TOLEDO, Ohio - The Toledo baseball team travels to the Blue Grass State for a three-game meeting with No. 2 Louisville starting on Friday. Games times for Friday, Saturday and Sunday will be 6:00, 1:00 and 1:00 p.m., respectively, at Jim Patterson Stadium.

Friday: LHP Steven Calhoun (3-2, 2.91) vs. Brendan McKay (5-3, 1.83)
Saturday: LHP Ross Achter (3-3, 2.80) vs. Kade McClure (4-1, 3.54)
Sunday: RHP Sam Shutes (2-5, 5.14) vs. Nick Bennett (4-0, 1.93)

The Rockets (14-27) go to Louisville during for their built-in bye week in the Mid-American Conference schedule. Similarly, the Cardinals enter their off week from Atlantic Coast Conference play. Toledo swept Buffalo and beat Dayton to build a three-game winning streak, but were swept by Kent State and dropped their midweek contest at Michigan State on Wednesday.

Louisville (35-6) won its first 19 games of the season and has risen to the No. 2 ranking in each of the country's major baseball polls. The Cardinals were picked to finish second in the ACC Atlantic and have yet to drop a conference series this season. Historically, Louisville has made the NCAA tournament in nine of the last 10 years.

UT is led by its weekend starting rotation which has started in each of the Rockets 10 weekend series. Senior Steven Calhoun starts the rotation as the Friday starter and serves as the Rockets workhorse, throwing a team-high 65.0 innings. Fifth-year senior Ross Achter co-leads the team with three wins and tops the squad with a 2.80 ERA in 54.2 frames. Sam Shutes will take the ball on Sunday and enters the game second on the team with 41 strikeouts. 

Brendan McKay leads the Cardinals and is widely regarded as one of the best two-way players in the nation. McKay posts a .400 batting average with 11 home runs and 39 RBIs. He will also be the Friday night starter on the mound, entering the weekend at 5-3 and a 1.83 ERA. 

The Rockets have played just one game (No. 22 Michigan) against a ranked team during the 2017 campaign. Their last series win against a ranked opponent came in 2011 against No. 16 Louisville.

Toledo resumes MAC action next weekend with a three-game set at Ball State from Friday, May 5 - Sunday, May 7. Ball State and Toledo currently sit at third and fifth in the MAC West, separated by just one game.