University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics
Tuesday, May 2
Asheville, N.C.
6 PM
UNC Asheville
vs
Appalachian State
Bulldog Baseball Hosts Appalachian State Tuesday
05.01.2017 | Baseball
Asheville-App State Notes (PDF)
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – After having the weekend off, the UNC Asheville baseball team will be back in action on Tuesday, May 2. The Bulldogs will host Appalachian State at Greenwood Field for the second half of a home-and-home series at 6 p.m.
Prior to Tuesday's game, the Bulldogs' head basketball coaches, Nick McDevitt and Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick, will host a student pizza party to celebrate the last day of class for the semester. The pizza party will begin at 5:45 p.m. and will be held at the baseball field.
THE MATCHUP
Teams:Â UNC Asheville (17-24) vs. Appalachian State (18-26)
Location:Â Asheville, N.C. / Greenwood Field
When:Â Tuesday, May 2 / 6 p.m.
Live Video:Â Big South Network
Live Stats:Â www.uncabulldogs.com
Twitter:Â @ashevilledogs #ThePursuit
Promotion: Last day of class student pizza party
BULLDOG BITES
BULLDOG BASEBALL ON THE BIG SOUTH NETWORK: UNC Asheville will aim to stream all home baseball games on the Big South Network as weather allows.
LAST DAY OF CLASS STUDENT PIZZA PARTY: In celebration of Tuesday being the last day of class for the semester for UNC Asheville students, head men's and women's basketball coaches Nick McDevitt and Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick will be hosting a pizza party for UNC Asheville students. The party will run from 5:45 p.m. until 6:15 p.m. at Greenwood Field.
INSIDE THE SERIES: Appalachian State controls the all-time series with a 42-21 record over UNC Asheville since 1985. The Bulldogs claimed all three games of the series in 1998 and claimed both games over the Mountaineers in 1993 and 2004. Under head coach Scott Friedholm, UNC Asheville is 2-2 against App State.
SCOUTING THE MOUNTAINEERS: Since the two teams last met on Tuesday, Mar. 8, the two programs have been on similar trajectories with both claiming 12 wins. The Mountaineers have gone 12-20 since the meeting in Boone while the Bulldogs have gone 12-18. After winning four games in a row, including taking the series over Georgia State, the Mountaineers have dropped their last two games to fall in a home series to Arkansas State. The Mountaineers are 9-13 in true road games and 3-3 in neutral site contests. App State is led by Matt Vernon's .310 batting average, 57 hits, 35 runs scored and 14 doubles. In March's meeting with the Bulldogs, Vernon went 1-for-3. Drake Zupcic is second on the team with a .299 average and Tyler Stroup is third, batting .288. Stroup leads the team with seven home runs, 27 runs batted in and 21 walks drawn. In March's meeting, the Mountaineers sent Bobby Hampton to the mound first with Reed Howell and Matt Brill following. Hampton is 2-2 on the year with 10 starts and a 6.20 ERA compared to 33 strikeouts. Howell (1-1), who earned the win on March 8, has made a team-best 20 appearances with no starts, pitched 37.1 innings and has 36 strikeouts to go along with a 1.93 ERA. Brill (1-3) has made 17 appearances with no starts and brings a 3.70 ERA into the week to go along with 31 strikeouts.
