Matchup – Old Dominion (18-3, 3-0 Sun Belt) vs. Marshall (8-11, 1-2 Sun Belt)
Game Location – Bud Metheny Ballpark (Norfolk, Va.)
Game 1 – Friday, March 24 at 6 p.m.
Game 2 – Saturday, March 25 at 3 p.m.
Game 3 – Sunday, March 26 at 1 p.m.
Watch – ESPN+ (Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3)
Live Stats – Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion baseball welcomes Marshall for three Sun Belt Conference games this weekend at Bud Metheny Ballpark. The conference series opens with a 6 p.m. start on Friday, followed by a 3 p.m. first pitch on Saturday and a 1 p.m. start on Sunday.
All three games in the series will be streamed on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs (18-3, 3-0 Sun Belt) lost for just the third time this season and the second time at home on Wednesday as ODU dropped its midweek game to Liberty, 9-5. It was an uncharacteristic night for ODU as the team struck out 14 times while issuing nine walks with four hit batters. That helped Liberty build a 6-0 lead, and a pair of Camden Grimes home runs weren't enough to get ODU back in it. The game marked the first in a home-and-home series versus the Flames this season as ODU will travel to Lynchburg on May 3.
ODU was in Monroe, Louisiana last week and opened Sun Belt play with a series sweep of the Warhawks. Alex Bouche drove in the deciding run in the top of the 10th inning as the Monarchs claimed the opener, 5-3. The Monarchs then clinched the series win with a 13-1 final on Saturday before defeating ULM 6-2 on Sunday.
Hunter Fitz-Gerald is batting .381 with a team-high 11 home runs (tied for fourth nationally) to lead ODU's starters. Other starters hitting over .300 include Alex Bouche (.357), Thomas Wheeler (.342), Luke Waters (.342), Kenny Levari (.333), Camden Grimes (.317), Robbie O'Neal (.306) and Jake Ticer (.303).
The team enters the weekend with a combined .330 batting average, .607 slugging percentage and .436 on-base percentage. Through games played on March 22, ODU ranks second nationally in home runs per game (2.29) and slugging percentage, third in home runs (48) and scoring (10.5 runs per game), fifth in hits (251), sixth in runs (221), seventh in batting average, ninth in triples (10), 12th in on-base percentage and triples per game (0.48), and 19th in walks (126).
Blake Morgan (2-1, 5.11 ERA), Sam Armstrong (4-0, 1.61 ERA) and Dylan Brown (2-0, 2.84 ERA) will start on the mound for the Monarchs. ODU pitchers are holding to a .249 clip and own a 3.62 ERA as a team, good for 22nd in the country. ODU's three shutouts are also ninth in NCAA Division I.
Scouting Marshall
The Thundering Herd (10-8, 1-2 Sun Belt) is coming off an 8-4 win at Cincinnati on Tuesday, but dropped two of three games to App State last weekend in their first conference series of the season. The Mountaineers took the first two games 12-4 and 9-8, but Marshall avoided the sweep with a 7-5 decision in Game Three.
At the plate, Marshall is led by starters Luke Edwards (.329), Kyle Schaefer (.310) and Daniel Carinci (.293). Edwards also owns the team highs in runs (20) and doubles (7), while Schaefer and Owen Ayers (.264) have hit three homers each. Edwards has seven stolen bases in as many attempts while Christian Lucio is 7-for-8. The Herd is a combined 27-for-31 when trying to steal.
Marshall's rotation for this weekend will see right-hander Patrick Copen (0-2, 4.94 ERA) on Friday, lefty Raymond Pacella (0-1, 7.36 ERA) on Saturday, and righty Zac Addkison (1-3, 5.40 ERA) on Sunday. Opposing teams are hitting .244 against them and the Herd has a team ERA of 5.06.
The Series
ODU is ahead in the all-time series, 20-8 and swept Marshall in its final home weekend of 2022. After taking the opener 13-8, the Monarchs walked off the Herd 8-7 in Game Two as Ryan Teschko drove in Matt Coutney in the bottom of the 12th inning.
ODU then edged the visitors 5-4 in Game Three in what marked Senior Day for the Monarchs. Brock Gagliardi provided the fireworks with a walk off home run, his final at bat at The Bud. The long ball also broke the program's single-season home run record of 105. The Tacoma, Washington native also homered in his final at bat as a Monarch, a two-run blast that put ODU in front of Louisiana Tech 7-6 in the Conference USA semifinal game.
Tommy Bell, current Monarch graduate assistant coach, also had a good series versus Marshall as he hit 6-for-11 with one homer, one double, five runs, three RBIs and a walk.
What's Next
ODU will travel to Charlottesville, Virginia next Tuesday, March 28 for a 5 p.m. game at UVA. The Cavaliers are currently ranked fifth in the country by Collegiate Baseball, seventh by Baseball America and the NCBWA, and eighth in the D1Baseball and USA Today Coaches polls.
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.
ODU Baseball at Home Against Marshall This Weekend
