The Washburn baseball team returns to the Show Me State this week to take on Central Missouri. The Ichabods are coming off a MIAA series win against Missouri Western last week and are now 5-7 in conference play and 10-11 overall. The three-game series at Crane Stadium at Tompkins Field are scheduled for Thursday and Friday at 2 pm with the rubber match scheduled for 1 pm on Saturday.

Live stats for each game will be available online at wusports.com/live or on the team's schedule page with additional links to radio and video made available on a game-by-game basis. 

LEADING OFF
» Heading into the three-game set, Washburn and Central Missouri have faced off 110 times with the Ichabods trailing, 25-85. 
» Washburn is hitting .242 and averaging 5.4 runs per game.
» The last Ichabod win in Warrensburg was 9-3 decision on May 5, 2017. 
» Washburn is led by Harley Douglas, who is in his fifth season with the program.

A LOOK AT CENTRAL MISSOURI
The Mules are 16-8 on the year and 8-4 in the MIAA standings and have won seven of their 10 games. The Central Missouri bats are hitting .333 with 210 runs and 79 extra base knocks, including 26 home runs. The Mules also have a MIAA-best 48 steals. Erik Webb is hitting a team-best .438, while also pacing the Mules with nine home runs and 32 RBI, while Mason Janvrin leads the way with 17 steals. The UCM pitching staff has a combined 4.35 ERA in 206.2 innings with 128 runs against and 244 strikeouts. 

DOUBLE PLAY BALL
The Ichabod defense has been stout all season and is sixth in the conference and 46th on the NCAA Division II leaderboard with 17 double plays turned. Through 21 games, Washburn is averaging just under one (0.81) double play a game and has twice turned a season-high three double plays, first at Southeastern Oklahoma (2/9) then versus Rockhurst (2/13). Prior to the season, the Washburn defense has turned 164 double plays dating back to the 2015 season including a program-best 57 during the 2016 campaign. 

ON THE MOUND
The Ichabod pitching staff has a combined 4.24 ERA, 55th-best in Division II, with 175 strikeouts in 176.0 innings of work. The staff averages 8.5 strikeouts per nine, which is fifth among the MIAA and 74th nationally. 
» Josh Ramirez is 2-2 in seven starts and holds a 3.89 ERA in 39.1 innings. Ramirez is eighth among league leaders with 42 strikeouts.
» Jacob Head is 1-2 in six starts, while posting a 3.95 ERA in 27.1 innings of work with 24 strikeouts. On March 1, Head lead the charge in a combined shutout effort at Pittsburg State in a two-hit, 6.0-inning outing.  
» Brandon Gabler is 3-0 on the year in nine appearances with a 2.18 ERA. Gabler has 21 strikeouts in 20.2 innings with just 10 hits and five runs against, while posting .141 opponent batting average.

YARD WORK
» The Ichabods began the season with a home run in four consecutive games en route to tallying 10 during their opening seven games of the season. They broke a nine-game drought without a home run last Saturday, March 9 at Missouri Southern.
» Six of the 12 home runs Washburn has hit this season have come from the lead off spot. 
» In the last four seasons, Washburn has homered 193 times including 69 home run outburst in 2016 for second all-time. 

UNDER DOUGLAS
Fifth-year head coach Harley Douglas is the fifth head coach in the program's 67 seasons. Douglas is 105-98 in his last four seasons which includes back-to-back seasons with over 30-plus wins. The first former player to take the helm, Douglas played four seasons (1997-2000) for predecessor Steve Anson before a stint with the New York Mets system and a three-year term as Anson's top assistant. 

UP NEXT
Washburn will host Baker at Falley Field on Tuesday, March 26 with first-pitch scheduled for 6 pm.