Baseball welcomes Mount St. Mary's for first home series

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – After playing its first 21 games away from home, the Bryant University baseball team will finally open its home schedule this weekend as it welcomes Mount St. Mary's for a Northeast Conference series.

Bryant's first official home game will come Friday at Brown's Murray Stadium, while its first actual home game at Conaty Park will take place on Saturday.

The Particulars

Opponent: Mount St. Mary's

Location: Murray Stadium (Providence, R.I.) | Conaty Park (Smithfield, R.I.)

Times: 2:30 p.m. | 12:00 p.m. | 3:30 p.m.

Live Stats: Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3

Game Notes: Bryant | Mount

Pitching Probables

Friday - Jack Patterson (2-1, 4.83) vs. Trey McGough (1-2, 4.03)

Saturday (Gm 1) - Steve Theetge (0-6, 6.43) vs. Michael Collins (1-3, 9.45)

Saturday (Gm 2) – Vito Morgese (2-1, 5.58) vs. Andrew Malone (0-2, 6.43)

Bryant will go with its regular weekend starters and all three have pitched well against Mount in their careers. Senior Jack Patterson (Suffield, Conn.) is 2-0 in three appearances after tossing six shutout innings last spring, while junior Steve Theetge (Syracuse, N.Y.) has thrown two complete-game shutouts against the Mountaineers in his career. Sophomore Vito Morgese (Warwick, N.Y.) threw a career-high 7 1/3 innings against the Mount last year, allowing just two runs.  

The Bulldogs will see a pair of lefties from the Mount this weekend. Trey McGough gets the ball on Friday after getting the Sunday start against the Bulldogs last season. He's posted good numbers this year but walked nine in his most recent start at Sacred Heart. Michael Collins also faced Bryant last year, surrendering seven runs on eight hits over five innings.

Series History

• Bryant and Mount St. Mary's have played 32 times since the start of the 2010 season.  
• The Bulldogs have won each of the last 30 games against the Mountaineers.
• Last season, Bryant swept a four-game series, out-scoring the Mount 40-4.

Bulldog Notes and Notables

• The Bulldogs enter Tuesday's game with a 9-12 overall record after defeating Brown on Tuesday afternoon. Bryant is 1-2 in NEC play.
• Bryant leads the NEC with a .285 average.
• Redshirt freshman Ryan Ward (Millbury, Mass.) has reached safely in each of the last 17 games and has hit safely in seven straight after going 3-for-5 on Tuesday.
• Ward is hitting .567 (17-30) with three doubles, two triples, two home runs, 10 RBI and seven runs scored over his last seven games.
• Sophomore Gaby Cruz (Miami, Fla.) has also excelled in his last seven, going 9-for-24 with two doubles, five RBI, five runs scored and a .464 OBP. He's reached safely in each of his last eight games.
• Junior Nathan Wrighter (Windsor, N.Y.) has now recorded a save in each of his last four appearances, tying him for the NEC lead. He has allowed just one run over his last seven outings.  

Scouting the Mountaineers

• Mount St. Mary's enters the weekend an overall record of 5-12 and a 1-1 mark in NEC play.
• The Mountaineers opened league play last weekend, splitting a doubleheader with Sacred Heart.
• Mount is hitting .233 as a team and has posted a team ERA of 7.68.
• Thomas Savastio leads the team with a .295 average, while Vaughn Parker and Patrick Causa have driven in 15 and 12 runs, respectively.
• Michael Kuypers has been the most effective out of the bullpen, posting a 2-0 record and a 3.26 ERA.