THE LAST TIME THESE TWO MET (3/8/17): The UNC Asheville baseball team came from behind once in the first game against App State, rallying from a 2-0 deficit to take a 3-2 lead, but Appalachian State ruined the comeback attempt at Beaver Field and claimed a 4-3 win. The first three and a half innings passed scoreless despite the Bulldogs getting runners on and in scoring position. In the bottom of the fourth, the Mountaineers broke the scoreless tie by putting up a two-spot with a two-run home run. In the top of the sixth inning, Brandon Lankford hit his fourth home run of the season to set the score at 2-1. It was his eighth extra-base knock of the season. Justin Woods followed two at-bats later with a single down the right field line and Andrew Friedholm then ripped a two-out double down the opposite line, allowing Woods to race all the way home from first, tying the score at two-all. In the top of the next inning, Kyle Carruthers led off with a single up the middle and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunch by Carmine Pagano. Joe Tietjen then moved Carruthers to third with a well-placed bunt for a single and Lankford then batted Carruthers in. It was the first run scored of the season for Carruthers and the second RBI of the game for Lankford. In the bottom of the inning, App State scored two unearned runs to retake the lead, including one off a wild pitch. The Bulldogs were able to get runners to second and third in the top of the eighth with no outs, but the Mountaineers got out of the jam without giving up a run with a pop up, a strikeout and a ground out. App State then sat UNC Asheville down in order in the top of the ninth to finish off the one-run win. Both Tietjen and Woods finished the game with multiple hits. Tietjen went 2-for-4 at the plate while Woods went 3-for-4 with a run scored. App State was led by Drake Zupcic and Avery Jackson's two-hit performances as well as Tyler Stroup's pair of RBIs. The Bulldogs went "johnny wholestaff" Wednesday evening with eight different pitchers toeing the rubber. Woods led things off and Greg Gasparro, Nick Boyles, Blake Brown, Eric Whitecavage, Austin Fahr, Ryan Tapp and Jesse Juday followed. Tapp was saddled with the loss as he gave up the game-winning run. Reed Howell earned his first win of the season, pitching 2.1 innings before Matt Brill came in to close the game out. Brill earned his second save of the year.
BUSH'S EXTRA-BASE KNOCKS: Tanner Bush hit his fourth double in three games on Tuesday, April 25, against Furman. He had two doubles on Saturday, April 22, at Campbell and one on Sunday in the series finale.
WINNING THE SERIES OVER CAMPBELL: The 11-9 win over Campbell on Sunday, April 23, marked the first time since the 1990 campaign that a UNC Asheville baseball team claimed a Big South Conference series in Buies Creek, N.C. That year, the Bulldogs swept the Camels en route to finishing 25-25 overall and 8-9 in conference play, finishing third in the league standings. Due to the way the conference schedules baseball series, the Bulldogs and Camels had not played each other since the 2014 season. The Bulldogs' 10-5 win over the Camels in the first game of the series on Friday, April 21, marked the first win in the overall series for UNC Asheville since the second game of a three-game series with Campbell in 2012.
CATCHING GREEDY RUNNERS: The game against Campbell on Friday, April 21, marked the sixth-straight game that the Bulldogs had caught at least one runner attempting to steal a base. Joe Gruszka, who gunned down six runners between the series at High Point and last Tuesday night against USC Upstate, caught a Camel runner attempting to steal in the bottom of the first inning Friday night. UNC Asheville has now caught 27 runners attempting to steal this season, a +9 improvement from last season.
TURNING DOUBLE PLAYS: The Bulldogs have turned 37 double plays on the year, four more than all of last year. The 37 double plays is third-most in the Big South Conference behind only Liberty (41) and Campbell (40). Last season, UNC Asheville turned 33 double plays.
MARKED IMPROVEMENT: At this point last season, the 2016 Bulldogs were 14-27 and had three series wins to their credit, including two in conference. The 2016 Bullogs had also been swept three times and had endured both a 10-game and five-game losing skid. This season, UNC Asheville has shown solid improvements in most facets of the game as they are 17-24, already a +3 improvement and one more win than all of last season, with series wins over Iona, UMBC, Presbyterian and Campbell as well as taking two of three during the tournament in Spartanburg in the second weekend of the year. This year's Bulldogs have taken at least one game in each of their weekend series.
CANNONS FOR ARMS IN THE OUTFIELD: UNC Asheville boasts 15 outfield assists on the year. The mark has the Bulldogs second in the country in the category to Charleston Southern's 19. Joe Tietjen leads the Bulldogs' outfielders with five assists, a mark that has him tied for sixth in the nation in the category. Justin Woods now has four assists while Danny Wilson boasts three in the outfield. Kyle Carruthers has two and Tanner Bush has one.
