Presbyterian Next Up for CSU Baseball; Follow the Action Online

Future Big South Conference member Presbyterian will be in town for a three-game series with the CSU baseball team this weekend. The teams will open the series at 2 p.m. on Friday and wrap it up with a doubleheader on Saturday beginning at 11 a.m. CSU will also be hosting the "Building Buccaneer Baseball" cookout on Saturday, where $5 will get fans a BBQ sandiwch, chips and a drink. All the games will take place at Buccaneer Field.

Full Game Notes for Presbyterian (March 21 &22)

Media Coverage
Live Video

Gametracker (Game One, Game Two, Game Three)

Series Notes
Presbyterian has won the only meeting between these two teams to give the Blue Hose the 1-0 advantage in the all-time series. The lone meeting was during the 1993 season, with Presbyterian coming out on top, 10-8.

Scouting the Bulldogs
A 16-11 victory over Yale on Thursday marked the end of a five-game losing streak for Presbyterian and was also its highest offensive output of the season. The Blue House racked up 18 hits and capitalized on four Yale errors while scoring all its runs over four innings, including a pair of five-run innings.
Presbyterian clean-up hitter Nate Horton is the team’s leader with a .415 batting average and is also the squad’s top RBI man with 11 on the season. Willie Bolchoz and Jared Combs have each hit one home run for the Blue Hose to lead the team.
Mitchell Odom, who will start the series opener on Friday for the Blue Hose, is second on the team with 20 strikeouts and has held opponents to a .286 average.

Last Time Out
CHARLESTON, S.C. – Down by two with a pair of base runners and two down, the CSU baseball team was threatening to make a comeback in its final at-bats against The Citadel on Tuesday. A diving catch by the Bulldogs’ center fielder Matt Simonelli ended the rally, however, as the Buccaneers fell, 5-3, at Riley Park. Junior Mark Perry led the CSU offense, going 3-for-4 with one run batted in. Getting his second start of the season, freshman Anthony Markham pitched 6.1 innings for the Buccaneers, giving up five runs (four earned) on seven hits with four strikeouts to fall to 2-3 on the season.

First In Line
Redshirt-freshman Nick Chinners began the season as the Buccaneers’ starting first baseman, but hit just .250 in five games. But since his return to the lineup, Chinners has reached base in 11 consecutive games and upped his season batting average to .352, which ranks fourth on the team. He’s show patience at the plate this year, leading the team with 12 walks to bolster his .449 on-base percentage, which is third on the team.

Telling the Kory
Junior Kory Morian has been held without a hit in just two of the 16 games he’s played in this season. In his 14 starts, there has been just one contest where he hasn’t reached base, helping him to a team-high .442 batting average. Morian is tied for second on the squad with seven multi-hit games this season, getting three hits in two different games. CSU’s starting second baseman also has a team-best .500 on-base percentage thanks to six drawn walks on the season.

On The List
Junior catch Jake Cox has been named to the 2008 Coleman Company-Johnny Bench Award Watch List, given annually to the top division one collegiate catcher. On the season, Cox has an on-base percentage of .362 thanks to eleven drawn walks, which is second on the squad. He has thrown out six of eight runners on stolen base attempts.

On The Horizon
Monday’s contest against the Air Force Academy will also be the Buccaneers’ Military Appreciation game. All active duty military receive free admission with their military ID and also get reduced prices ($1) for family members. The game will begin at 2 p.m. on Buccaneer Field. CSU will play its first conference contests over the weekend, traveling to Radford for a three-game series. It will mark the first time the Bucs play consecutive games on the road.