Matchup – Old Dominion (24-11, 8-6 Sun Belt) at VMI (20-16, 5-3 SoCon)
Game Location – Gray-Minor Stadium (Lexington, Va.)
Start Time – Wednesday, April 19 at 6 p.m.
Watch – ESPN+
Live Stats – Click Here
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion baseball opens a five-game road swing this Wednesday with a 6 p.m. midweek contest at VMI in what will be the second game in the home-and-home series versus the Keydets.
Fans can watch the game on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs (24-11, 9-6 Sun Belt) picked up its first win over a ranked opponent as ODU defeated then-No. 17 Coastal Carolina 8-5 last Friday, but the Chanticleers evened the series with a 15-2 final in Saturday's Game Two. The two teams were locked at 2-2 after nine innings on Sunday, but a pair of solo home runs in the 10th allowed Coastal to grab the rubber match, 4-2.
ODU has five starters hitting over .300. Thomas Wheeler leads the way with a .341 average. Alex Bouche is next at .339, Hunter Fitz-Gerald is third with a .333 clip, Kenny Levari is batting .321 and Luke Waters owns a .301 average. Fitz-Gerald continues to lead the Monarchs in home runs (13), scoring (40 runs) and RBIs (44). Wheeler and Bouche have both drawn 25 walks, and Wheeler has swiped 13 bags on 16 attempts.
Coming into Wednesday's game, ODU ranks sixth in the country in home runs (69), seventh in home runs per game (1.97), ninth in slugging percentage (.548), 13th in runs scored (308) and 15th in runs per game (8.8).
Junior right-hander Vincent Bashara (0-0, 5.50 ERA) will get the start in what will be a staff day for ODU.
Scouting VMI
The Keydets (20-16, 5-3 SoCon) swept both games of a non-conference doubleheader against SIU Edwardsville on Saturday 13-8 and 10-4 to win the series, 2-1. With the wins, VMI has its first 20-win season since 2018.
Justin Starke has the hot bat for the team with a .406 batting average. VMI also has six other starters hitting over .300: Cole Garrett (.377), Ty Swaim (.365), Trey Morgan (.363), Cole Jenkins (.352), Grayson Fitzwater (.321) and Zac Morris (.319). Stark and Swaim have scored 42 runs each while Starke has driven in a team-high 38 runs. Six different Keydets have double-digit doubles and four have 20-plus stolen bases.
Through games played on April 17, VMI leads the nation in stolen bases (146) and stolen bases per game (4.06), is second in doubles (93), third in batting average (.332), fourth in doubles per game (2.58), sixth in sacrifice bunts (32) and seventh in hits (405).
Sophomore right-hander Caden Plummer (1-1, 7.94 ERA) will make the start on the mound.
The Series
ODU pushed its overall lead in the series to 46-8 with a 15-8 win over the Keydets on Feb. 21 at The Bud. The Monarchs combined for five home runs as Fitz-Gerald went 5-for-6 with a double and four RBIs. It was the first five-hit game since Matt Coutney had five hits in the series opener at MTSU last season.
What's Next
ODU will be in Boone, North Carolina this weekend for a Sun Belt series at App State. Friday's first pitch from Jim and Bettie Smith Stadium is set for 6 p.m. The two teams will then play at 3 p.m. on Saturday and conclude the series with a 1 p.m. start on Sunday.
ODU Baseball on the Road at VMI Wednesday