TIETJEN LEAVING HIS MARK: Senior center fielder Joe Tietjen is currently in the top-10 in program history in six offensive categories. Tietjen is currently fifth all-time with 40 career stolen bases, seventh with 132 runs scored, ninth in program history with 117 runs batted in and 39 career doubles, 10th with 20 home runs and tied for 10th with six triples. Tietjen is also currently tied for eighth all-time with 17 stolen bases this season.
NEXT MARKS TO REACH: Joe Tietjen needs five more stolen bases to move into a tie for fourth all-time in the category. He is just one run scored away from sixth and nine away from fifth all-time in program history. He is four doubles away a two-way tie for seventh and his next triple will move him into a tie for sixth all-time. He is just one home run away from ninth and is three RBIs away from eighth all-time and six away from seventh. He needs just one more stolen base to move into a tie for sixth all-time for single season bases stolen and three more to move up to fourth.
WALKING INTO THE RECORD BOOK: Sophomore Danny Wilson drew four walks in his final four at-bats on Sunday, April 23, at Campbell, giving him 36 for the year. The 36 walks moves Wilson into the top-10 for walks in a single season and has him second in the league in the category. He needs just one more to move into ninth, two more to move into eighth and three more to move into seventh in program history.
WALK THE LINE: Danny Wilson and Chris Troost have proven to be two of the most difficult batters to strike out this season as the two currently sit second and third respectively in the Big South Conference for walks drawn. Wilson, who boasts 36 total walks and an average of 0.88 per contest, is second in the league and also tied for 20th in all of NCAA Division I baseball for walks drawn. He is also tied for 25th in the nation in walks per game. Troost, who has drawn 31 total walks and led the nation at one point earlier this season in walks, is tied for 65th in the nation for overall walks and is 10th in NCAA Division I with 0.94 walks per game.
WOODS SAVING THE DAY: Justin Woods has done a little bit of everything this season for the Bulldogs. The senior has especially pitched efficiently as he has become a reliable closer for the Bulldogs. Woods boasts five saves on the year, a mark that is tied for fifth in the conference.
RELIABLE WHITECAVAGE: Eric Whitecavage has established himself as one of the more reliable relievers in the UNC Asheville bullpen. The sophomore right-hander leads the league with 22 appearances. He boasts a perfect 3-0 record, a 4.68 ERA and owns one save in 32.2 innings of work.
LAST TIME OUT (at Furman, 4/25/17): The UNC Asheville baseball team played the final game of the month of April Tuesday evening, dropping a 12-1 decision at Furman. The game at Latham Stadium against the Paladins was the last game for the Bulldogs before they break for exams. The Bulldogs will now be off for six days. Furman, which has now won eight-straight games, edged out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning with UNC Asheville tying the score up in the top of the third when Tanner Bush raced home off a single to right-center field by Danny Wilson. Earlier in the inning, Bush knocked his fourth double in the last three games. From there, the Paladins took control, scoring five runs in the fourth, four in the sixth and two final runs in the seventh to claim the midweek tilt. In total, six different Bulldogs notched hits, including Carmine Pagano, Wilson, Justin Woods, Brandon Lankford, Derek Smith and Bush. Wilson (0-1) started the game on the mound for the Bulldogs, pitching 3.2 innings before giving way to Austin Fahr, Jesse Juday, Ryan Tapp and Nick Boyles. Trent Alley (1-0) pitched the first six innings for Furman, giving up the one run while striking out four.
UP NEXT: The Bulldogs will host Radford for a two-day, three-game series beginning Friday, May 5. UNC Asheville and Radford will play a single game at 7 p.m. before playing a doubleheader on Saturday, May 6. First pitch of game-one of the twinbill will be at 2 p.m.
EFFECTIVE PINCH HITTER: Joe Zayatz saw just three pitches in the series finale against Charleston Southern on Sunday, April 9, but it was the third one that proved to be the payoff pitch for him as he ripped a two-out single through the right side that gave Chris Troost just enough time to round third and race home, giving the UNC Asheville Baseball team a 2-1 victory in walk-off fashion over Charleston Southern at Greenwood Field.
