Old Dominion (3-1) vs. Rutgers (3-0)
Game Location – Bud Metheny Ballpark (Norfolk, Va.)
Game 1 – Friday, Feb. 23 at 3 p.m.
Game 2 – Saturday, Feb. 24 at 2 p.m.
Game 3 – Sunday, Feb. 25 at 1 p.m.
Watch – ESPN+ (Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3)
Live Stats – Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
NORFOLK, Va. – Following an 8-0 setback at No. 14 Virginia on Wednesday, Old Dominion Baseball returns to the friendly confines of Bud Metheny Ballpark this weekend when the Monarchs host Rutgers for a three-game set. Game One in the series is schedule for a 3 p.m. start. The teams then return for Game Two on Saturday at 2 p.m. and close out the weekend Sunday at 1 p.m.
All three games in the series will be streamed on ESPN+ with Ted Alexander on the call. Fans can also follow along with live stats.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs (3-1) started off the season with a series sweep of George Washington, but could not manufacture any runs against the Cavaliers. Alex Bouche hit 2-for-3 to lead ODU in the loss, Maverick Stallings finished 1-for-3 and Luke Waters (1-for-4) collected the team's other hit. ODU used nine different pitchers, with starter Jacob Gomez (0-1) taking the loss after allowing one run on two hits in two innings of work.
Stallings is the top hitter for the Monarchs with a .385 average. Waters is next with a .375 clip, Kyle Edwards is batting .364 and Steven Meier enters the weekend at .286. Edwards leads the team in extra-base hits with a pair of doubles and is also the leader in steals with four swiped bags in as many attempts. A junior from Virginia Beach, he's tied for the national lead in sac flies with three, ranks 13th in stolen bases and 14th in stolen bases per game (1.00). Meier has scored four runs and Waters has driven in four runs. As a team, the Monarchs are batting .236 with a .317 slugging percentage and a .368 on-base percentage. ODU ranks 10th in the country in stolen bases per game (3.25), 14th in stolen bases (13), and 15th in sacrifice flies (4).
ODU will go with the same rotation as last week: John Holobetz (1-0, 0.00 ERA) will start on Friday, Dylan Brown (1-0, 3.60 ERA) will start on Saturday, and Trent Buchanan (0-0, 2.25 ERA) will get the nod for Sunday's series finale. Monarch pitchers own a combined 2.83 ERA and have held opponents to a .233 batting average against them. Through games played on Feb. 21, ODU ranks seventh nationally in walks allowed per nine innings (2.06) and 16th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (4.25).
Scouting Rutgers
The Scarlet Knights (3-0) traveled to Rock Hill, South Carolina last weekend and came away with a series sweep of Winthrop, defeating the Eagles 14-5 on Friday, 3-1 on Saturday, and 7-6 in 11 innings on Sunday. It marked the second time in the past three seasons that Rutgers has started off 3-0 and it was also the third time in the past four seasons the program has started off with a series win.
Rutgers has four players hitting over .350: Tony Santa Maria owns a team-best .538 average, Johnny Volpe is second at .444, Cameron Love enters the series batting .417, and RJ Johnson Jr. is hitting .385 through his first three games. Santa Maria also leads the Scarlet Knights in home runs (3), runs (5), and RBIs (8) while Volpe is a perfect 4-for-4 when attempting to steal. A redshirt-sophomore from infielder from Absecon, New Jersey, Santa Maria ranks fifth nationally in home runs per game (1.00), seventh in home runs, and 15th in RBIs per game (2.67). Volpe, a graduate infielder from Sea Girt, New Jersey, ranks fifth in stolen bases per game (1.33) and 13th in stolen bases. The team is hitting a combined .295 with a .446 slugging percentage and a .404 on-base percentage and ranks 20th in stolen bases per game (2.67) and 22nd in hit by pitch (10).
The Scarlet Knights are expected to start right-hander Christian Coppola (1-0, 1.80 ERA) for Friday's series opener, lefty Justin Sinibaldi (1-0, 1.29 ERA) on Saturday, and righty Zack Konstantinovsky (0-0, 6.75 ERA) on Sunday. This weekend will also mark the return of alumni Joey DeChiaro, who has made two appearances and thrown 2.1 innings this season. Rutgers' arms have a combined 2.48 ERA and they held Winthrop to a .214 average against them. The team is the national leader in walks allowed per nine innings (1.24) and also ranks third in strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.25), 10th in WHIP (0.90), and 27th in ERA.
Rutgers was picked to finish fourth in the Big Ten Preseason Poll, which was voted on by the conference's 13 head coaches. Coppola, Santa Maria and Josh Kuroda-Grauer were included in the Big Ten Players to Watch List while Kuroda-Grauer, Coppola and DeChiaro were included in Perfect Game's Preseason All-Big Ten Team. Head coach Steve Owens is in his 5th season leading the program.
The Series
Rutgers is ahead in the all-time series, 37-33. This weekend will be the first time the two teams will square off since the Monarchs hosted the Scarlet Knights for three games on March 6-8, 2020. It was a series sweep for ODU with a 3-1 win in Game One, an 8-7 win in Game Two, and an 11-1 victory in Game Three. The Monarchs have won seven straight in the series. This is a resumption of a series that was played annually from 1997-2020.
Up Next
ODU has its first game in a home-and-home series versus East Carolina next Tuesday, Feb. 27 when the Pirates come to Norfolk. First pitch from The Bud is scheduled for 3 p.m.
Voucher Books!
The 2024 Old Dominion Baseball voucher book is available for sale online at odusports.com/tickets. For just $50, fans get 25 tickets that can be used for any regular season home game played at the Bud Metheny Baseball Stadium. Single-game tickets can also be purchased for $5.
Click here to purchase the 2024 ODU Baseball voucher book.
Commonwealth Classic
The Monarchs will host Virginia in the Commonwealth Classic, scheduled for Tuesday, April 16 at Harbor Park beginning at 6 p.m. General admission tickets are on sale now at $10 each and can be purchased here.
Monarchs Welcome Rutgers to The Bud this Weekend
