Baseball hosts Siena in weekend series

BULLDOGS AND SAINTS MEET FOR WEEKEND SERIES

GAME NOTES

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Coming off its 10^th-straight victory on Thursday, the Bryant University baseball team begins an eight-game homestand on Saturday, April 6 as they host Siena for a three-game series at Conaty Park.

The Bulldogs (15-9-1) and Saints (8-18) will play a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday and then a single game to wrap up the series on Sunday beginning at noon. Saturday's twinbill will feature a nine-inning game followed by a seven-inning contest.

This weekend's non-conference series represents Bryant's lone bye week in league play. It also marks the fourth-straight year the two teams have met. Siena has won each of the three previous meetings, including an 8-3 decision last season in Smithfield.

At 8-18 overall, and 3-3 in MAAC play, the Saints have struggled to find consistency in 2013. They have played better recently, going 5-5 in their last 10 games after starting the season 3-13. Siena is hitting .260 as a team and is led by a pair of seniors and a junior. Mike Fish leads the team in hitting with a .330 average and has added five home runs and 19 RBI. Classmate Larry Balkwill is hitting .304 with a team-high eight doubles and 26 RBI. A junior, Vincent Citro is hitting .316, has scored 16 runs and leads the team with six stolen bases.

On the mound, the Saints have posted a team ERA of 5.84. Head coach Tony Rossi will go with the rotation of Matt Gage, Justin Brantley and Ed Lewicki this weekend. Gage is 2-4 with a 5.18 ERA in a team-high 40 innings. He has struck out 33 and walked just 18. Brantley is 2-3 with a 7.79 ERA in seven starts and Lewicki is 2-0 with a 2.00 ERA in nine appearances.

The Bulldogs have been playing great since returning from Ohio and are coming off a big victory on Thursday over Brown. Bryant trailed 4-3 in the sixth inning but was able to tie the game and then took the lead with a six-run seventh inning. Senior Kevin Brown (Northborough, Mass.) continued his torrid season, doubling, walking twice and scoring three runs against the Bears. He's now tied with Jeff Vigurs for first on the all-time doubles list with 61. Classmate Dan Muscatello (Hopkinton, Mass.) and sophomore Carl Anderson (Sudbury, Mass.) also continued to swing the bats well. Muscatello registered his second-straight multi-hit game and drove in four runs. He has now driven in nine runs over his last five outings. Anderson collected his third-straight three-hit game on Thursday and also scored three runs and drove in three. Over his last three games, he is 9-for-12 with six RBI and six runs scored.

Bryant's weekend rotation will be headlined once again by senior Peter Kelich (Jackson, N.J.). The veteran right-hander enters Saturday's series opener with the opportunity to become Bryant's all-time winningest pitcher. He is currently tied with Mike Florest for first on the all-time wins list with 26 career victories. On the season, Kelich is 3-2 with a 1.96 ERA over 36.2 innings. Sophomore Kevin McAvoy (Syracuse, N.Y.) will follow Kelich on Saturday and junior Craig Schlitter (Guilford, Conn.) will get the ball on Sunday in the series finale. Both McAvoy and Schlitter have each won their last two decisions.

Following the weekend series, the Bulldogs will welcome intra-state rival Rhode Island to Conaty Park on Wednesday, April 10.