FIRST CAREER HOME RUNS: Joe Gruszka came in to pinch hit for UNC Asheville in the top of the ninth against Richmond on Sunday, April 2, and made the most of his at-bat, ripping a two-run home run to left field. The homer was the first of his collegiate career. He joined Jake Madole, Brandon Lankford, Kole Harris and Tyler Serricchio as players who have hit their first collegiate homer so far this season.
TAKE A LITTLE OFF THE TOP: Win the game, lose the hair. That was the recipe for success on Wednesday, March 29, as the UNC Asheville baseball team worked to raise donations for a special cause in an attempt to capture a bigger victory than the 5-3 win over Western Carolina at McCormick Field. The Bulldogs held their annual Vs. Cancer Game at the historic baseball venue located in downtown Asheville. It was the fifth year of the event and it was possibly the biggest one yet. Over the previous four years, UNC Asheville baseball has raised close to $24,000. As of the most recent count, the Bulldogs had collected over $9,200 in 2017 alone, with hopes to add to that total throughout the rest of the season. The over $9,200 raised has UNC Asheville currently fifth in the nation amongst baseball programs that are raising money for the worthy cause of battling childhood cancer. The money raised will be donated to the Vs. Cancer Foundation, a non-profit organization based in Raleigh. The foundation, which operates on a 50/50 model of giving, raises funds for childhood cancer research as well as helps children live more comfortably during treatments at local children's hospitals. Vs. Cancer gives half of the proceeds raised to pediatric brain tumor research and the other half goes back to a local hospital in the community where the money was raised. For UNC Asheville, that is Mission Children's Hospital.
BACK-TO-BACK SERIES WINS: When UNC Asheville won the first game of a doubleheader against UMBC on Saturday, March 11, it marked the first time since the 2012 season that the Bulldogs had won back-to-back weekend series. The 7-6 walk-off win over UMBC gave UNC Asheville a 2-1 series win over the Retrievers. The weekend before, the Bulldogs won the series 2-1 over Iona. The last time the Asheville baseball program strung together multiple weekend series was the 2012 campaign. The 2012 Bulldogs won three straight weekend series, including 2-1 over Liberty, a clean sweep (3-0) on the road at High Point and 2-1 at College of Charleston.
NOT ONE, NOT TWO, BUT THREE: The Bulldogs turned a rare 1-3-5-6 triple play in the bottom of the first inning at Appalachian State on Wednesday, March 8. It is just the second triple play to be turned in NCAA Division I this season as George Washington turned one earlier this year. It is also the second triple play in as many years in the Big South Conference as Gardner-Webb turned the only triple play in Division I last season.
YOUNG SQUAD: The Bulldogs' starting lineup has featured 12 players who are either freshmen or sophomores to start the year. Freshmen Chris Troost, Brandon Lankford, Kole Harris, Joe Gruszka, Jake Madole, Tyler Serricchio and Greg Gasparro have all contributed in the starting lineup very early. Sophomores Carmine Pagano, Andrew Friedholm, Danny Wilson, Austin Fahr and Ryan Tapp have all picked up where they left off as freshmen and are beginning to see their roles increase as well.
MOVING RUNNERS ACROSS THE PLATE: Senior center fielder Joe Tietjen moved seven runners across the plate on Friday, Feb. 24, against Dayton, coming up just two shy of the individual single-game school record. Tietjen had a double and a home run to help his efforts. He also had two other hits that came close to clearing the fence. One was just foul and the other came up just short of the center field fence.
