ETSU-Rider doubleheader on Friday

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Mar. 10, 2022) – After midweek’s contest against Clemson was postponed, ETSU turns its focus to Rider and UNC Asheville for a pair of doubleheaders.

ETSU will play Rider on Friday, March 11 in a doubleheader beginning at 12 p.m. Both games are expected to be nine innings. No contest will be held at Thomas Stadium on Saturday due to expected inclement weather. UNC-Asheville will play a doubleheader on Sunday, March 13 beginning with Rider at 11 a.m. followed by a clash with ETSU approximately 50 minutes following the conclusion.

All games will have live stats through StatBroadcast. 

Records: ETSU (7-3, 0-0 SoCon) | Rider (6-5, 0-0 MAAC) | UNC-Asheville (4-9, 0-0 Big South)

Twitter Updates: @ETSU_Baseball

Weather Forecast: Friday (mid-60s, partly sunny) | Sunday (low-40s, sunny)

Game 1: Friday, Mar. 11 | 12:00 p.m. | Live Stats

Probable Starters:

East Tennessee State – RHP Zach Kirby (1-0 | 2.63 ERA | 13.2 IP | 13 K | 3 BB)

Rider – LHP Joe Papeo (1-1 | 7.31 ERA | 16.0 IP | 14 K | 10 BB)

Game 2: Friday, Mar. 11 | Approx. 4:00 p.m. | Live Stats

Probable Starters:

East Tennessee State – LHP Colby Stuart (2-0 | 4.80 ERA | 15.0 IP | 15 K | 6 BB)

Rider – LHP Frank Doelling (0-2 | 5.54 ERA | 13.0 IP | 16 K | 9 BB)

Game 3: Sunday, Mar. 13 | 11:00 a.m. | Live Stats

Probable Starters:

Rider – RHP Alec Sachais (0-0 | 9.39 ERA | 7.2 IP | 6 K | 11 BB)

UNC-Asheville – LHP Jacob Edwards (1-2 | 2.41 ERA | 18.2 IP | 25 K | 6 BB)

Game 4: Sunday, Mar. 13 | Approx. 3:00 p.m. | Live Stats

Probable Starters:

East Tennessee State – RHP Hunter Loyd (2-0 | 1.15 ERA | 15.2 IP | 26 K | 3 BB)

UNC-Asheville – RHP Ryan Douglas (0-3 | 10.66 ERA | 12.2 IP | 17 K | 8 BB)

ETSU QUICK HITTERS

• The Bucs are 7-3 through ten games to start the 2022 campaign. ETSU’s midweek against Clemson was postponed Tuesday morning for later in the season.
• ETSU is coming off a three-game road series in Rock Hill, S.C. The Bucs took two of three against Winthrop as all three games were decided by a combined four runs.
• Hunter Loyd (Knoxville, Tenn.) has continued to be dominant through his first three starts, going 2-0 with a 1.15 ERA that puts him second in the conference. Loyd’s 26 strikeouts on the season thus far have him tied for first in the conference with Western Carolina’s Zebby Matthews.
• Tommy Barth (Brecksville, Ohio) and Leo Jiminian (Saint-Lo, France) have firmly placed themselves among the top of the conference in batting through ten games as Barth sits third in the conference batting .435 while Jiminian trails just behind at .423.
• Turning into the Friday/Sunday catcher, Cleveland State CC transfer Ryan McCarthy (Knoxville, Tenn.)has made his defensive ability known with seven games behind the plate. McCarthy leads the conference with three runners caught stealing and got two in back-to-back games (at #6 Tennessee, Friday at Winthrop).
• Noah Webb (Kodak, Tenn.) continues to make his offensive presence known, leading the team in home runs (4), hits (13), slugging (.778), total bases (28), and is tied for the team lead in RBIs (11) with Garett Wallace (Sanford, Fla.). Webb sits fourth in the conference in slugging (.778).
• For the first time since Coach Pennucci has taken over as head coach, no ETSU starter got the decision this past weekend. The final two wins of the weekend were given to the first reliever out of the bullpen.
• ETSU recorded a save for the first time this season on Saturday and added another the following day to save the series. ETSU posted back-to-back saves once last season (at UNCG, April 3). 

ABOUT RIDER

• Rider enters the weekend 6-5 following a 5-4 loss against West Virginia on the road in 10 innings.
• Rider opened the weekend with wins over Georgetown, VCU, and Lafayette College. The Broncs took two of three from Miami (OH) and took one against Delaware.
• Rider went 23-18 last season and 18-16 in MAAC play but won the conference tournament and received the league’s automatic bid to the NCAA tournament. Rider went to the Ruston Regional, hosted by Louisiana Tech, and lost both games to the Bulldogs and Alabama.
• Scott Shaw enters as the team’s leader in batting average at .368. The Broncs are batting .243 as a team.
• Danny Kirwin is 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA with five appearances out of the bullpen.
• Rider was picked to finish seventh in the MAAC preseason poll. Shaw was the lone Rider player to be named to the Preseason All-MAAC team.

ABOUT UNC ASHEVILLE

• The Bulldogs come into Sunday 4-9 after a midweek win over High Point in Asheville.
• UNC Asheville was swept by Virginia Tech to begin the season and were swept by Mercer last weekend in Macon. The Bulldogs got the series win over Niagara in a four-game series.
• Dominic Freeberger has been UNC Asheville’s offense thus far, leading the team in every major batting category: batting average (.375), hits (18), doubles (5), RBIs (11), on-base percentage (.456), slugging percentage (.521), and OPS (.977). Freeberger enters on a nine-game hitting streak.
• Freeberger has also made a few appearances on the mound, recording a save in three innings pitched on the season with three strikeouts, one hit and no runs. Freeberger has one of UNC Asheville’s four wins among their pitching staff.
• ETSU won all three matchups last season against the Bulldogs at Thomas Stadium.
• UNC Asheville was picked to finish ninth in the Big South preseason poll. ETSU and UNC Asheville will each host a midweek match as the Bucs go to Asheville on April 19, and UNC Asheville returns on May 10.

TICKET INFORMATION

Season tickets, single-game tickets, and flex pack ticket options are all currently available at ETSUtickets.com or by calling 423-439-3878. 

For more information on Buccaneer baseball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the baseball page.