Cullowhee, N.C. – Back in action after an exciting extra-inning victory over UNC Greensboro in Sunday's Southern Conference series finale, Western Carolina baseball continues its seven-game homestand on Tuesday evening by hosting longtime mountain rival Appalachian State at Childress Field / Hennon Stadium. The first pitch is scheduled for 5 p.m. and the game is presented by Harris Regional Hospital and Swain Community Hospital.
 
Tuesday's game will be broadcast on ESPN+ (paid subscription required) with live stats available through a link at CatamountSports.com.
 
About Western Carolina:
Including a six-game winning streak, the Catamounts have won eight of their last 11 games overall on the season despite dropping 2-of-3 at home against UNCG over the weekend in SoCon play. WCU sits on the cusp of reaching 20 wins which would move the squad one victory shy of last year's total.
 
Two Catamounts hit over .400 last week as infielders Mason Holton (.474) and Zach Ketterman (.471) combined for 17 base hits in WCU's four games. Holton finished the week 9-for-19 with three doubles and a homer, while Ketterman had eight hits with a double, three home runs, and seven combined RBI. Ketterman was named the SoCon's Player of the Week earlier on Monday, his second career award.
 
Entering the week, six Catamount regulars are batting over the .300 threshold with five posting double-digit doubles. Holton paces the team at .343 with 11 doubles, followed by Hayden Friese at .338 and Ketterman at .330. Kyle Riesselmann, who is riding a team-tying long 17-game reached base safely streak, is batting .320, and Trent Turner (.309) who has a team-best 46 base hits. Nate Stocum (.315) has a team-best 26 extra-base hits including 12 doubles and 14 home runs that rank him second in the SoCon. He also boasts a team-best eight-game active hitting streak, followed by Holton and Ketterman riding seven-game runs. Jack Spyke, who scored the game-winning run Sunday, has matched Riesselmann with a 17-game RBS.
 
On the mound for WCU, senior Gavin Mortenson continues to rank among the SoCon's leaders with a 3.93 ERA – sixth overall – while his .210 batting average against ranks second in the conference. Jonathan Todd, who worked a season-long 4.1 innings Sunday in the win over UNCG, ranks ninth in the conference with 35 strikeouts and is fourth with six saves.
 
WCU enters the week hitting .294 collectively as a team with 340 hits including 142 extra-base hits with a SoCon-leading 87 doubles, five triples, and 50 home runs, the third-most in the league. The Catamounts are averaging 8.1 runs coming on 10.3 hits per game while surrendering an average of 7.5 runs on 9.4 hits as a staff.
 
About Appalachian State:
The Mountaineers (20-13) come to Cullowhee after dropping 2-of-3 in Sun Belt Conference play at home to Troy over the weekend. The two split a Saturday doubleheader, both scoring a run-ruled win before the Trojans clinched the series with a 13-5 win on Sunday afternoon in Boone. App State has evenly split its 18 road games this season, posting a 9-9 record with losses in its last three played away from the mountain as it was swept by James Madison back on April 5-7.
 
Appalachian State enters the week batting .288 collectively as a team with 333 hits including 66 doubles, 10 triples, and 60 home runs. The Black & Gold has averaged nearly nine runs on 10 hits per contest offensively while only allowing 7.6 runs on nine hits as a pitching staff. The Mountaineers have a team ERA of 7.33 overall with 258 strikeouts against 177 walks on the season.
 
Five Mountaineer regulars are batting over the .300 mark to date this season, paced by Banks Tolley with a .361 average that includes nine doubles, a team-best 14 home runs, and a team-best 42 RBI. Austin St. Laurent (.352) has 18 combined extra-base hits with both Joseph Zamora (.321) and Drew Holderbach (.319) have 11 doubles apiece. Adam Quintero (.304) is the fifth  App player above the .300 threshold. CJ Boyd (.287) is second on the squad with 13 home runs, second on the squad.
 
App State is batting .288 as a squad with 333 hits with 136 going for extra bases including 66 doubles, 10 triples, and 60 home runs. The Mountaineers average right at nine runs on 10 hits per outing while limiting the opposition to 7.6 runs on an average of 9.2 hits per contest.
 
Led by eighth-year head coach Kermit Smith, ASU was picked ninth in the 14-team Sun Belt Conference preseason coaches poll with outfielder CJ Boyd tagged as a preseason All-Sun Belt Conference selection.
 
Tuesday's Projected Pitching Match-Up:
Western Carolina is expected to have a staff day – meaning multiple pitchers are scheduled to see action on the mound for the home squad. Senior RHP Gavin Mortenson will get the ball in the top of the first inning for the Catamounts to open Tuesday's nonconference matchup. Mortenson has made 13 appearances this season with six starts, striking out 34 against 23 walks. The Summerfield, N.C. product is coming off his shortest start of the season with a three-inning effort in Friday's series opener against UNCG in which he matched his career-high with five walks issued.
 
Appalachian State is slated to start RHP Trey Tujetsch who has made eight appearances with two previous starts. The senior from Fort Mill, S.C. has tossed at least two innings in each of his eight appearances with a long of 3.2 of one-run, one-hit work against Queens back on March 19. Over his four years in Boone, Tujetsch has a 7-16 record and an ERA of 7.12 over 140.1 innings with 119 strikeouts and 63 strikeouts.
 
Western Carolina vs. App State – Series History:
Longtime rivals who shared membership in the Southern Conference for several years, WCU and App State have met 136 times previously on the baseball diamond with the Catamounts holding an 82-53-1 edge in the series. WCU has won 38 of the 62 previous meetings held in Cullowhee (38-24). Tuesday marks the first meeting on the baseball diamond since 2020. App State has won the last six meetings in the series – its longest consecutive game win streak all-time that includes the last two meetings played in Cullowhee.
 
On Deck for the Catamounts:
Following Tuesday's midweek matchup with Appalachian State, the Catamounts conclude their seven-game homestand on the weekend with a three-game league series against the Samford Bulldogs scheduled for April 19-21.
 
Tickets to WCU's home games can be purchased online at CatamountSports.com/BuyTickets.
 
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