Matchup – Old Dominion (31-20, 14-13 Sun Belt) vs. Georgia State (27-26, 14-13 Sun Belt)
Game Location – Bud Metheny Ballpark (Norfolk, Va.)
Game 1 – Thursday, May 18 at 6 p.m.
Game 2 – Friday, May 19 at 3 p.m.
Game 3 – Saturday, May 20 at 12 p.m.
Watch – ESPN+ (Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3)
Live Stats – Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion baseball has its final homestand of the regular season this week as the Monarchs host Georgia State for a Sun Belt Conference series at Bud Metheny Ballpark.
ODU and GSU open their three-game set with a 6 p.m. start on Thursday, followed by a 3 p.m. game on Friday. Saturday was originally scheduled for 1 p.m., but has been moved up to a noon start. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+ and live stats will also be available.
Special Ceremonies
With the team on the road at Arkansas State two weeks ago, the Monarchs missed graduation exercises. ODU's senior class will have an on-field graduation ceremony beginning at 2:30 p.m. on Friday, and the team will also hold a Senior Day ceremony on Saturday at 11:40 a.m. Those being recognized include Joey DeChiaro, Chris Dengler, Camden Grimes, Jay Tarkenton and Josh Trujillo.
The Mark Newman Memorial Cookout and Alumni Day will also be held on Saturday in Rally Alley. ODU baseball alumni and supporters of the program will honor the life of ODU Sports Hall of Famer Mark Newman, who took over the program in 1981 and took the Monarchs to four conference finals, captured one league title and advanced to two NCAA Regionals. Food and beverages will be provided to those who RSVP'd.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs (31-20, 14-13 Sun Belt) dropped their first two games at James Madison last weekend, but won the series finale 8-5 with three runs in the top of the 11th inning.
Hunter Fitz-Gerald continues to lead ODU's starters with a .327 batting average. Kenny Levari is right behind him at .324, Jake Ticer is hitting .302 and Luke Waters comes into the series with an even .300 clip. Fitz-Gerald owns the team highs in home runs (21), runs scored (54), RBIs (67) and total bases (144) while Levari has hit a team-best 16 doubles to go along with 44 runs and 31 RBIs. Waters has stolen 11 bases on 12 attempts and Kyle Edwards (.310) is 9-for-10.
ODU is batting .291 as a team and ranks 14th in the country in home runs (95) and 17th in home runs per game (1.86). With five more long balls, the Bud Bombers would become the only NCAA Division I team to hit 100 home runs in each of the last three seasons. The Monarchs are also 18th in triples (18), 21st in triples per game (0.35), 23rd in shutouts (4) and 24th in slugging percentage (.524). The team leads the Sun Belt with 284 walks and is second in the league in scoring with 8.2 runs per game.
All three games will be staff days for ODU's arms. This weekend's rotation will see Vincent Bashara (3-0, 5.57 ERA) on Thursday, Sam Armstrong (9-2, 3.20 ERA) on Friday and Robert Cook (3-3, 4.26 ERA) on Saturday.
Scouting Georgia State
The Panthers (27-26, 14-13) are also tied for eighth in the Sun Belt standings alongside ODU and Georgia Southern. GSU swept the Eagles last weekend in Atlanta, Georgia, starting with an 11-3 victory on May 12. The Panthers then secured the series victory with an 8-2 final on May 13 and brought out the brooms with a 16-5 win in eight innings on May 14.
GSU has seven starters hitting over .300, led by Max Ryerson's .383 average. Following him are Cameron Jones at .335 and JoJo Jackson at .323. The team leads the Sun Belt and ranks eighth nationally in home runs (102) and ninth in home runs per game (1.92). Five different players own double-digit homers: Ryerson is up to 17, Luke Boynton (.280) is next with 16, Dylan Strickland has hit 12, Jackson enters the series with 11 and Colin Hynek (.271) has 10.
Matt Ruiz (.301) has scored 51 runs, Will Mize (.315) has driven in 47 runs and Ryerson is up to 46 RBIs. Jones is one of the top base stealers in the country. The junior outfielder ranks eighth nationally with 34 swiped bags and is 12th in stolen bases per game (0.67).
On the mound, GSU will start right-hander Ryan Watson (6-1, 3.89 ERA) on Thursday and righty Rafael Acosta (2-2, 6.33 ERA) on Friday. The Panthers have not named a starter for Saturday.
GSU was picked to finish ninth with 76 points in the Sun Belt Preseason Coaches' Poll and Ryerson and Jones represented the Panthers on the Preseason All-Sun Belt Team.
All-Time Series
GSU holds a slight 14-13 lead in the all-time series. The two teams are meeting for the first time since the 2013 season when both schools were members of the Colonial Athletic Association. The Panthers hosted the Monarchs on May 15-17 that year and claimed all three games by scores of 13-8, 12-10 and 7-4. This weekend will be GSU's first visit to The Bud since May 17-19, 2012. ODU won the series opener 8-1 that season, but fell 8-6 and 8-4 in the next two games.
What's Next
The 2023 Sun Belt Championship will be held on May 23-28 at Riverwalk Stadium, home of the Montgomery Biscuits, in Montgomery, Alabama. The conference tournament will be streamed on ESPN+ and the championship final is scheduled for Sunday, May 28 at 2 p.m. ET.
ODU Baseball Hosts Georgia State to Conclude the Regular Season