LANKFORD NAMED BIG SOUTH FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK (2/27): After a stellar week in Spartanburg, UNC Asheville baseball true freshman Brandon Lankford was named the Big South Conference's Come Ready Nutrition Freshman of the Week, as announced by the conference office Monday, Feb. 27. Lankford's honor marks the second week in a row that a UNC Asheville freshman has earned the honor and gives UNC Asheville a sweep of the award in the first two weeks of its existence. Last week, fellow true freshman Chris Troost earned the first-ever Come Ready Nutrition Freshman of the Week honors for baseball in the Big South. Lankford led the Bulldogs to a 2-2 record this past week in Spartanburg. Over the course of the Bulldogs' four games, he batted a team-best .389 with an outstanding .833 slugging percentage and .500 on-base percentage. He led the team with four extra base knocks, including two home runs and two doubles. The third baseman from Mocksville, N.C., had multiple hits in all but one game last week and also had at least one RBI in each game. He scored seven runs himself, including the game-winner Sunday to lift Asheville over Wofford 7-6, and batted in six others. In the field, he recorded a putout and nine assists for a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage. In Wednesday's game at USC Upstate, Lankford started the scoring drive for the Bulldogs with a double to score Carmine Pagano, putting Asheville up 1-0. On Friday against Dayton, his single through the left side to score fellow freshman Kole Harris in the top of the second inning put the Bulldogs ahead of the Flyers for good. He then scored the first of his two runs of that game when Joe Tietjen doubled to left field. His second run of the game came when Tietjen ripped a home run to center field. In the game against the Flyers, Lankford went 2-for-4 at the plate and drew two walks. In the weekend finale at Wofford, Lankford went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and three runs scored. In the fourth inning, he scored off a Danny Wilson double down the right field line. Then, in the eighth inning, Lankford hit his third home run of the season, second of the week, scoring last week's Big South Come Ready Nutrition Freshman of the Week Troost. He ended his week by scoring the game-winning run in the top of the ninth inning when fellow freshman Joe Gruszka was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
TROOST NAMED FIRST-EVER BIG SOUTH FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK (2/20): UNC Asheville baseball true freshman Chris Troost was named the first-ever Big South Conference's Come Ready Nutrition Freshman of the Week as announced by the conference office Monday, Feb. 20. Troost led the way offensively for Asheville during the opening weekend series at Samford. The 5-8 Medford, N.J., native batted .444 through the three-game series and boasted an on-base percentage of .615 while scoring a run and batting in another. He showed enough improvement over the weekend to move up from the seven-hole of the lineup to the two-hole. In the season-opener on Friday, Troost showed a lot of patience in the batter's box to draw three walks compared to just one strikeout and also had an RBI. In Sunday's series finale, Troost went 3-for-4 at the plate with a run scored and also drew another walk. He scored his run in the ninth inning to add an important insurance run, helping Asheville defeat Samford 6-4 for the first win of the season.
TIETJEN NAMED PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE BY PERFECT GAME: UNC Asheville baseball player Joe Tietjen has been named to the Perfect Game Preseason Big South All-Conference Team by the staff of Perfect Game and was listed in the top-five of the top prospects of the conference for this year's graduating class. A senior outfielder from Waxhaw, N.C., Tietjen was named to the Big South All-Conference Second Team following the 2016 season. During his junior campaign, he led the team in nine offensive statistical categories, including batting average (.344), runs scored (44), hits (74), home runs (10) and stolen bases (12). He also boasted a .553 slugging percentage, batted in 55 runs and collected 119 total bases in 215 at bats. For his career, Tietjen boasts a .306 batting average, has scored 101 runs, collected 145 hits and has driven in 90 runs. He has also swiped 23 bases and has 342 putouts in the field.
QUOTABLES
"We are looking forward to getting back on the diamond after a long layoff. The coaching staff is excited to see our guys perform and compete against a very well-coached App State team." - Scott Friedholm
Â
ASHEVILLE, N.C. – After having the weekend off, the UNC Asheville baseball team will be back in action on Tuesday, May 2. The Bulldogs will host Appalachian State at Greenwood Field for the second half of a home-and-home series at 6 p.m.
Prior to Tuesday's game, the Bulldogs' head basketball coaches, Nick McDevitt and Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick, will host a student pizza party to celebrate the last day of class for the semester. The pizza party will begin at 5:45 p.m. and will be held at the baseball field.
THE MATCHUP
Teams:Â UNC Asheville (17-24) vs. Appalachian State (18-26)
Location:Â Asheville, N.C. / Greenwood Field
When:Â Tuesday, May 2 / 6 p.m.
