WILLIAMSBURG, Va. – William & Mary baseball will open competition in the month of April with a pair of midweeks against Atlantic 10 teams, as it prepares to host VCU at Plumeri Park at 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 2 before heading to Arlington, Va., for a road matchup at George Washington on Wednesday, April 3.
During Tuesday's home matchup, the Tribe Sports Network is providing a free audio broadcast that is available at
TribeAthletics.com/ListenLive. Coverage begins approximately 10 minutes prior to scheduled first pitch, with insights from Head Coach
Mike McRae and his staff.
Single-game tickets can be purchased at
TribeAthletics.com.
Clear Bag Policy
William & Mary Athletics, in conjunction with the William & Mary Police Department, has implemented a clear bag policy that regulates the size and type of bag that may be carried into W&M Athletics facilities during the 2023-24 year, including Busch Field, Kaplan Arena, Martin Family Stadium, Plumeri Park, and Zable Stadium. Information as well as approved and prohibited items is available at
TribeAthletics.com.
Last Time Out
To the tune of a 6-0 shutout, the Tribe secured their sixth-straight weekend series, continuing the streak which began opening weekend.
Allowing only four hits and combining to tie the season-high 15 strikeouts,
Nate Knowles,
Mark Hindy and
Carter Lovasz posted a dominant performance to post a statement series-clinching victory.
Right fielder
Henry Jackson belted his first home run in the Green & Gold as one of his two base knocks and his multi-hit game was joined by
Joe Delossantos' and
Nate Goranson's.
Receiving Votes
After seven weeks of play, the Tribe is receiving votes in NCBWA's Top 25 Poll, marking the team's third mention of the year.
W&M has earned 10 wins over 13 games and posted a second seven-game winning streak since the team played the first games as a RV team in program history earlier in the season and fell out of top-25 contention with a 4-4 record. The Tribe have jumped onto the national radar once again following their sixth weekend series victory of the year.
National Numbers
In 10 statistical categories, the Tribe rank in the top 25 in the country, including six by the pitching staff and four offensive stats.
The Tribe have posted three shutouts, which is a mark only beat by six other teams in Division I.
Earning the highest ranking in strikeouts per nine innings this season, breaking into the top 10, the staff have combined for an 11.1 mark. Also included, are the team's 7.42 hits allowed per nine innings and 3.82 ERA which land at No. 14 and 15, respectively. A 1.29 WHIP ranks No. 19 in the nation and the Tribe's 2.62 strikeout-to-walk ratio rounds out the staff's top-25 numbers. Each of these marks lead the conference.
Offensively, W&M's 193 walks rank No. 3 in the statistic, trailing only a pair of nationally-ranked SEC teams in national leader No. 22 South Carolina and No. 3 Texas A&M.
With a .433 on base percentage, the Tribe are No. 15 and their 58 HBP ranks 17
th nationally in the statistic. W&M has also hit 17 sacrifice flies for a No. 24 mark. Falling just outside the nation's top 25, the Tribe are No. 26 in runs with 236.
Pitcher of the Week
Junior righty
Nate Knowles was recognized as the CAA Pitcher of the Week on April 1 following the Tribe's 3-1 week in which he picked up a pair of wins.
He didn't allow a run over two appearances and gave up just two hits en route to a 4-0 record on the season. Knowles fanned six Rams at VCU in the Tribe's midweek win and added five strikeouts in the CAA series-clinching shutout victory over Delaware.
Knowles earned his first in-season CAA recognition and the team's fourth following a three-win week on the road and the Tribe's sixth weekend series victory. His weekly honor follows back-to-back conference Rookie of the Week titles earned by
Josiah Seguin on March 18 and March 25.
On the Rise
Four Tribe players were recognized in D1Baseball's Top 100 in their respective positions following the release of week six player rankings.
Nate Knowles, who appeared at No. 140 in D1Baseball's preseason starting pitcher rankings, jumped a remarkable 92 spots to No. 48 following his first six weeks of play.
Zack Potts,
Ben Parker and
Joe Delossantos all made their first appearances in the top 100 lists. Potts was tabbed No. 65 as a starting pitcher while Parker and Delossantos each appeared in the outfielders rankings at No. 55 and No. 100, respectively.
The Series – VCU
The teams meet for the second time this season, just a week apart. The Tribe extended their streak over the Rams to three games in 6-3 win on the road. Adding the win last week, the Tribe trail the Rams 56-63-1 all-time.
Head Coach
Mike McRae served as the VCU pitching coach prior to taking the skipper role at W&M and has posted a 3-1 record over the Rams in his three years at the helm of the Tribe program.
On March 26, the Tribe bested the Rams, recording 10 hits and holding the host team to four hits.
Nate Knowles,
Travis Garnett,
Mark Hindy and
Carter Lovasz combined for 14 strikeouts and allowed only a pair of earned runs.
Over the weekend, VCU opened conference play against UMass at home, taking two of the three games and outscoring the Minutemen 17-11 on the weekend. In their last five game, the Rams are 3-2.
The Series – George Washington
GW is 18-10 on their season, reaching this mark by sweeping its last three weekend series against St. Bonaventure, Canisius and Presbyterian.
In recent midweeks, GW has taken on a pair of CAA opponents in three games, splitting a home-and-home with Towson in a 7-4 victory and a 8-7 loss, and falling 18-3 to Delaware, who the Tribe took the series from in their previous weekend.
In the last 10 games, GW is 8-2 and has won its three most recent matchups in a sweep over the Bonnies.
All-time, the Tribe trail GW 30-43 in the series that began in May 1942. Previously CAA opponents, 35 of those games were played in-conference.
W&M has won the two most recent meetings, 5-2 in 2023 and 11-5 in 2022, and looks to extend its streak over GW.
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