MILLERSVILLE VS. WEST CHESTER |
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| #3 Millersville Marauders
2016 Record: 20-1, 4-0 PSAC East
Coach: Jon Shehan, 9th season
Roster | Schedule | Statistics |
| West Chester Golden Rams
2016 Record: 12-4, 3-1 PSAC East
Coach: Jad Prachniak, 5th season
Roster | Schedule | Statistics |
| Game Information
Date: Friday, March 25, 2016, 1 p.m.
Location: Millersville, Pa. (Cooper Park)
Live Stats | Live Audio
Twitter | Instagram | #HoistTheColors
Series vs. West Chester: 43-79
Last Season: 4-0
First Meeting: 1957 (L, 3-5)
Last Meeting: 2015 (L, 0-5)
Last Season Series: WCU, 3-2
Last 10: 5-5
Shehan vs. West Chester: 16-17 |
ABOUT THE GAMES• Since 2008, only two teams have won PSAC East titles. Millersville has five and West Chester has three. The Marauders have won three in a row while West Chester took the division crown in 2009, 2010 and 2012. With Millersville off to a 20-1 start and West Chester entering at 12-4 and coming off three wins over Shippensburg, both teams appear poised to contend again in 2016.
• Millersville is ranked No. 3 in Division II in both the Collegiate Baseball and NCBWA polls. The Marauders have won a program record 19 in a row and are just one win away from tying a PSAC record which was set by the 2012 West Chester club. That West Chester team went on to win the NCAA Championship.
• Projected game one starter
Brandon Miller has faced West Chester three times in his career and is 1-2 despite allowing only six earned runs in 20 innings. West Chester's ace is Nick Stallings. In three starts at 13.2 innings, he is 2-0 with a 0.66 ERA. He's struck out 13 but walked nine.
• Miller's 1.01 ERA, 4-0 record and .119 batting average against puts him at the top of the PSAC statistical standings. He ranks first in batting average against, third in ERA, third in strikeouts, second in innings pitched and second in wins.
• Miller isn't the only Marauder at the top of the PSAC.
Mitch Stoltzfus is first in batting average and also ranks third nationally. Stoltzfus is on a 19-game hitting streak, which is four short of Mike Van Gavree's school record set in 1990.
Dan Stoltzfus produced a 21-game hitting streak in 2015. Mitch also ranks third in the PSAC in RBIs, third in total bases and second in slugging percentage.
• As a team, the Marauders own far-and-away the best pitching numbers in the league. The staff's 2.39 ERA ranks first with Mercyhurst's 3.76 a distant second. Marauder pitchers have also held opponents to a league-best .218 batting average against. Reliever
Mike Mock has yet to allow a run and has given up four hits in nine innings.
Cody Stoneback has three saves and six scoreless innings. Freshman starter and projected game two starter on Friday,
Cordell Shannon, is the reigning PSAC East Pitcher of the Week.
SERIES HISTORY• All four games of last season's regular season series were played at West Chester with the teams splitting. Two games were decided by one run and the series finale went into extra innings. West Chester won the NCAA Atlantic Regional opening round game by a 5-0 score, beating
Brandon Miller with a four-run fifth inning. Miller gave up seven hits and struck out seven in six innings. Nick Stallings shut out the Marauders over eight innings, allowing just four hits.
• Millersville and West Chester have evenly split the last 10 games but Millersville is 15-5 in regular season match-ups since 2011.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS• West Chester's Shane Dressler is the reigning PSAC East Athlete of the Week after going 5-for-11 with two homers and seven RBIs against Shippensburg. Dressler is leading the team with a .377 average, three homers and 18 RBIs. The team is hitting .297 but has also allowed opponents to hit .300.
• The Golden Ram's pitching staff owns an ERA of 5.02 but all five starters with at least two starts have ERA's under 5.00. Dalton Reed is the team leader in starts (4) and innings pitched (22.0).
• The Golden Rams face Wilmington in the Bill Giles Tournament Wednesday before heading to Millersville on Friday.
