#2 MILLERSVILLE VS. #12 EAST STROUDSBURG |
|---|
| #2 Millersville Marauders
2016 Record: 23-2, 7-1 PSAC East
Coach: Jon Shehan, 9th season
Roster | Schedule | Statistics |
| #12 East Stroudsburg
2016 Record: 22-5, 6-2 PSAC East
Coach: John Kochmansky, 9th season
Roster | Schedule | Statistics |
| Game Information
Date: Saturday, April 2, 2016, 1 p.m.
Location: Millersville, Pa. (Cooper Park)
Live Stats | Live Audio
Twitter | Instagram | #HoistTheColors
Series vs. ESU: 91-81-1
Last Season: 4-1
Last Meeting: 2015 (W, 13-4 (PSAC Championship))
Last Season Series: ESU, 4-1
Last 10: 8-2
Shehan vs. ESU: 21-13-1 |
ABOUT THE GAMES• For what is believed to be the first time in the history of Millersville baseball, two teams ranked in the top-15 of Division II will play a game on campus. The Marauders, ranked No. 2 in the most recent Collegiate Baseball Poll, and PSAC East rival East Stroudsburg, meet on Saturday for two at Cooper Park. Millersville's No. 2 ranking is the highest in program history. Millersville recently set a PSAC record with 22 consecutive wins before the streak came to an end Saturday in game four against West Chester. East Stroudsburg is also off to a record-setting start. The Warriors posted their best-ever start at 10-0 and are scoring runs at a record-setting pace.
• The series is also a rematch of the 2015 PSAC Championship game, which Millersville won 13-4 behind three hits and four RBIs from tournament MVP
David Summerfield. The Marauders totaled 17 hits in the game.
• The Marauders and Warriors first meet on Thursday at East Stroudsburg, and catcher
Mitch Stoltzfus will put his 23-game hitting streak on the line. The streak is tied for the longest in Millersville history along with Mike Van Gavree (1990). Stoltzfus entered the week ranked seventh in Division II in hitting with a .512 average. Along with leading the league in average, Stoltzfus ranks second in slugging percentage and on base percentage and is third in RBIs.
• The key match-up Saturday is East Stroudsburg's PSAC-best offense (.372 average) against the Marauders' No. 3 and No. 4 starters,
Jim McDade and
Reid Anderson. The duo has combined for a 7-0 record. McDade owns a 3.73 ERA and ranks fourth in Division II in walks per nine innings. McDade hasn't walked a batter since the first batter he faced this season--a stretch of 31.1 innings. McDade has gone at least five innings in his last four starts and has not given up more than two earned runs in any of those games. McDade has made 43 career starts, ranking him third among all active Division II pitchers. McDade is 2-0 in two career starts against ESU, pitching seven innings in both. Anderson, in his first season as a starting pitcher, does not have the experience of McDade. In fact, Anderson is only in his second season as a pitcher. In 2015, he pitched 24.2 innings in relief. He's already pitched that many innings in six start in 2016 and has 25 strikeouts compared to just nine last season. Three of Anderson's starts have come against teams with winning records and he has made just one at home. The key for Anderson is control. He's walked/hit 14 batters in his last three starts after walking just three in his first three.
SERIES HISTORY• Millersille has taken three of four in each of the last two regular season series, but in 2013, the two teams went 3-3 against each other, trading postseason wins. Millersville has won four of the last five regular season series. ESU's last series win came in 2010 via a four-game sweep.
ABOUT THE OPPONENTS• This series is a clash of the PSAC's best offense against the best pitching staff. ESU ranks second in Division II in average and second in runs scored. The Warriors have scored 76 more runs than any other team in the PSAC. They also lead all of Division II in on base percentage (.479). Four regulars are hitting over .400. Drew Hercik ranks 16th nationally in RBIs. Ian Allen is a multi-skilled player that not only ranks seventh in stolen bases with 22 but is also 2-0 on the mound in four starts. Christian Rishel and Robert Bennie both have eight homers.
• ESU's top two starters are as tough as they come. Tyler Eckman and Matt Festa are a combined 10-1 and both have ERA's under 1.70. After that duo, however, only Allen has more than three starts. Veteran Brandon Holup owns a 4.61 ERA in three starts. Allen's ERA is 5.12.
