Old Dominion (21-29, 15-15 Sun Belt) vs. #22 Troy (37-19, 18-12 Sun Belt)
Game Location – Riverwalk Stadium (Montgomery, Ala.)
Start Time – Wednesday, May 21 at 10 a.m. ET
Watch – ESPN+
Listen – Fox Sports Radio 1310 AM
Live Stats – Click Here
Championship Central – Click Here
Tickets – Click Here
MONTGOMERY, Ala. – Old Dominion Baseball begins its run at the 2025 Sun Belt Championship this Wednesday when the sixth-seeded Monarchs take the field against No. 22 Troy, the third seed for the tournament. The game is scheduled for a 10 a.m. ET start at Riverwalk Stadium, home of the Tampa Bay Rays’ Double-A affiliate, the Montgomery Biscuits.
Every tournament game will be streamed on ESPN+, and live stats will also be available. Ted Alexander will cover the action on Fox Sports Radio 1310 AM.
For more information and to purchase tickets for the tournament, visit the Sun Belt Championship website.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs (21-29, 15-15 Sun Belt) rounded out the regular season by hosting No. 8 Coastal Carolina last week at War Memorial Stadium. ODU came up short 6-3 in the series opener on Thursday, then fell 16-7 on Friday and 12-1 in seven innings on Saturday. The team enters the conference championship ranked 114th in the latest RPI. This is also the first time since returning to the Sun Belt that the Monarchs have avoided the single-elimination round.
Zach Leite leads ODU’s starters with a .331 batting average. Next is Kainen Jorge with a .283 clip, Kyle Edwards is hitting .282, Maverick Stallings follows with a .272 average, and Luke Waters is right behind him at .270. Jorge and Stallings have both hit eight home runs, and Jorge and Edwards have scored 38 runs each. Four Monarchs own 30 or more RBIs: Jorge enters the week with 34, Leite is next with 33, Waters has 32, and Edwards is at 30. Edwards ranks second in the league with 25 stolen bases on 26 attempts and 0.50 stolen bases per game. Jorge is 13-for-13 on stolen base attempts. The Monarchs come into the tournament hitting a combined .256 with a .391 slugging percentage and a .365 on-base percentage.
Dylan Brown (4-2, 4.18 ERA) will get the start against the Trojans. The junior left hander leads the conference with 11.11 strikeouts per nine innings and is second in the league with 93 strikeouts. He has allowed 38 runs, 35 of them earned, on 72 hits and 25 walk through 14 starts and 75.1 innings pitched. Opponents are batting .247 against him.
Scouting Troy
The Trojans (37-19, 18-12 Sun Belt) are currently ranked 22nd in the NCBWA Poll, 25th in the Baseball America Poll, and 44th in the RPI. Troy has dropped four in a row and was swept by then-No. 19 Southern Miss last week, falling 4-3 on Thursday, 12-1 in eight innings on Friday, and 8-5 on Saturday.
Blake Cavill is hitting .326 and former Monarch Steven Meier is hitting .300 to lead Troy at the plate. Cavill was named to the All-Sun Belt First Team and leads the nation with 64 walks. He’s also second in the country with 1.19 walks per game and 12th with a .523 0n-base percentage. Brooks Bryan (.284) and pitcher Garrett Gainous earned spots on the All-Sun Belt Second Team. Bryan leads the team with 12 homers, 18 doubles, and 59 RBIs, while Meier and Cavill have combined to score 111 runs. Meier is the primary threat on the basepaths, stealing 21 bags on 26 attempts. The Trojans come into the tournament with a combined .276 batting average, a .446 slugging percentage, and a .406 on-base percentage.
ODU will face Gainous, a senior right hander who is 6-1 with a 3.83 ERA in 10 starts and 11 appearances this season. He has given up 26 runs, 22 of them earned, on 46 hits and 32 walks and recorded 51 strikeouts in 51.2 innings. Opposing batters are hitting .240 against him.
The Series
ODU and Troy met for the first time this season when the Monarchs hosted the then-No. 20 Trojans on April 4-6 at Harbor Park. Troy captured the first two games 7-0 and 4-3, but ODU took the series finale, 9-5 as Efrain Morales recorded his first career four-hit game and Edwards homered twice. It marked Coach Chris Finwood’s 400th win at Old Dominion.
Up Next
The winner of Wednesday’s game will play again on Thursday at 5 p.m. ET, while the losing team will play on Thursday at 10 a.m. ET.