John Pawlowski is having to tinker with his lineup ahead of a crucial conference series.

Western Kentucky must fill the gap left at first base by Richard Constantine, who suffered a season-ending injury Tuesday in a win at Belmont. Constantine was playing that position as the fill-in for Davis Sims, who was lost for the season earlier this month in a loss at Vanderbilt.

Pawlowski said Thursday he was still trying to determine how to replace Constantine in the field and the lineup.

The Hilltoppers (17-17-1 overall, 8-6-1 Conference USA) start a three-game series against first-place Florida Atlantic (25-11, 12-3) at 3 p.m. Friday.

“Guys have practiced and prepared themselves and they’re waiting for an opportunity,” the fourth-year coach Pawlowski said. “We’ve had plenty of opportunities for guys to step up.

“We have another case and another situation has now appeared. So somebody else will have to step up for the Tops this weekend.”

Constantine’s injury came Tuesday when he was struck in the foot by a pitch in the second inning. He stayed in the game and hit a three-run home run in the fourth inning that gave WKU a 7-2 lead, then made it 8-2 in the sixth on an RBI single.

But the pain for Constantine became too much, and Pawlowski lifted him in the seventh inning, moving catcher Matt Phipps to first. The Hilltoppers won 12-7 but determined later in the week that Constantine was out for the season.

Constantine and the man he replaced, Sims, combined to hit .380 this season, post an on-base percentage of .464 and slug .577. They scored 40 runs, drove in 33 and collected nine doubles and eight home runs.

“He was really swinging it well, providing some great protection ahead of Jake Sanford,” Pawlowski said of Constantine. “I know it’s disappointing for him and obviously for our team. You hate to see that happen.

“I felt really bad for him because he was doing so well.”

The injuries to Constantine and Sims are further blows against a team that already wasn’t at full strength.

Pitchers Michael Darrell-Hicks and Colby Taylor, both of whom projected to be weekend starters in 2019, have missed the year due to injuries.

Outfielder Luke Brown was a breakout star last year as a freshman, but the team learned in January he didn’t meet academic requirements to play this spring. Brown left WKU for a junior college.

Roster attrition has tested the Toppers’ depth, Pawlowski said.

“The players have really responded to what we’ve been through,” Pawlowski said. “This will be no different. Somebody else will step up. They’ll continue responding. We’ll continue practicing and working hard. Good things will happen to us.”

There is some positive news for WKU on the injury front. Pitcher Reece Calvert, who left a March 31 start against Charlotte with shoulder soreness, is scheduled to pitch Friday after missing the last two weekend series.

Calvert delivered one of the Hilltoppers’ best pitching days of the season last month at Florida International, throwing a seven-inning complete game in a 15-1 win. The redshirt senior right-hander has a 1-2 record with a 5.18 ERA across 24.1 innings.

“We’ll run him out there and I know he’ll be ready to compete and do a great job for us,” Pawlowski said.

Calvert will counter one of C-USA’s top pitchers Friday afternoon in FAU righty Blake Sanderson. He’s posted a 7-1 record for the Owls with a 3.51 ERA over 59 innings.

Florida Atlantic sports a 4.00 ERA as a team, best among Conference USA’s 12 programs.

WKU comes into the series with a .286 batting average, third-best in the conference.

“We’re just always going to stick to our plan, have quality at-bats, compete every single pitch and just be a tough out to get,” shortstop Kevin Lambert said. “That’s what we’ve been doing. Score runs and we’ll be fine.”{&end}