp. The OVC-record holder for both single-season and career strikeouts, Kemp accomplished his single-game mark for Tech back in 1988 against Tennessee State.

Of his 17 K's on the night, Chism set down 10 swinging and the other seven looking.

DOWN MAYBE, BUT NEVER OUT
If there's been anything to learn about this year's version of the Golden Eagles, it's that you can knock them down, but don't you dare count them out. In just 14 games this season, Tech has already mounted four come-from-behind victories when trailing in the fifth inning or later.

In the second game of the year, the Golden Eagles headed into the bottom of the ninth, trailing 7-2 to a feisty Longwood squad. Six runs later, Tech walked off with its first victory of the year. A week later, the squad found itself trailing to a dangerous Davidson team in the fifth by two runs. Tech tied it in the bottom half before the flood gates opened up with an eight-run sixth for a 12-5 win.

Just last week, Morehead State mounted its own rally, taking a two-run lead in the top of the sixth while looking for a series sweep. Two quick runs in the bottom half of the frame led to an exhilarating 9-8, walk-off W in the ninth.

And last time out, the Golden Eagles looked sure to be done in the fifth, trailing in-state rival Lipscomb by six runs with two outs in the bottom of the fifth. The Golden Eagles proved they don't care, dropping a seven-spot to take the lead for good in an unreal 12-8 victory.

NO SUCH THING AS A POWER OUTAGE
One year after leading the nation with a monstrous 83 home runs, many experts believed there was just no way Tech could match the power-hitting output of the 2014 squad. Gone were the bats of Zach Stephens, Brandon Thomasson and Daniel Miles. Last year the three All-Americans combined for 52 dingers. Add Jordan Parris to the mix and there's another five long balls missing from the lineup.

But a closer look into the numbers reveals that this year's team, stock full of ultra-young talent (six freshmen have started at least three games this year), has been just potent with extra base hits as last year's.

Here's a comparison of the 2014 and 2015 squads power numbers 18 games into the season:

FRESHMAN FOCUS
Freshman Chase Chambers has really come alive after a slow start to the season, batting .379 over the past seven games while driving in a team-high nine runs over that span. He has drawn a team-high 12 walks and tallied a .559 slugging percentage and .479 on base percentage this season.

Fellow freshman Ryan Flick, Tech's designated hitter, has also been a huge boon to the offense. Number 11 leads the Golden Eagles with 22 RBI on the year, thanks to a slugging percentage of .476 and nine extra base hits. He is tied for second on the team in home runs with Chambers, both of whom have two each.

MR. 300
With a 14-2 win over Northern Illinois on Feb. 28, head coach Matt Bragga earned his 300th career victory, just the second coach in program history to accomplish the feat. He currently ranks second to Hall of Fame coach David Mays in total wins.

Photo by Jim Dillon