PRINCESS ANNE, Maryland – It's a quick turnaround for the University of Maryland Eastern Shore baseball team with longtime rival Coppin State arriving for a three-game series starting on Thursday, April 6.
The Hawks are looking to rebound after a 6-10 loss to Mount St. Mary's (MD) on Tuesday (April 4) at home, putting them at 6-21 on the season and 4-8 in Northeast Conference play.
Honing on the Hawks
It was hard going for the Hawks against Mount St. Mary's on Tuesday, falling for the second time this season to the Mountaineers.
Over the past weekend
Luke Myers was a standout, batting .571/.667/.571 while scoring two runs. Against Mount St. Mary's he was one-for-three with two runs scored; he remains the hardest to strike out in the NEC.
Entering the series
Brantley Cutler remains the top batter for the Hawks at .320/.367/.485 and a team leading three home runs. The right fielder has done a significant amount of damage against lefties which will play up as Coppin starts two southpaws on the mound.
Expect to see
Kyle Speas,
Noah Covington and
Evan Nibblett on the mound for the Hawks this weekend. Speas picked up his second weekend start against Merrimack last Friday, Covington leads the nation in BB/9 at .20 and Nibblett leads the team in ERA.
Out of the pen,
Caden Parker continues to be a dominate force. Although losing the save against Merrimack on his 20
th birthday, the sophomore picked up his first win of the season and holds a 1.62 ERA over 16.2 innings.
Eyeing the Eagles
Sitting at 11-17 (4-5 NEC) on the season, Coppin has been battle tested – taking on #19 Oregon State in February – and also has shown they can handle themselves in the NEC with a sweep of Merrimack.
The Golden Eagles are riding high, they have a three-game winning streak with two over Hartford and a midweek victory at Navy.
Much like 2022, Coppin's game runs through two-way player Jordan Hamberg, last season's MEAC Player of the Year. Currently Hamberg holds a 1.030 OPS and leads his squad with six home runs, while holding a 6.27 ERA and 41 strikeouts.
There are three new names to the Coppin lineup that the Hawks will make caution for, with Brody Black, Brett Curran and Angel Colon all hitting over .275 – Black has a team high eight doubles.
Aside from Hamberg, Marcos Herrand and Liam McCallum will be the expected starters for Coppin. Both have been hurt by free passes this season, although Herrand earned NEC Pitcher of the Week for week five.
The Coppin pen has an elite reliever in Nico Felber, he's holding opposing batters to a .225 batting average and has a 1.05 WHIP. Rashad Ruff, who the Hawks had trouble with in 2022, has acted as the fireman for the Eagles.
How to Follow
Game one of the series is set for 1:00 p.m. on Thursday, with game two at 3:00 p.m. on Friday afternoon and the finale at 1:00 p.m. Saturday.
Live Stats will be provided with a link available on the University of Maryland Eastern Shore athletics website. Follow the action on Twitter via @ESHawksBase.
