GAME DAY LINKS -- 
McKENDREE vs. BELLARMINE -- Saturday, May 2, 2015 (DH) and Sunday, May 3, 2015 (DH) -- Noon and 3 p.m. each day
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McKENDREE SEASON STATISTICS
BELLARMINE SEASON STATISTICS

(LEBANON, Ill., May 1)--The McKendree University baseball team will close out its 2015 season this weekend by hosting Bellarmine University in a four-game Great Lakes Valley Conference series. The teams will meet for doubleheaders Saturday and Sunday at Hypes Field, with first pitch set for noon each day.

McKendree enters the weekend with a 9-35 overall record and an 8-24 mark in the GLVC. The Bearcats stepped out of conference for the final time on Wednesday, when they were defeated by Quincy University, 7-5. The Bearcats rallied from a 5-2 deficit with three runs in the bottom of the fifth inning to tie the contest. but the visiting Hawks scratched out a pair of runs in the top of the ninth to collect the win. Freshman outfielder Brad Groleau (Peru, IL/St. Bede Academy) had two hits and two RBI to pace McKendree in the contest.

In addition to hosting Bellarmine over the weekend, McKendree will be holding Senior Day on Sunday at Hypes Field. The Bearcats will be honoring seven seniors -- Pierce Borah (Mt. Vernon, IL/Mt. Vernon), Jason Hobson (Griggsville, IL/Griggsville-Perry), Vince Kiefer (Lenzburg, IL/New Athens), Jake Kline (Carol Stream, IL/Glenbard North), Kyle Rutledge (Bloomington, IL/Normal), Matt Sax (Chicago, IL/Jones Prep) and Jeff Tolliver (Salem, IL/Salem) -- in a special ceremony following Sunday's first game.

Heading into the final four games of the season, Groleau leads McKendree with a .330 batting average. He is also tied for the team lead with two home runs, sharing the top spot with sophomore first baseman Zach Klockowski (Tinley Park, IL/Andrew) and sophomore catcher Kyle Jackson (Hoffman, IL/Carlyle). Klockowski, senior outfielder Kyle Rutledge (Bloomington, IL/Normal) and senior third baseman Jake Kline (Carol Stream, IL/Glenbard North) are tied atop the stat sheet for runs batted in with 19. Junior shortstop Adam Kunkel (Red Bud, IL/Red Bud) has scored a team-leading 24 runs for the Bearcats.

On the mound, junior left-hander Sam Lidisky (Swansea, IL/Althoff Catholic) continues to show the way with three victories. Lidisky has also tossed five complete games for the Bearcats. Sophomore right-hander Jacob Renfrow (St. Louis, MO/Hancock) paces the McKendree starting rotation with a 4.25 earned-run average. Junior left-hander Josh Tonozzi (Mark, IL/Putnam County) has pitched in 20 games for the Bearcats, making him the first McKendree pitcher to make at least 20 appearances on the mound since Alex Young in 2011. 

ABOUT BELLARMINE
The Knights bring a 24-22 overall record and a 16-16 GLVC mark to Lebanon for the final weekend of the regular season. Bellarmine has not played since last weekend, when it split a four-game GLVC set at home against the University of Illinois Springfield. The Knights are involved in a tight race near the top of the GLVC East Division standings for one of the automatic bids to next week's conference tournament. Bellarmine is currently tied with UIS -- and a half-game in front of Saint Joseph's College -- for third in the GLVC East standings. The top three teams in each division earn bids to the GLVC Baseball Tournament, along with the next two records in league play regardless of division. 

Junior infielder Cole Metcalfe has started all 46 games for Bellarmine and leads the team with a .352 batting average and 33 RBI. Senior outfielder Austin Crutcher has belted a team-high 11 home runs while driving in 32 runs. Crutcher also paces the Knights with 18 doubles and 20 stolen bases. Sophomore Nick Wright has contributed a .308 average with 14 doubles, two homers and 26 RBI. 

Junior left-hander Austin Warner has posted a 5-3 record in his 11 starts with three complete games and a pair of shutouts. Warner also has a 2.89 ERA and 63 strikeouts in 53 innings of work. Freshman right-hander Griffin Neuer and sophomore righty Will Burch share the team lead for Bellarmine with four saves each. 

Last season, McKendree and Bellarmine split a four-game series in Louisville. The Bearcats won the first game of each doubleheader played at Knights Field, taking a 5-3 decision in the first game of the series before notching a 7-3 triumph in game three. Jacob Renfrow (St. Louis, MO/Hancock) went six innings to pick up the victory for McKendree in the 7-3 contest.