Old Dominion (12-12, 2-4 Sun Belt) at South Alabama (16-9, 3-3 Sun Belt)
Game Location – Stanky Field (Mobile, Ala.)
Game 1 – Friday, March 27 at 7:30 p.m. ET
Game 2 – Saturday, March 28 at 3 p.m. ET
Game 2 – Sunday, March 29 at 1 p.m. ET
Watch – ESPN+ (Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3)
Listen – Fox Sports Radio 1310 AM
Live Stats – Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3
Social Media – Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion Baseball is on the road in Mobile, Alabama this weekend as the Monarchs face South Alabama in Sun Belt action. Friday’s series opener is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET, Saturday’s game is slated for a 3 p.m. ET start, and Sunday will begin at 1 p.m. ET.
All three games will be streamed on ESPN+ and Ted Alexander can also be heard on Fox Sports Radio 1310 AM. Live stats will also be available.
The Series
Old Dominion holds a slight lead in the all-time series, 6-4. The teams played four games against each other in 2024, with the Monarchs hosting the Jaguars on March 29-30 during the regular season. ODU took the first two games, 8-2 and 8-3, but USA avoided the sweep with a 5-3 final in the series finale.
The two teams then met again on Tuesday, May 21 in the opening round of the Sun Belt Conference Championship in Montgomery, Alabama. The Monarchs entered the tournament as the No. 8 seed and the Jaguars came in as the No. 9 seed. A single-elimination game, ODU trailed 2-0 but pulled even in the bottom of the fifth when Maverick Stallings, who was named Sun Belt Player of the Week the day before, hit a two-run home run. The Monarchs then took the lead for good in the sixth as Kenny Levari singled, took second on a passed ball, and scored on a Jake Ticer hit through the left side. USA threatened to tie the game with one out and two on in the ninth inning, but Jacob Gomez struck out a batter and induced a ground out to third to send ODU into the double-elimination bracket.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs (12-12, 2-4 Sun Belt) split their two midweek games, falling 6-3 to William & Mary on Tuesday but bouncing back with a 7-2 win at Richmond on Wednesday. ODU built an early 3-0 lead against the Tribe, but the visitors pulled even with a three-run top of the fourth and added a run in the sixth and two more in the eighth. In the road victory over the Spiders, Richmond tied the game at 2-2 in the sixth inning, but the Monarchs scored five runs down the stretch to pull away.
Zach Leite continues to lead the team with a .393 batting average, good for fifth in the Sun Belt. The senior from Dana Point, California also enters the weekend ranked eighth in the country with 39 RBIs, ninth with 1.63 RBIs per game, and 21st with four sacrifice flies. Other starters hitting .300 or better include Stallings (.356), Tyler Zedalis (.341), Macaddin Dye (.314), Will Johnson (.314), and TJ Aiken (.308). Zedalis has hit a team-high five home runs, though Leite and Stallings are right behind him with four each. Aiken ranks fourth in the league with 28 runs, has drawn a team-high 18 walks, and owns nine stolen bases on 10 attempts.
As a team, the Monarchs are hitting .298 with a .347 slugging percentage. ODU is currently third in the SBC and 31st nationally with 15 sac flies. The Silver & Blue also ranks third in the conference with 50 doubles, is fourth in batting average, hits (238), and doubles per game (2.08), and fifth in on-base percentage (.396). Old Dominion is scoring 7.1 runs per game, but is also allowing 7.2 runs.
The weekend rotation will see right-handers Darin Kuskie (2-3, 8.34 ERA) on Friday, JJ Gatti (0-3, 5.96 ERA) on Saturday, and Nick Sulpizio (1-0, 6.75 ERA) on Sunday. Kuskie has recorded the most strikeouts with 25, Gatti is up to 18, and Sulpizio has struck out 13. The Monarchs have a team ERA of 6.72 and opposing teams are batting .300 against them.
ODU head coach Chris Finwood recently became the winningest coach in program history. The Monarchs are currently 216th in the latest RPI rankings.
Scouting South Alabama
The Jaguars (16-9, 3-3 Sun Belt) took two of three games against ULM last weekend and are coming off a 10-0 loss to No. 5 Auburn on Tuesday in Montgomery, Alabama. It marked the first time that South Alabama has been shut out this season.
Brennon Wright, a junior infielder from Starkville, Mississippi, leads the Sun Belt with a .407 batting average and is the conference leader and ranked 33rd nationally with a .530 on-base percentage. He’s also third in the league with 37 hits and is the fourth-toughest Sun Belt batter to strike out with one every 10.1 at bats. Wright is USA’s top threat on the basepaths with seven steals on nine attempts. Stewart Puckett follows him with a .297 clip, while Blake Guerin is hitting .291 and ranks second in the SBC with eight home runs, fourth with 0.33 home runs per game, and fifth with a .671 slugging percentage. Michael Young (.250) is 14th in Division I with three triples and second in the Sun Belt with 0.12 triples per game. Duncan Matthews (.261) and Rett Johnson (.213) are both 18th in the country with five sac bunts and third in the conference with 0.20 sac bunts per game.
USA is hitting a combined .279 as a team and owns a .447 slugging percentage with a .384 on-base percentage. The Jaguars average 7.0 runs per contest while holding opponents to 5.0 runs. The team ranks fourth in the SBC and 19th nationally with 18 sac bunts. They also fifth in the league with 176 runs scored, 48 doubles, and 26 home runs.
ODU will face three right-handers in Mitchell Heer (3-0, 3.97 ERA), Ryland Bozenhard (0-1, 5.32 ERA), and Daniel Gonzalez (2-2, 3.38 ERA). Gonzalez has recorded a team-high 35 strikeouts, though Heer and Jaxon Shineflew are close behind with 32 strikeouts each. Shineflew (3-0) is the Sun Belt leader and ranked 23rd in DI with a 0.85 WHIP. The reliever is also third in the SBC in hits allowed per nine innings (5.33) and fourth in ERA (2.00). The Jaguars’s combined ERA of 4.95 ranks fourth in the SBC and USA pitching is holding opposing batters to a .256 average against them.
South Alabama was picked to finish 11th in the Sun Belt Preseason Coaches’ Poll and is led by head coach Mark Calvi, who is in his 15th season with the program. The Jaguars enter the weekend ranked 68th in RPI.
Up Next
The Monarchs will make the drive to Charlottesville, Virginia next Tuesday, March 31 for a 6 p.m. meeting with the No. 9 Virginia Cavaliers.