Bulldogs and Bucs open series Friday

GAME NOTES

SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Looking for their first winning streak of the season, the Bryant University baseball team closes out its Spring Break trip with a three-game series against East Tennessee State this weekend at Thomas Stadium. Game one of the series is set for Friday night at 7:00 p.m.

The Bulldogs (5-6) come into the Volunteer State with back-to-back victories over North Carolina A&T on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Buccaneers (7-9) fell to UNC Asheville on Wednesday and have dropped six of their last eight games. This is the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

Bryant posted back-to-back shutouts over A&T during the week, the first time it has accomplished the feat since the 2008 season. The Bulldogs won 1-0 on Tuesday and earned a 4-0 rain-shortened victory on Wednesday. Senior Vaughn Hayward (Glendale, R.I.) and freshman Jack Patterson (Suffield, Conn.) delivered outstanding performances on the mound to earn their first victories with the Black and Gold, and now Bryant will look for three more quality starts against the Bucs. Senior Craig Schlitter (Guilford, Conn.) will try for his 20th-career victory on Friday, junior Kevin McAvoy (Syracuse, N.Y.) will go Saturday and sophomore Kyle Wilcox (Sandy Hook, Conn.) is scheduled to start Sunday. With a win, Schlitter would become just the sixth pitcher in program history and only the second in DI history to win 20 games in a career.

Offensively, the Bulldogs were held in check against the Aggies but are still enjoying a strong start to the season. Bryant is first in the country in doubles per game (2.89) and is hitting .290 as a team. Junior Daniel St. George (Shelton, Conn.) is enjoying an eight-game hitting streak and is currently hitting .350 with 10 runs scored. Sophomore Dan Cellucci (Sudbury, Mass.) leads all regulars with a .382 average, five doubles and 11 runs scored, and freshman Matt Albanese (East Haddam, Conn.) continues to lead the team with nine RBI.

ETSU is led by preseason All-American selection Clinton Freeman, a utility player that is hitting .338 with seven doubles and 14 RBI. Jeremy Taylor and Trey York are both tied for the team lead with 10 runs scored and Chris Riopedre is the team leader with three home runs. The Bucs are hitting .249 as a team and have produced 23 doubles, six triples and eight home runs.

On the mound, the Bulldogs will see freshman Austin Hutchinson on Friday and senior Jimmy Nesselt on Saturday. Hutchinson struck out 10 batters last week against Hartford and is 1-1 with a 3.52 ERA in 15.1 innings. Nesselt is 2-1 with a 2.93 ERA in 27.2 innings.

The Bulldogs are scheduled to host UMass Lowell in their home opener on Tuesday, March 18.