Live Video:Â Big South Network
Live Stats:Â www.uncabulldogs.com
Twitter:Â @ashevilledogs #ThePursuit
Promotion: Last day of class student pizza party
BULLDOG BITES
BULLDOG BASEBALL ON THE BIG SOUTH NETWORK: UNC Asheville will aim to stream all home baseball games on the Big South Network as weather allows.
LAST DAY OF CLASS STUDENT PIZZA PARTY: In celebration of Tuesday being the last day of class for the semester for UNC Asheville students, head men's and women's basketball coaches Nick McDevitt and Brenda Mock Kirkpatrick will be hosting a pizza party for UNC Asheville students. The party will run from 5:45 p.m. until 6:15 p.m. at Greenwood Field.
INSIDE THE SERIES: Appalachian State controls the all-time series with a 42-21 record over UNC Asheville since 1985. The Bulldogs claimed all three games of the series in 1998 and claimed both games over the Mountaineers in 1993 and 2004. Under head coach Scott Friedholm, UNC Asheville is 2-2 against App State.
SCOUTING THE MOUNTAINEERS: Since the two teams last met on Tuesday, Mar. 8, the two programs have been on similar trajectories with both claiming 12 wins. The Mountaineers have gone 12-20 since the meeting in Boone while the Bulldogs have gone 12-18. After winning four games in a row, including taking the series over Georgia State, the Mountaineers have dropped their last two games to fall in a home series to Arkansas State. The Mountaineers are 9-13 in true road games and 3-3 in neutral site contests. App State is led by Matt Vernon's .310 batting average, 57 hits, 35 runs scored and 14 doubles. In March's meeting with the Bulldogs, Vernon went 1-for-3. Drake Zupcic is second on the team with a .299 average and Tyler Stroup is third, batting .288. Stroup leads the team with seven home runs, 27 runs batted in and 21 walks drawn. In March's meeting, the Mountaineers sent Bobby Hampton to the mound first with Reed Howell and Matt Brill following. Hampton is 2-2 on the year with 10 starts and a 6.20 ERA compared to 33 strikeouts. Howell (1-1), who earned the win on March 8, has made a team-best 20 appearances with no starts, pitched 37.1 innings and has 36 strikeouts to go along with a 1.93 ERA. Brill (1-3) has made 17 appearances with no starts and brings a 3.70 ERA into the week to go along with 31 strikeouts.
THE LAST TIME THESE TWO MET (3/8/17): The UNC Asheville baseball team came from behind once in the first game against App State, rallying from a 2-0 deficit to take a 3-2 lead, but Appalachian State ruined the comeback attempt at Beaver Field and claimed a 4-3 win. The first three and a half innings passed scoreless despite the Bulldogs getting runners on and in scoring position. In the bottom of the fourth, the Mountaineers broke the scoreless tie by putting up a two-spot with a two-run home run. In the top of the sixth inning, Brandon Lankford hit his fourth home run of the season to set the score at 2-1. It was his eighth extra-base knock of the season. Justin Woods followed two at-bats later with a single down the right field line and Andrew Friedholm then ripped a two-out double down the opposite line, allowing Woods to race all the way home from first, tying the score at two-all. In the top of the next inning, Kyle Carruthers led off with a single up the middle and advanced to second on a sacrifice bunch by Carmine Pagano. Joe Tietjen then moved Carruthers to third with a well-placed bunt for a single and Lankford then batted Carruthers in. It was the first run scored of the season for Carruthers and the second RBI of the game for Lankford. In the bottom of the inning, App State scored two unearned runs to retake the lead, including one off a wild pitch. The Bulldogs were able to get runners to second and third in the top of the eighth with no outs, but the Mountaineers got out of the jam without giving up a run with a pop up, a strikeout and a ground out. App State then sat UNC Asheville down in order in the top of the ninth to finish off the one-run win. Both Tietjen and Woods finished the game with multiple hits. Tietjen went 2-for-4 at the plate while Woods went 3-for-4 with a run scored. App State was led by Drake Zupcic and Avery Jackson's two-hit performances as well as Tyler Stroup's pair of RBIs. The Bulldogs went "johnny wholestaff" Wednesday evening with eight different pitchers toeing the rubber. Woods led things off and Greg Gasparro, Nick Boyles, Blake Brown, Eric Whitecavage, Austin Fahr, Ryan Tapp and Jesse Juday followed. Tapp was saddled with the loss as he gave up the game-winning run. Reed Howell earned his first win of the season, pitching 2.1 innings before Matt Brill came in to close the game out. Brill earned his second save of the year.
