CHARLESTON, S.C. - Charleston Southern opens the 2021 season this weekend with a three-game series scheduled against Boston College. The series is set to open Friday afternoon at Nielsen Field at the CSU Ballpark, and will include single games on Saturday and Sunday. The games will not be carried live on any network, but fans will be available to be follow the action via live stats provided on CSUSports.com.
Weekend Schedule (^ - all statistics from 2020 season)
Game One – Friday, February 19
Charleston Southern vs. Boston College
3 p.m. * Charleston, S.C. * Nielsen Field at CSU Ballpark *
Live Stats
Projected Starters: CSU RHP R.J. Petit (0-0, 1.80 ERA)^ vs. BC RHP Mason Pelio (1-2, 4.09 ERA)^
Game Two – Saturday, February 20
Charleston Southern vs. Boston College
1:30 p.m. * Charleston, S.C. * Nielsen Field at CSU Ballpark *
Live Stats
Projected Starters: CSU RHP
Krishna Raj (0-0, 9.00 ERA)^ vs. BC RHP Emmet Sheehan (1-1, 8.16 ERA)^
Game Three – Saturday, February 21
Charleston Southern vs. Boston College
1 p.m. * Charleston, S.C. * Nielsen Field at CSU Ballpark *
Live Stats
Projected Starters: CSU RHP
Daniel Padysak (2-2, 3.38 ERA)^ vs. BC LHP Joe Vetrano (0-0, 0.00 ERA)
Weekend Preview
Charleston Southern makes its season debut this weekend against Boston College as the Buccaneers prepare for the long-awaited opening day at Nielsen Field at the CSU Ballpark. The Bucs will be in their first action under first-year head coach
Marc MacMillan as they take the field for the first time since March 11, 2020, when the 2020 season was called off due to COVID concerns following the Richmond midweek series.
MacMillan took the reins of the program in May 2020 after being announced as the 11th head coach in program history following stops at Ole Miss, Arkansas-Pine Bluff, Arkansas-Monticello, Crichton, and Memphis University School. During his tenure at Ole Miss, the Rebels earned five NCAA Regional Bids, two NCAA Super Regional Appearances, were SEC Tournament Champions and Runners-Up, and a College World Series participant. The program also set recorded in stolen bases in a single season, while he also coached five different MLB draft selections.
He brings that experience to a team that finished 7-12 overall in the shortened 2020 spring season, but showed signs of progress with a pair of wins over Kansas and a four-game sweep of Delaware State. The Bucs returned key players in
RJ Petit,
Kyle Sandstrom,
Daniel Padysak,
Alex Andronica, and
Dante Blakeney among others, while also welcoming an influx of new talent across the diamond.
Among the players expected to make their CSU debuts this weekend include projected Game Two starter
Krishna Raj, infielder
Tyrell Brewer, and outfielders
David Alamillo,
MJ Sasapan, and
Johnny Oliveira as the Buccaneers dove heavily into the recruiting period over the summer. Raj joins the Bucs by way of Tulane, while Brewer made his collegiate debut at Florida State in 2020. Alamillo (San Diego State), Sasapan (Furman), and Oliveira (Highland C.C.) also boast collegiate experience and will provide veteran leadership for the Bucs.
CSU faces a tough task in their opening day opponent as Boston College was projected to finish among the leaders in the Atlantic Coast Conference and boast a trio of All-Americans expected to be in the lineup from Day One. The Eagles were picked to finish sixth in the Atlantic Division in the 2021 ACC Preseason Baseball Poll, but the strength of the conference is evident with BC sitting among the 10 teams expected to be among the NCAA's regional field at the end of the season.
The Eagles are headlined this season by preseason ACC Pitcher of the Year Mason Pelio as the junior right-hander brings a fastball that sits in the 94-97 MPH range and looks to be the premier workhorse ace in the ACC this season. Joining him on the preseason All-American teams were third baseman Cody Morissette and outfielder Sal Frelick as Boston College returns eight batters to a lineup that combined to hit .316 as a team with 12 home runs and 101 RBI over their 15-game 2020 schedule.
About Boston College
Boston College enters the 2021 season under 11th-year head coach Mike Gambino as the Eagles boast one of their most loaded teams in program history. Five players were ranked among the top-30 at their position nationally with Pelio, Morissette, and Frelick joined by first baseman Jack Cunningham, and shortstop Brian Dempsey as ranked by D1 Baseball.
