MOUNT ST. MARY'S (11-33, 8-20 NEC) vs. BRYANT (39-10, 22-4 NEC)
Emmitsburg, Md. | E.T. Straw Family Stadium
Game 1 – Thursday, May 19, 1 p.m.
Game 2 – Thursday, May 19, 3:30 p.m.
Game 3 – Friday, May 20, 1 p.m.
Game 4 – Friday, May 20, 3:30 p.m.
LIVE STATS
MOUNT UPDATE
The Mountaineers head into the final series of the season with an 11-33 overall record and 8-20 mark in Northeast Conference play. The Mount had won six of nine games during a stretch in late April before dropping a four-game set to Sacred Heart a week and a half ago. The Mountaineers are hitting .225 as a team and averaging 3.45 runs per game, with outfielders Ryan Owens (.308 avg., 18 RBIs) and Zach Hostetter (.270, 15 RBIs) leading the way, while first baseman Tyler Post tops the squad with four homers and 25 RBIs.
Head Coach Scott Thomson will send four seniors out on the mound for the series with the Bulldogs as the quartet winds down their Mount careers. Ben Smallenbroek, Chad Diehl, Austin Bonadio and Connor Graber, who have combined to pitch in 183 games at the Mount, are the probable starters for the series.
TEAM LEADERS
Batting Average (min 90 AB): Ryan Owens (.308), Zach Hostetter (.270), Alex Kriss (.243)
Hits: Owens (48), Hostetter (34), Kriss (34)
Runs: Owens (21), Tyler Post (19), Patrick Causa (17)
RBI: Post (25), Owens (18), Hostetter (15)
ERA (min 30.0 IP): Michael Kuypers (4.25), Hunter Shuff (5.72), Chad Diehl (5.76)
Strikeouts: Diehl (49), Shuff (37), Kuypers (27)
SENIOR DAY
As part of the final series of the season, Mount St. Mary's will honor seniors Austin Bonadio, Chad Diehl, Connor Graber, Kevin Myers, Ryan Owens, Tommy Quealy and Ben Smallenbroek with a pregame ceremony on Friday.
ABOUT BRYANT
The Bulldogs have clinched the No. 1 seed in the NEC with a 22-4 league mark and 39-10 overall record, and are the top-ranked team in New England. Junior outfielder Matt Albanese is batting .366 on the year and leads the conference in both OBP (.471) and slugging (.630), while ranking second with 11 homers. Bryant has seven other players hitting over .300 on the season, including Robby Rinn (.378), who owns the second-best batting average in the league. Sophomore James Karinchak is the ace of the staff, sporting a 2.36 ERA with a league-leading 86 strikeouts in 12 starts.
ALL-TIME SERIES
Mount St. Mary's and Bryant have met 24 times in series history with the Bulldogs holding a 22-2 advantage. Bryant won all four games in the series last season in Smithfield, R.I.