BUSH'S EXTRA-BASE KNOCKS: Tanner Bush hit his fourth double in three games on Tuesday, April 25, against Furman. He had two doubles on Saturday, April 22, at Campbell and one on Sunday in the series finale.
WINNING THE SERIES OVER CAMPBELL: The 11-9 win over Campbell on Sunday, April 23, marked the first time since the 1990 campaign that a UNC Asheville baseball team claimed a Big South Conference series in Buies Creek, N.C. That year, the Bulldogs swept the Camels en route to finishing 25-25 overall and 8-9 in conference play, finishing third in the league standings. Due to the way the conference schedules baseball series, the Bulldogs and Camels had not played each other since the 2014 season. The Bulldogs' 10-5 win over the Camels in the first game of the series on Friday, April 21, marked the first win in the overall series for UNC Asheville since the second game of a three-game series with Campbell in 2012.
CATCHING GREEDY RUNNERS: The game against Campbell on Friday, April 21, marked the sixth-straight game that the Bulldogs had caught at least one runner attempting to steal a base. Joe Gruszka, who gunned down six runners between the series at High Point and last Tuesday night against USC Upstate, caught a Camel runner attempting to steal in the bottom of the first inning Friday night. UNC Asheville has now caught 27 runners attempting to steal this season, a +9 improvement from last season.
TURNING DOUBLE PLAYS: The Bulldogs have turned 37 double plays on the year, four more than all of last year. The 37 double plays is third-most in the Big South Conference behind only Liberty (41) and Campbell (40). Last season, UNC Asheville turned 33 double plays.
MARKED IMPROVEMENT: At this point last season, the 2016 Bulldogs were 14-27 and had three series wins to their credit, including two in conference. The 2016 Bullogs had also been swept three times and had endured both a 10-game and five-game losing skid. This season, UNC Asheville has shown solid improvements in most facets of the game as they are 17-24, already a +3 improvement and one more win than all of last season, with series wins over Iona, UMBC, Presbyterian and Campbell as well as taking two of three during the tournament in Spartanburg in the second weekend of the year. This year's Bulldogs have taken at least one game in each of their weekend series.
CANNONS FOR ARMS IN THE OUTFIELD: UNC Asheville boasts 15 outfield assists on the year. The mark has the Bulldogs second in the country in the category to Charleston Southern's 19. Joe Tietjen leads the Bulldogs' outfielders with five assists, a mark that has him tied for sixth in the nation in the category. Justin Woods now has four assists while Danny Wilson boasts three in the outfield. Kyle Carruthers has two and Tanner Bush has one.
TIETJEN LEAVING HIS MARK: Senior center fielder Joe Tietjen is currently in the top-10 in program history in six offensive categories. Tietjen is currently fifth all-time with 40 career stolen bases, seventh with 132 runs scored, ninth in program history with 117 runs batted in and 39 career doubles, 10th with 20 home runs and tied for 10th with six triples. Tietjen is also currently tied for eighth all-time with 17 stolen bases this season.
NEXT MARKS TO REACH: Joe Tietjen needs five more stolen bases to move into a tie for fourth all-time in the category. He is just one run scored away from sixth and nine away from fifth all-time in program history. He is four doubles away a two-way tie for seventh and his next triple will move him into a tie for sixth all-time. He is just one home run away from ninth and is three RBIs away from eighth all-time and six away from seventh. He needs just one more stolen base to move into a tie for sixth all-time for single season bases stolen and three more to move up to fourth.
WALKING INTO THE RECORD BOOK: Sophomore Danny Wilson drew four walks in his final four at-bats on Sunday, April 23, at Campbell, giving him 36 for the year. The 36 walks moves Wilson into the top-10 for walks in a single season and has him second in the league in the category. He needs just one more to move into ninth, two more to move into eighth and three more to move into seventh in program history.
