WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – The William & Mary baseball team finishes out its last five-game homestand with a Hampton Roads clash against Old Dominion on Tuesday, April 10 at 6 pm.
The matchup will be broadcasted on Tribe Athletics TV via
Portal Stretch, while live stats can be found on the Tribe Baseball
schedule page. Fans can also enjoy popcorn and hot dogs for just $2 as part of Tasty Tuesday.
W&M News and Notes
• W&M an ODU will meet for the second time in 2018 and 140
th in series history on Tuesday night. The Monarchs hold an 86-53 all-time series lead against the Tribe. However, the Green and Gold defeated ODU on the road, 5-2, for the first time since 2011 during the last timeout (March 28). Junior
Hunter Smith was a triply shy of the cycle with four RBI and freshman
Matt McDermott tallied two hits in the first meeting this year.
• The Green and Gold is fresh off its first Colonial Athletic Association series win after taking the first two from Towson last weekend. W&M escaped with a pair of one-run wins in a doubleheader sweep on Friday to clinch the three-game set. The Tribe jumped out to a 5-0 lead, before being force to hold off furious Towson rally in both victories.
• Sophomore
Wade Strain was responsible for saving both CAA wins, collecting three in total last week. The closer out of Burke, Va., secured an 11-inning victory at Big Ten member Maryland on April 3. Strain's six saves rank third-best in the league. He ties teammate
Charlie Fletcher for most appearances (18) in the association and shares the lead in most games finished (14) with UNCW's Clark Cota.
• Big swings and ideal wind conditions helped the Tribe blast three home runs in its series opener with Towson. The effort ties 13
th in school history, and the last time W&M homered three times was on April 24, 2011 against VCU. Smith launched a solo bomb, junior
Zach Pearson smoked a two-RBI homer and classmate
Colin Lipke sent a three-RBI blast out of the park.
• McDermott is one of just nine CAA players to triple at least two times this year. As the only freshman to start every game, McDermott is third-best on the team in hits (30) and batting average (.259). The second baseman has tallied seven multi-hit games and ties first for the longest reached base streak (10).
• W&M has played 63 percent of its games right here in Williamsburg. Since the month of March, the Tribe has posted a 9-7 (.562) mark at Plumeri Park and claimed three of its four weekend series. However, W&M will be on the road in 13 of its last 21 games.
• A quick start is critical for the Tribe in winning games. The Green and Gold is 8-1 when it scores in the first inning and 12-4 in scoring the first run of a game. W&M has also displayed the ability to maintain a lead with a 10-3 mark when ahead after six innings. In addition, the Tribe also improved to 5-2 in night games and 3-3 in extra innings.
• For those keeping track all season, it is not a surprise that senior
Charlie Fletcher is right around the corner from becoming the program's new appearance leader. After logging 2.2 innings vs. Towson, Fletcher is only three calls away from breaking the record with 94 under his belt. He currently ties seventh in the CAA record books as well.
• Senior CLASS Award Candidate
Ryan Hall recently became one of the top hitters in program history, tying 15
th all-time with 217. He is also top 15 at W&M in most doubles (t-8
th), games started (8
th), at bats (8
th), walks (7
th), runs scored (11
th), and sacrifice flies (13
th). For the season, Hall is second-best in the CAA and tied 37
th in the NCAA with 12 doubles.
• Rookie
Justin Pearson will make his first career start against the Monarchs on Tuesday. Pearson has made eight appearances leading up to the mid-week nod and logged 11.2 innings of work. The lefty has strikeout five and allowed five earned runs on 12 hits in owning a 3.86 ERA. Also, Pearson have given up just one earned run in his last four appearances.
• Relief pitcher
Michael Toner is enjoying a standout senior season with the Green and Gold. He has notched career-highs in appearances (14), innings pitched (23.2), and strikeouts (30). The Cummings, Ga., native has allowed just seven earned runs on 22 hits for a 2.66 ERA. He also pitched in a shutout against ETSU (March 16).
• W&M will play against another school from the Commonwealth 12 times in 2018. The Tribe plays VCU (L, 4-3), No. 18 Virginia (L, 4-3), Radford (L, 2-1; W, 3-2), Old Dominion (5-2; April 10), James Madison (April 13-15), Norfolk State (April 17), Richmond (April 24), and Virginia Tech (May 15). So far, the Green and Gold is 2-3 versus in-state rivals.
• Three former Tribe players in the pros have received their minor-league assignments, all of them drafted last year. After helping the rookie level Elizabethton Twins capture a league title last summer, Nick Brown '17 will start his second season pitching for the Cedar Rapids Kernels (Parent Club: Minnesota Twins). Third round draft pick Nick Raquet will hurl for the Hagerstown Suns (Parent Club: Washington Nationals), while fifth rounder Cullen Large was assigned to the Lansing Lugnuts (Parent Club: Toronto Blue Jays).
• A trio of Tribe Baseball players earned preseason recognition from the Colonial Athletic Association, highlighted by sophomore
Brandon Raquet making the All-Conference Team. Hall and Smith both received Honorable Mention distinctions. In the predicted order of finish, the Tribe tied fifth with Elon with 37 points. UNCW (six first-place votes) is the preseason favorite, followed by Delaware (three first-place votes) and College of Charleston rounding out the top three.
