By Derek Terry

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UK baseball is learning just how much of a grind the SEC can be.

The Cats defeated then- No.1 LSU last weekend on the road and now will host the new No. 1 team in the country in Texas A&M this weekend at Cliff Hagan Stadium.

Head coach Gary Henderson said his team is looking forward to the challenge of playing another highly rated team.

“It’ll be another really good SEC weekend,” Henderson said. “There should be plenty of competitive baseball.”

UK enters Thursday’s matchup with a 4-5 SEC record, which is good for sixth in the Eastern Division. The Cats are just three games back from first place despite being next to last in the division.

Texas A&M comes to town with an impressive 28-2 record overall and a 7-2 conference record, good for first place in the Western Division.

“We feel pretty good about the series coming up,” sophomore outfielder Marcus Carson said. “As long as we come out focused and ready to go, we should be fine.”

Carson has had the hot bat as of late and carries a three-game hitting streak into the weekend. The London, Ky., native is still fighting for playing time in what has been a solid outfield for the Cats both defensively and offensively. He started 13 games this season and appeared in 21. Carson’s batting average is up to .255 after a two-hit performance against Indiana on Tuesday, which also saw him drive in two runs.

Carson said that his confidence was shaky after a slow start to the year, but advice from his coaches helped get his morale high.

“Initially I did get frustrated,” Carson said. “Coach (Rick) Eckstien says to focus more on the process than the result so that helped me look at it as not really that I’m getting out or haven’t got a hit, but more of how my mechanics are and the process of being able to follow what I need to be doing.”

Sophomore right-hander Zack Brown is the probable starter for UK on Thursday. He has a 2-2 record and a 2.47 earned run average through six starts this year.