TACOMA, Wash. - The Pacific Lutheran University baseball team opens up Northwest Conference play this weekend as they host George Fox University in a doubleheader on Saturday with a final game on Sunday.
 
Last week the Lutes (4-3) traveled across the country to Georgia playing three games against different colleges. They defeated Emory University 9-5 on Friday and Oglethorpe University 14-10 on Saturday, before falling to Piedmont College 5-8 on Sunday.
 
This was the final trip for the Lutes before they open up conference play this weekend, and a great opportunity for the team to get ready for the busy season ahead.
 
"The Georgia trip for us was huge for bonding purposes as it allows all of us to work together to get two wins against well-established programs and be competitive against a team that received votes for the Top 25," said senior Jacob Bockelie who was named to the D3Baseball.com Team of the Week on Tuesday after finishing the trip with three home runs and 11 RBIs.

"Going into conference play, this weekend was important as a lot of guys are starting to get hot with the bats and will be able to carry that into this weekend against a very tough program with George Fox. George Fox is always well coached and have proven themselves to be a challenging opponent every time we face them."
 
Bockelie is entering his final season as a Lute and looking forward the memories that it will bring.
 
"For my final season here, I'm hoping to give my all for my teammates and coaches and see that we can have as much success as we strive for. We have a very talented roster and are looking to do some serious damage in all aspects of the game."
 
Having played for the Lutes for his whole collegiate career, Bockelie also has some pretty great memories with the team.

"My favorite memory as a Lute so far has to be the walk-off home run that I hit last year against Linfield. It was one of those moments that you dream about as a kid, and to be able to do that was something I'm going to remember for a very long time."
 
As Bockelie is entering his last semester as a Lute he is also looking forward to life after PLU.

"I'm a marketing major and currently I'm hoping that I can continue to play baseball post-grad, wherever it takes me. You can play ball for only so long before you hang up the cleats, and I want to capitalize on those opportunities."
 
"My interest in marketing came from high school with our DECA program, which is a marketing program across the USA, and the amount of success that I had through that process. Marketing has always been an area of interest of mine and I love the idea of trying to sell."
 
Off the diamond and out of the classroom Bockelie is still very involved in sports.

"Outside of school and baseball, I've started to get into golfing and trying to figure out how to get better. Ironically, I swing right handed clubs, even though I am left handed for baseball. The ball still goes straight some of the time!"
 
Bockelie and the team are looking forward to starting conference up strong as they host George Fox in a doubleheader on Saturday with the first game starting at 11 a.m. and the second game at 2 p.m. The team will wrap up the series on Sunday with the game starting at 12 p.m. on the PLU diamond. 
 
Feb. 23: PLU vs. George Fox (DH) at PLU Field (11 a.m.)
Feb. 24: PLU vs. George Fox at PLU Field (12 p.m.)
 
Series History: Pacific Lutheran and George Fox have met 81 times with the Bruins holding a 43-38 advantage in the all-time series.
 
About the Bruins: George Fox (3-4) heads into the conference slate as the preseason favorite after earning four of the nine first place votes in the NWC coaches' poll.
 
The Bruins also spent last weekend in Georgia, winning one of their three games. GFU opened the trip with a 12-3 thrashing of Millsaps College before coming up short 8-7 in an extra inning game against Piedmont College. The Bruins wrapped up the trip by suffering a 19-13 setback at the hands of Oglethorpe University.
 
Jason Garcia leads the team with a .593 batting average while Kyler Brudwick and Jerred Seamons each have 10 RBIs. Seamons along with PLU's Jacob Bockelie was named to the D3Baseball Team of the Week on Tuesday. 
 
Christopher Stone boasts a 1.50 earned run average, leading the team with 12 strikeouts in 12 innings of work.