Old Dominion (24-23, 11-13 Sun Belt) vs. Richmond (27-20, 14-10 Atlantic 10)
Game Location – Ellmer Family Baseball Complex (Norfolk, Va.)
When – Tuesday, May 5 at 6 p.m.
Watch – ESPN+
Live Stats – Click Here
Tickets – Click Here
Social Media – Twitter | Facebook | Instagram
NORFOLK, Va. – Old Dominion baseball and Richmond will meet for the third time this season as the Monarchs host the Spiders for a 6 p.m. game at the Ellmer Family Baseball Complex on Tuesday.
Andy Mashaw will call the game on ESPN+, and live stats will also be available.
Game Day Information
Fans planning to attend this Tuesday’s game will be able to park at the Elkhorn Garage, located on the corner of 43rd Street and Elkhorn Avenue, as well as in Lot 43 at the LR Hill Sports Complex. This year’s entrance to the stadium is located in the outfield next to ODU’s Chemistry Building, and temporary seating will be available in left center field. A Power Alley Patio, presented by the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers (IBEW), will feature a food truck and beer garden. Portable toilets have been set up outside, and fans will also be able to use restrooms inside of the Jim Jarrett Athletic Administration Building.
General admission tickets are $10 apiece, with faculty and military tickets priced at $8 and $5 for children ages 2-12. Fans can also purchase ODU Baseball Voucher Books here, which includes 25 tickets for $100 plus applicable fees.
New this year, Big Blue’s Kids Club members will receive free admission for all ODU Baseball home games. For more information and to sign up for the Kids Club, click here. For those wishing to do a group outing to the Ellmer Family Baseball Complex, please fill out an interest form here or reach out to ODU Director of Ticket Sales Steven Landry at slandry@odu.edu or by calling the ODU Ticket Office at 757-683-3360.
The Series
After defeating the Spiders, 7-2 in Richmond on Wednesday, March 25, the Monarchs beat them again, 10-9 in extra innings on Wednesday, April 15 in Norfolk. UofR scored two runs in the top of the ninth inning to tie the game at 9-9, but Jack Slater walked it off with an RBI single in the bottom of the 10th. After Tyler Stott retired the side in order in top half of the inning, Evan Holman was hit by a pitch and ODU brought in Cash Jay to run for him. He moved up 90 feet on a Nick Felton sacrifice bunt, reached third on a wild pitch, and came around as Slater singled to the gap in left.
Tuesday’s game will be the 102nd meeting between the two programs. ODU is ahead in the all-time series, 59-42.
Around the Horn
The Monarchs (24-23, 11-13 Sun Belt) are coming off a 3-1 week, having walked off VCU, 7-6 last Tuesday and then winning two of three games against Arkansas State this past weekend. ODU and A-State split their Friday doubleheader, with the Silver & Blue taking the first game 8-0 before falling 6-0 in the second game of the twin bill. Scotty Young came through with the game-winning hit against the Rams, and then answered the call again in Sunday’s rubber match as the Monarchs rallied for a 5-4 victory.
Leading the team at the plate are Efrain Morales (.359), Will Johnson (.327), Maverick Stallings (.314), and Zach Leite (.310). Leite comes into the week ranked second in the Sun Belt and 27th nationally with 57 RBIs. The senior first baseman is also second in the conference with 1.21 RBIs per game. He leads the league and is 30th in the country with six sac flies. Stallings and Tyler Zedalis (.292) have both hit nine home runs, while Leite has scored 37 times and Johnson has come around 36 times. TJ Aiken (.249) ranks third in the SBC with 38 walks and 0.81 walks per game. He’s also scored a team-high 39 runs and owns 13 stolen bases on 16 attempts. Felton is hitting .247 and ranks sixth in Division I with 0.28 sac bunts per game and eighth with 11 sac bunts.
Old Dominion owns the fifth-best batting average in the conference at .282 and has a .411 slugging percentage with a .385 on-base percentage. The Monarchs are currently third in the Sun Belt with 23 sac flies and are fourth with three shutouts. ODU averages 6.5 runs per game while allowing 7.0 runs.
Chris Cavalcante (1-1, 10.43 ERA) will make his first collegiate start on Tuesday. The freshman right-hander from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania has been tagged for 17 earned runs on 16 hits and 11 walks. He has recorded 15 strikeouts through 15 appearances and 14.2 innings of work. ODU has a combined ERA of 6.45 with opponents hitting .301 against them.
The Monarchs are listed 120th in the RPI rankings through games played on May 3.
Scouting Richmond
The Spiders (27-20, 14-10 Atlantic 10) had an A-10 series at Davidson over the weekend. After dropping the series opener 6-5 on Friday, UofR evened the series with an 8-3 final o Saturday. Richmond then won the rubber match, 10-9 on Sunday thanks to a six-run top of the sixth inning.
UofR has five starters hitting over .300: Dylan Winebrenner (.352), RJ Johnson Jr. (.347), Michael Elko (.335), Evan Wilson (.328), and Chris Schaller (.326). Winebrenner leads the team and is fourth in the conference with 14 home runs and 0.3 home runs per game. He’s also second in the A-10 with a .659 slugging percentage. The catcher from Frederick, Maryland also owns team highs in runs (46) and RBIs (46). Wilson and Ryan Recio (.223) have both homered eight times and Elko follows Winebrenner with 35 RBIs and 39 runs. He’s the top threat to steal with 24 swiped bags on 27 attempts, followed by Schaller with 13 steals on 16 attempts.
The Spiders have the third-best batting average in their conference at .281. They’re second in the A-10 with a .467 slugging percentage and are also third in doubles (97), doubles per game (2.06), home runs (59), home runs per game (1.26), and on-base percentage (.399). Richmond averages 6.5 runs per game while holding opponents to 5.6 runs.
Right-hander Khristopher Morris (0-0, 10.38 ERA) will get the start for the Spiders. The graduate student from Edenton, North Carolina has made three starts in five appearances and given up 10 runs, all earned, on 12 hits and three walks. Morris has struck out seven in 8.2 innings pitched and opposing batters are hitting .364 against him. UofR leads its conference with 3.94 walks allowed per nine innings and is second in the A-10 in ERA (5.21), strikeout-to-walk ratio (1.96), and WHIP (1.41). However, the team has hit the fourth-most batters in the country (99). Opponents are hitting .258 against the Spiders.
Richmond is not far behind ODU in the RPI rankings, coming in at 133rd.
Up Next
ODU will head south to the Palmetto State this weekend for a Sun Belt series at No. 8 Coastal Carolina. The Monarchs and Chanticleers will play at 6 p.m. on Friday and at 1 p.m. on Sunday. CCU hasn’t announced a start time for this Saturday.