Old Dominion (0-0) vs. St. John's (0-0)
Game Location – Bud Metheny Ballpark (Norfolk, Va.)
Game 1 – Friday, Feb. 17 at 3 p.m.
Game 2 – Saturday, Feb. 18 at 2 p.m.
Game 3 – Sunday, Feb. 19 at 12 p.m.
Follow – Live Stats (Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3)
NORFOLK, Va. – The Old Dominion baseball team opens its 2023 season this weekend as the Monarchs host St. John's for a three-game series at Bud Metheny Ballpark. Friday's season opener will start at 3 p.m., Game Two is scheduled for 2 p.m. on Saturday, and Sunday's series finale will have a noon first pitch.
Live stats will be available for all three games. ODU will stream only Sun Belt Conference home games on ESPN+ this season.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs recorded their second-straight season with 40-plus wins last year, finishing 41-17 overall and 19-11 in conference play. ODU was one game shy of reaching the Conference USA Championship final, falling to eventual champion Louisiana Tech, 8-7 in the tournament semifinals. Head Coach Chris Finwood is entering his 12th season leading the Monarchs. Over the last two seasons, ODU has 85 wins which is tied for ninth most in the country.
ODU was picked to finish seventh with 116 points in the Sun Belt's Preseason Poll. The Monarchs return 16 players from last year and have 21 newcomers for 2023. Some key position players back for ODU include infielders Chris Dengler and Kenny Levari as well as outfielders Josh Trujillo and Thomas Wheeler. On the bump, ODU returns starting pitchers Blake Morgan and Sam Armstrong as well as reliever Jacob Gomez.
This season marks ODU's first as a member of the Sun Belt since the 1991 season. In the nine seasons the Monarchs competed in the league from 1983-1991, ODU captured three regular-season titles, reached the Sun Belt Championship twice and won the conference tournament in 1985. ODU went 328-175-1 overall and 91-64 against Sun Belt opponents in its first stint in the conference.
Scouting St. John's
The Red Storm posted a 22-32-1 overall record with a 7-12-1 mark in the Big East last season. St. John's received 21 points and was picked to finish sixth in their conference's Preseason Coaches' Poll. Third baseman Kevin Michaels and outfielder David Glancy represented the Red Storm on the Preseason All-Big East Team.
Michaels earned All-Big East First Team honors last season after hitting .330 with a .380 on-base percentage. His 24 extra-base hits led the team and he finished with seven home runs. He was also responsible for driving in 46 runs. For Glancy, he tallied 11 long balls while hitting .294 with an .894 OPS.
St. John's has captured nine conference tournament titles since 1985 in addition to a league-best nine regular season championships. The Red Storm has reached 10 of the last 18 NCAA Tournaments dating back to 2004.
The Series
ODU and St. John's are meeting for the first time since 2014 when the Monarchs defeated the Red Storm 3-0 on Feb. 21 in Norfolk. ODU opened the scoring in the bottom of the third as Tyler Urps tagged up on a Taylor Ostrich sac fly to left. The Monarchs then tacked on two more runs in the fourth as Jordan Negrini and Josiah Burney both doubled before Urps brought in Burney with a base hit to left. Burney finished 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, Ostrich also went 2-for-3 and Negrini batted 2-for-4. Ryan Yarbrough tossed six scoreless frames with five strikeouts and two walks to earn the win and Brad Gero pitched the ninth to record the save.
The Monarchs hold an 8-5 lead in the all-time series, to include a 6-3 record when playing the Red Storm at home.
What's Next
ODU will host VMI for its first midweek game of the season, scheduled for 3 p.m. next Tuesday, Feb. 21.
Voucher Books!
The 2022-23 Old Dominion voucher book is available for sale on ynottix.com. For the cost of $50, you get 25 tickets that can be presented at the gate for admission to any regular season home game at Bud Metheny Ballpark. Single-game tickets can also be purchased for $5.
Click here to purchase the 2022-23 ODU voucher book.
Baseball to Host St. John's for Opening Weekend
