Matchup – Old Dominion (13-2) vs. Princeton (2-8)
Game Location – Bud Metheny Ballpark (Norfolk, Va.)
Game 1 – Tuesday, March 14 at 3 p.m.
Game 2 – Wednesday, March 15 at 3 p.m.
Live Stats – Game 1 | Game 2
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion baseball returns to Bud Metheny Ballpark for a pair of midweek games against Princeton this Tuesday and Wednesday, March 14-15. Both games are scheduled for 3 p.m. starts.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs (13-2) split a pair of games at Charlotte this past weekend. After dropping the series opener 10-2 on Friday, ODU responded with an 11-2 win over the 49ers on Saturday. The teams were scheduled to play a third game on Sunday at 1 p.m., but the contest was canceled due to inclement weather.
ODU currently has eight batters hitting over .300, led by Hunter Fitz-Gerald with a .432 average. Following him are Tyler Wheeler (.381), Kenny Levari (.367), Luke Waters (.358), Thomas Wheeler (.356), Alex Bouche (.356), Jake Ticer (.333) and Robbie O'Neal (.324). As a team, the Monarchs are batting .331 with a .631 slugging percentage and a .432 on-base percentage.
Through games played on March 12, Fitz-Gerald leads the nation in RBIs per game (2.00) and ranks second in hits (32), hits per game (2.13) and total bases (68). The junior from Margate, Florida is also third in the country in home runs (10) and home runs per game (0.67), sixth in RBIs (30) and runs per game (1.73), and 11th in runs (26).
The Monarchs currently rank second nationally in slugging percentage and home runs per game (2.53), are third in home runs (38), ninth in scoring (10.4), 11th in winning percentage (.867), 13th in batting average, 14th in runs scored (156), 17th in triples (7) and triples per game (0.47), and 18th in hits (180).
Dylan Brown (1-0, 3.86 ERA) will get the start on Tuesday and Landen Burch (1-0, 5.59 ERA) will start on Wednesday. The Monarchs bring in a 4.04 ERA as a team with opponents batting .266 against them. ODU's arms have combined for 144 strikeouts against 50 walks with 77 runs (61 earned) allowed over 136.0 innings.
Scouting Princeton
The Tigers (2-8) were swept by Navy this past weekend in Annapolis, Maryland and are playing a 2 p.m. game at Richmond on Monday. Princeton edged Georgia 12-11 in the second game of a doubleheader in Athens, Georgia on February 26 and defeated Duke 7-3 in its series opener in Durham, North Carolina on March 3.
Eric Marasheski leads Princeton's starters with a .419 batting average. Brendan Cumming follows with an even .300 clip and Scott Bandura is batting .293. Kyle Vinci (.250) has hit a team-high four home runs, though Bandura is right behind him with three. The pair have scored seven runs each, with Bandura the team leader in RBIs with eight. Heading into their game against the Spiders, Princeton is hitting .245 as a team.
The Tigers lead the Ivy League in home runs (14), home runs per game (1.40), slugging percentage (.450), triples (3) and hit batters (21).
On the mound, Princeton's pitchers have combined for an 8.31 ERA with opposing teams hitting .328 against them. The Tigers have given up 95 runs (72 earned) on 107 hits, 35 of them for extra bases, and 47 walks. Princeton has recorded 65 strikeouts through 78.0 innings.
The Series
ODU is ahead 13-8 in the all-time series and has now won seven in a row versus the Tigers. Princeton came to The Bud on March 8 last season, a game that ODU won 15-5. Blake Morgan earned his first career win after tossing five shutout innings, striking out seven and not walking a batter. Chris Dengler finished 4-for-5 at the plate, drove in four runs and scored another three.
A second game, scheduled for March 9, was canceled.
What's Next
ODU opens conference play this weekend with a road trip to ULM. Friday's series opener is scheduled for a 7 p.m. ET start. The Monarchs and Warhawks will then play at 3 p.m. ET on Saturday and at 2 p.m. ET on Sunday. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+.
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.
Monarchs Return Home for Two Games Against Princeton
