SALISBURY, Maryland — It's the start of a new era for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore baseball team as it begins Northeast Conference play for the first time at home against Central Connecticut State University on Friday, March 10 at the Henry S. Parker Athletic Complex.
The Hawks enter the three-game series sitting at 1-11 overall, picking up their first win of the season against Lehigh this past Sunday. CCSU is 2-3 after getting a late start to the season, with wins over Butler, and losses to Albany and No. 1 LSU.
It will also be the first time the teams have gotten a look at one another since the 2004 season, where the Hawks went 0-1-1.
Catching Up with the Hawks
Heading into the series, the Hawks hope to make a quick statement in the conference against the preseason favorites and are using the momentum built from the first win of the season over Lehigh to do so.
Alex McCoy has been pacing the Hawks offense so far in 2023, being named a NEC Prime Performer following a 7-for-12 weekend with three runs and a home run. It's the third week in a row a Hawk has been named to the list, with Riley Horner earning the honor the first week of play and Evan Nibblett in week two.
Derrick Mayes II was instrumental in the 8-7 win over Lehigh, going 3-for-5 with three doubles, three runs and two RBIs.
It will be time to get the bats going for the Hawks though, currently sitting at the bottom of the conference in most hitting statistics but are one of the top doubles and stolen base teams.
On the mound, Nibblett leads the weekend starters with a 4.74 ERA and 1.16 WHIP, while Noah Covington has an impressive 11 strikeouts to no walks. Nick Gatton leads the team with 16 strikeouts but has struggled to go deep in his three starts so far.
The pen for the Hawks has been steady, led by Blake Rebstock and Caden Parker on the backend and quality showings from Gary Hallmen, Jr. and Charles Bernard in their first season of regular action. Freshmen are also pulling their weight, Porter Braddy has picked up a start and has allowed just one run while relieving; Raymond Smith, Donovan Gevers and Kyle Speas also have scoreless appearances.
Balancing the Blue Devils
While at just 2-3 due to a late start to the season, Central Connecticut isn't a team to be slept lightly on as preseason favorites and already battle tested against LSU in their first weekend of play.
The Blue Devils have four all-conference performers back for 2023 in outfielder Hunter Pasqualini and pitchers Luke Garofalo, Anthony Mozzicato and Vincent Spizzoucco. Spizzoucco was also the NEC Rookie of the Year after going 6-2 with 61 strikeouts and a 3.77 ERA.
Through five games, Boston College graduate transfer Ramon Jimenez has been holding his own by slugging .467/.529/1.067 line – aided by three home runs in the opening game against Butler. Jose Rios has put together a nice early season as well with a .368 OBP and two home runs.
Last season the Blue Devils led the NEC in average, on-base, slugging and fielding but did not lean too much on swiping bags, only taking 28 out of 37 attempts – they are six-for-seven this spring.
While too early to get a feel for the pitching staff this season, also not aided by slanted LSU runs, Mozzicato and junior Dominic Niman have both put together quality starts. Garofalo looks primed to return to his relief role and TJ Wainwright picked up innings as well in 2022 while splitting time in the infield.
How to Follow
Game one of the series is set for 12:00 p.m. on Friday (March 10), with Saturday's contest at 1:00 p.m. and the conclusion of the weekend on Sunday at noon.
Follow the action on Twitter via @ESHawksBase.