The Eagles were selected sixth overall in the Atlantic Division in the ACC Preseason Poll with BC picking up 39 total points in the rankings. Junior right-hander Mason Pelio was named the preseason ACC Pitcher of the Year after a strong sophomore campaign and headlines pitching staff that that features several power arms in the rotation and the bullpen. The lineup also boasts eight players returning that saw significant action in the 2020 season with four players sitting among the nation's best at their position.
CSU will be the lone Big South team on Boston College's schedule this season as the ACC has shifted to a 36-game ACC slate with up to 14 nonconference games. The three-game set against the Bucs is also BC's lone weekend series against a nonconference team this season.
Last Time Between These Teams
Charleston Southern and Boston College have only lined up against each other twice in their history with both games coming early in the 2006 season. The Eagles made the trip down to the CSU Ballpark for a two-game series on February 17-18, 2006 and took both wins to hold the 2-0 advantage in the series.
BC won the opening game, 5-2, behind a two-run first inning and a trio of runs scored across the seventh, eighth, and ninth frames of the contest. The second game, a 15-10 high-scoring affair, featured BC putting together six-run innings in both the top of the first and fifth, while the Bucs battled back with a four-run frame in the bottom of the fourth.
Power 5 Opening Weekend
Charleston Southern opens the 2021 season against a Power 5 opponent for the second year in a row and third since 2016 as the Buccaneers welcome Boston College to Nielsen Field at the CSU Ballpark. It is also the first time CSU has opened the season against an opponent from the ACC since 2006 when the Bucs traveled down to Tallahassee, Fla. for a three-game series against No. 8 Florida State.
Last season, the Bucs opened the year at home with a Friday afternoon contest against Maryland. The Terrapins took the game, 11-2, thanks to a late rally that featured a five-run seventh inning and a three-run ninth frame. Back in 2016, the Bucs hosted West Virginia in a three-game series at Joe Riley Park with CSU winning the opener, 4-3, behind Chris Singleton's three-RBI contest. WVU took the ensuing two games and the series.
The Bucs' last win against an ACC opponent in the season opener came back in the 1982 season under former head coach Bill Bustle. CSU took both games against North Carolina by matching 4-3 scores in the pair of wins over the Tar Heels.
Top-Tier Talent
Friday's projected pitching matchup between CSU's
RJ Petit and Boston College's Mason Pelio will be one of the top battles across the country as both players are considered among the top 150 starting pitchers in college baseball this season. Early draft projections have Pelio considered a first-round pick, while Petit has been ranging between the second-to-eighth rounds as he bounces back from an injury that limited him in the 2020 season.
Pelio was the headliner on the Boston College pitching staff last season as the junior right-hander posted a 1-2 record with a 4.09 ERA in his four starts on the season. He posted his win over North Illinois on opening day, while adding a six-strikeout performance against Arizona State. He added a two-run, six-inning appearance against Clemson in his final outing of the year.
The San Diego, Calif. native earned Freshman All-American honors by Perfect game in his 2019 season after posting a 4-3 record with a 3.62 ERA in 72.0 innings. Among his key performances included an eight-strikeout sin over Clemson, a seven-inning, eight-strikeout scoreless outing against Florida State, and a 7.2 inning, one unearned run game in a win over Louisville.
Petit also boasts a strong resume to his credit after a standout campaign that saw him join Pelio on the 2019 Freshman All-American squad. The Rock Hill, S.C. native earned First Team All-Big South recognition following a 4-0 record with a team-best 2.45 ERA. Opponents also hit jut .163 against the right-hander in his freshman season that was highlighted by an 11-game scoreless streak where he allowed just two hits during the span.
Last season, Petit missed the early part of the season due to injury, but was rounding into form as he made the transition from closer to weekend starter. He posted a 1.80 ERA over his two appearances and was positioned to start in the Big South-opening series against Campbell before the season was shut down due to COVID concerns.
On Deck
Charleston Southern will continue the season on February 27-28 as Ball State comes into town for a neutral site series that will be held at Shipyard Park in Mt. Pleasant, S.C. The Bucs and the Cardinals will line up in a doubleheader on the 27th and a single game on the 28th.
CSU COVID Restrictions
The Buccaneers also announced capacity limitation for all home events this spring. At this time, only a limited number of guests on the home team's pass list will be allowed in attendance.
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