HAMMOND, La. – Southeastern Louisiana hits the road once again, making the short trip down I-55 to face Southland Conference-rival New Orleans this weekend in the annual Pontchartrain Bowl series sponsored by local alumni of Sigma Tau Gamma fraternity.
 
The entire series will be played at Maestri Field on the lakefront in New Orleans, Louisiana. Games are scheduled for 6:30 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.
 
Since the rivalry trophy debuted in 2015, Southeastern (14-15, 6-3 Southland) has claimed the hardware and bragging rights three times in four seasons. During the stretch, the Lions have won 9-of-12 against the Privateers (15-14, 3-9 Southland) during the regular season.
 
All three games can be heard in the Hammond area on the flagship station of the Southeastern Sports Radio Network, KSLU 90.9 FM, online at www.LionSports.net/ListenLive and via both the Lions Gameday Experience and TuneIn Radio apps.
 
Fans can also keep up with all the action through streaming video (provided by UNO), live statistics or by following @SLUathletics on Twitter. Web links to audio, video and stats are available on the baseball schedule page at www.LionSports.net.
 
Since having its eight-game winning streak snapped Sunday at Stephen F. Austin, Southeastern has dropped back-to-back nonconference games to UL Lafayette. Going into the Pontchartrain Bowl series, the Lions are 14-4 against UNO under head coach Matt Riser.
 
Southeastern is hitting .248 collectively, with 38 doubles, 10 triples, 20 home runs and 58 stolen bases. The Lion pitching staff has worked to a combined 4.82 ERA, striking out 241 batters in 256 innings. Opponents are hitting .256 off Southeastern pitching.
 
Trey Harrington (.308), Kyle Schimpf (.303), Cody Grosse (.297) and Preston Faulkner (.272) pace the Southeastern offensive attack. Nick Ray, a redshirt freshman from Jefferson, Louisiana, leads the squad with five home runs. Ray and Schimpf have each driven in 27 runs this season. Grosse leads the Southland 16 stolen bases.
 
Corey Gaconi (3-2, 2.51), a senior right-hander from Metairie, Louisiana, draws the starting nod for the Lions in the opener, opposing UNO freshman left-hander Brandon Mitchell (1-1, 6.23). Saturday, Southeastern senior right-hander Mason Knopp (2-1, 3.24) will oppose Privateer junior right-hander Chris Turpin (3-1, 2.70) in the middle game of the series. Sunday, the Lions will counter UNO freshman right-hander Steven Swift (0-1, 5.54) in the series finale with sophomore righty Will Warren (2-3, 6.88).
 
Gaige Howard (.360), Collin Morrill (.322) and Luther Woullard (.308) are the Privateers' top hitters. Morrill, Pearce Howard and Salo Iza are tied for the team lead with three home runs each. Woullard and Howard are tied with a team-high 18 RBIs. Iza is UNO's top base-stealing threat with six bags.
 
The Privateers are hitting .264 collectively, with 55 doubles, eight triples, 18 home runs and 16 stolen bases. UNO's pitching staff has worked to a combined 5.23 ERA, striking out 219 batters in 253 innings. Opponents are hitting .279 off Privateer pitching.
 
UNO has dropped four of its last five games, being swept at Incarnate Word in a conference series this past weekend before splitting midweek games against Tulane and Jackson State.
 
In the middle of a 14-game stretch against in-state competition, Southeastern returns to Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field this coming week to host Tulane and Northwestern State.
 
Tuesday's 6 p.m. game against the Green Wave is Southeastern's annual Pack the Pat promotion. The night will feature fireworks, free t-shirts and food for students (while supplies last), and a ticket special allowing fans the opportunity to purchase a pair of tickets for just $14. The game is also a Cane's Challenge. If the Lions score five or more runs versus the Green Wave, fans can redeem their game ticket or student coupon at their local participating Raising Cane's Chicken Fingers to receive a free combo with the purchase of another of equal or greater value.
 
The weekend conference series against Northwestern State, April 12-14, features Super Lion Saturday and another Local Hero Appreciation game.
 
TICKET INFORMATION
Single-game tickets can be purchased online at www.LionSports.net/Tickets or by contacting the Southeastern Athletics Ticket Office at (985) 549-5466. Office hours are 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday-Thursday and 8 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. on Fridays. The ticket booth at Pat Kenelly Diamond at Alumni Field opens exactly one hour before first pitch.

General Admission tickets for Lion home games are $9 for adults and $6 for children (ages 3-12). Southeastern students are admitted free with a valid university ID card.
 
CLEAR BAG POLICY
Southeastern Athletics has instituted a clear bag policy for all ticketed events, effective with the start of the 2018 fall semester. The policy mirrors safety precautions taken upon entrance to professional and collegiate sporting venues throughout the country. For more information on the clear bag policy, visit www.LionSports.net/Clear.
 
LIONS GAMEDAY EXPERIENCE APP
The new Lions Gameday Experience app puts audio, stats, video, social media and more in the hands of fans. Those in attendance can also check in to earn reward points redeemable for Southeastern-related prizes. Available for both Android and iOS devices, it can be downloaded from the App Store and Google Play.
 
DIAMOND CLUB / S CLUB
Fans interested in becoming active supporters of the baseball program are encouraged to join the Diamond Club. Lion baseball alums are encouraged to join the exclusive S Club, which is restricted to Southeastern athletic letter winners.
 
All membership fees and donations to both the Diamond Club and S Club (baseball) are available for the exclusive use of the Southeastern baseball program. Membership information is available by contacting the Lion Athletics Association at laa@southeastern.edu or (985) 549-5091 or visiting www.LionUp.com.
 
SOCIAL MEDIA
For more information on Lions Baseball, follow @LionUpBaseball or @MattRiser17 on Twitter,  @LionUpBaseball on Instagram and Facebook, and subscribe to the SLUathletics YouTube channel.