KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University baseball team heads into the final week of the regular season with three straight home games beginning with a single, nine-inning game against Philadelphia University on Tuesday, April 30 at North Campus Field beginning at 2 p.m.
 
The game will be broadcast live on the Golden Bear Network with Adam Dobrowolski calling all the action.
 
The Golden Bears (29-11) enter Tuesday's game ranked 29th in Division II by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper national poll released Monday evening.
 
LAST TIME OUT: After being swept in a doubleheader Friday at East Stroudsburg, Kutztown evened the score against the Warriors. The Golden Bears won both games Saturday afternoon at North Campus Field, as they celebrated Senior Day. Despite allow the first three runs of the game, KU won 4-3 in Game 1. Senior Todd Rubendall (Collegeville, PA/Methacton) hit a crucial two-out, two-run single to tie the game in the fourth inning. The next inning, fellow senior Matt Albaugh (Hatfield, PA/North Penn) gave KU the lead with an RBI single. In Game 2, Kutztown scored multiple runs in three different innings in a 13-7 victory. Brandon Shimo (Jermyn, PA/Lakeland (Lackawanna))
picked up his team-high fifth victory. The wins clinched KU a spot in the PSAC Championships.
 
PLANNING FOR MORE TO COME: At 14-6 in the PSAC East, the Golden Bears already clinched a spot in the PSAC Championships on May 8-11, which takes place at Point Stadium in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. However, Kutztown would need to gain three games on Millersville in the final four-game weekend to earn the top seed in the Eastern Division. If KU remains the second seed, the team will play at 9:30am in the opening round on May 8.
 
TIMELY HITS ARE A THING OF BEAUTY, PART 1: The Golden Bears put together a stellar 16-1 stretch earlier this season in large part due to their timely hitting. Kutztown bats .335 with runners in scoring position, as opposed to .266 for its opponents. KU defeated Barton on March 20 in extras after a five-run 12th inning. Meanwhile, in PSAC play, Kutztown won three of its first five home games in walk-off fashion. All three of these conference wins occurred in comeback fashion. Of the team's 13 come-from-behind victories this season, 10 came during the 16-1 stretch.
 
TIMELY HITS ARE A THING OF BEAUTY, PART 2: The team also loves to play two-out bingo. KU plated 89 two-out RBI this season (2.225 runs/gm). This includes a season-high nine such RBI against Adelphi on April 3. Seven different players hit at least eight two-out RBI so far, led by 11 from Kyle Stoudt (Mertztown, PA/Brandywine Heights) (Mertztown, PA/Brandywine Heights). KU's opponents total 41 two-out RBI in 40 games so far. KU bats .284 with two outs, while opponents are batting only .234.
 
IN-DEPTH: While KU lacks a dominant statistical player, the Golden Bears sport a very deep and productive roster. Eight batters (with at least 40 AB) are hitting .315 or better, while eight post an on-base percentage of .400 or better. The team ranks fifth in the PSAC in OBP, but are only two percentage points behind second place. On the flip side, of the 19 pitchers to appear for the Golden Bears this season, 13 won at least one game. Eight pitchers with at least 11 innings of work own an ERA under 3.00. The team pitches better from the bullpen, even for those who have started games. KU's batting average allowed drops from .306 to .220 when going to the 'pen.