LEWISTON, Idaho - Although separated my a mere 184 miles along I-75, Union College and Lee (Tenn.) University will meet up on the diamond for the very first time in either's program history when the two squads collide Monday in the 2008 Avista-NAIA World Series.

Union and Lee are approximately a three-hour drive apart, yet they each traveled nearly 2,400 miles to Lewiston, Idaho, to face each other for the first time.

The Bulldogs of Union entered the tournament as the No. 5 seed, while the Lee Flames are the No. 1 seed. Union advanced to the meeting with a 9-8 victory Friday over No. 4 Azusa Pacific (Calif.) University, while Lee moved along with a 7-1 decision Saturday against No. 8 Bellevue (Neb.) University.

Union currently boasts a 48-16 overall record. And while the 16 losses are second-most of the 10 World Series team, the Bulldogs have yet to lose back-to-back games in 2008.

On the flip side, Lee boasts a 60-8 overall mark yet dropped back-to-back contests in a Southern States Athletic Conference doubleheader to Shorter (Ga.) College on March 29. Shorter took the twinbill with 3-0 and 4-2 decisions. The losses snapped Lee's 34-game win streak.

Bulldog Notes

• Union scored two runs in the first inning of Friday's 9-8 victory, giving the Bulldogs a 94-37 edge over its opponents in the opening frame for the biggest scoring edge for Union in any inning. Union's only scored more runs in the fifth. The Bulldogs have scored 97 runs in the fifth, having added two more to that total in Friday's win.
• Union has outscored its opponents 533-269 this season.
• Friday's win marked the 30th time this season Union has scored nine or more runs in a game. The Bulldogs are 28-2 in those contests.
• Senior catcher Justin Hart (Lake Mary, Fla.) became Union's all-time leader RBI man when he drove in three Friday to put him at 179. However, his reign at the top will more than likely be short-lived as junior rightfielder Josh Ehringer (Somerset, Ky.) is closing in on him and stands at 167 career RBIs.
• Junior shortstop Joe Grinstead (Bowling Green, Ky.) added to his single-season runs scored record as he crossed the plate twice Friday, giving him 76 on the year. He is currently tied for the single-season stolen base record with 46 swipes in 2008.
• Union is 11-4 this postseason, while Lee is 11-3. Coincidentally, neither team won its conference tournament.

• Despite winning the SSAC with a 23-4 league mark, Lee lost the conference title to Faulkner (Ala.), which defeated the Flames twice.
• Lee ranks sixth in the NAIA with a .364 batting average as well as with a 3.35 earned-run average.
• The Flames average 11.5 hits and 7.83 runs per game.
• Chris Warters leads the Flames with a .437 average 17 home runs and 74 RBIs.
• Lee has three players with over 65 RBIs on the year.