NATCHITOCHES – Omaha is
the destination for any NCAA Division I college baseball team.
A little bit of Omaha comes to Natchitoches this weekend when Creighton University visits Brown-Stroud Field for a three-game series that begins with a 2 p.m. Friday doubleheader.
The threat of inclement weather throughout the weekend forced third-year head coach
Lane Burroughs and his Creighton counterpart, Ed Servais, to get creative with their scheduling.
The third game of the series is tentatively scheduled for Saturday, but given the probability of bad weather Saturday, playing two games Friday allows the team two days to play the finale of the three-game set.
Regardless of when it gets played, the Demons (1-4) know they face another quality opponent in the visiting Bluejays (3-0), the defending Big East regular-season champions who opened the season with a three-game sweep of Cal State Bakersfield.
"The schedule doesn't let up," Burroughs said. "They are a very tradition-rich program. They have one of the best pitchers in their league, if not the country, in (Matt) Warren and one of the best hitters in their league in (Reagan) Fowler. They're going to come in here ready to play."
Creighton follows UL Lafayette as 2015 season visitors who have College World Series pedigrees. In 1991, the Bluejays reached the CWS, making the short trek across town to play at Rosenblatt Stadium in front of a throng of hometown fans.
Creighton joins a long list of CWS participants who have visited Brown-Stroud Field, including LSU, Missouri State, Alabama and Nebraska.
The Bluejays outscored Bakersfield 21-5 in their season-opening sweep.
Northwestern State is scheduled to throw the right-handed Oller brothers – sophomore Adam (0-1, 8.31 ERA) and senior Josh (0–0, 4.76) in Friday's doubleheader. Much like the date and time of the series finale, NSU's Game 3 starter is TBA.
Creighton will counter with graduate student right-hander Jack Rogalla (1-0, 0.00) and junior right-hander Warren (1-0, 1.80) on Friday. The Bluejays' Game 3 starter is expected to be sophomore left-hander Jeff Albrecht (1-0, 0.00).
In NSU's four-game, opening-weekend series at Troy, three of the four Demons starters pitched into the sixth inning with two going at least 6 1-3 innings.
"You couldn't ask for anything more form our starting pitching than to take us deep into the game when they're on a pitch count," Burroughs said. "The good thing, you look at this weekend, we're not playing four games. One of those guys will go down to the pen and help us out down there. We've got to decide who that is. It will be a little bit better situation for us."
The Demons return to action in their first two-game, midweek series of the season when they travel to Waco, Texas, to face No. 21 Baylor on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Pitching matchups
Friday, Game 1: Jack Rogalla, Creighton (1-0, 0.00) vs.
Adam Oller, Northwestern State (0-1, 8.31)
Friday, Game 2: RHP Matt Warren, Creighton (1-0, 1.80) vs.
Josh Oller, Northwestern State (0-0, 4.76)
Series Game 3 (Saturday or Sunday): LHP Jeff Albrecht (1-0, 0.00) Creighton vs. TBA, Northwestern State