WALK THE LINE: Danny Wilson and Chris Troost have proven to be two of the most difficult batters to strike out this season as the two currently sit second and third respectively in the Big South Conference for walks drawn. Wilson, who boasts 36 total walks and an average of 0.88 per contest, is second in the league and also tied for 20th in all of NCAA Division I baseball for walks drawn. He is also tied for 25th in the nation in walks per game. Troost, who has drawn 31 total walks and led the nation at one point earlier this season in walks, is tied for 65th in the nation for overall walks and is 10th in NCAA Division I with 0.94 walks per game.
WOODS SAVING THE DAY: Justin Woods has done a little bit of everything this season for the Bulldogs. The senior has especially pitched efficiently as he has become a reliable closer for the Bulldogs. Woods boasts five saves on the year, a mark that is tied for fifth in the conference.
RELIABLE WHITECAVAGE: Eric Whitecavage has established himself as one of the more reliable relievers in the UNC Asheville bullpen. The sophomore right-hander leads the league with 22 appearances. He boasts a perfect 3-0 record, a 4.68 ERA and owns one save in 32.2 innings of work.
LAST TIME OUT (at Furman, 4/25/17): The UNC Asheville baseball team played the final game of the month of April Tuesday evening, dropping a 12-1 decision at Furman. The game at Latham Stadium against the Paladins was the last game for the Bulldogs before they break for exams. The Bulldogs will now be off for six days. Furman, which has now won eight-straight games, edged out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning with UNC Asheville tying the score up in the top of the third when Tanner Bush raced home off a single to right-center field by Danny Wilson. Earlier in the inning, Bush knocked his fourth double in the last three games. From there, the Paladins took control, scoring five runs in the fourth, four in the sixth and two final runs in the seventh to claim the midweek tilt. In total, six different Bulldogs notched hits, including Carmine Pagano, Wilson, Justin Woods, Brandon Lankford, Derek Smith and Bush. Wilson (0-1) started the game on the mound for the Bulldogs, pitching 3.2 innings before giving way to Austin Fahr, Jesse Juday, Ryan Tapp and Nick Boyles. Trent Alley (1-0) pitched the first six innings for Furman, giving up the one run while striking out four.
UP NEXT: The Bulldogs will host Radford for a two-day, three-game series beginning Friday, May 5. UNC Asheville and Radford will play a single game at 7 p.m. before playing a doubleheader on Saturday, May 6. First pitch of game-one of the twinbill will be at 2 p.m.
EFFECTIVE PINCH HITTER: Joe Zayatz saw just three pitches in the series finale against Charleston Southern on Sunday, April 9, but it was the third one that proved to be the payoff pitch for him as he ripped a two-out single through the right side that gave Chris Troost just enough time to round third and race home, giving the UNC Asheville Baseball team a 2-1 victory in walk-off fashion over Charleston Southern at Greenwood Field.
FIRST CAREER HOME RUNS: Joe Gruszka came in to pinch hit for UNC Asheville in the top of the ninth against Richmond on Sunday, April 2, and made the most of his at-bat, ripping a two-run home run to left field. The homer was the first of his collegiate career. He joined Jake Madole, Brandon Lankford, Kole Harris and Tyler Serricchio as players who have hit their first collegiate homer so far this season.
TAKE A LITTLE OFF THE TOP: Win the game, lose the hair. That was the recipe for success on Wednesday, March 29, as the UNC Asheville baseball team worked to raise donations for a special cause in an attempt to capture a bigger victory than the 5-3 win over Western Carolina at McCormick Field. The Bulldogs held their annual Vs. Cancer Game at the historic baseball venue located in downtown Asheville. It was the fifth year of the event and it was possibly the biggest one yet. Over the previous four years, UNC Asheville baseball has raised close to $24,000. As of the most recent count, the Bulldogs had collected over $9,200 in 2017 alone, with hopes to add to that total throughout the rest of the season. The over $9,200 raised has UNC Asheville currently fifth in the nation amongst baseball programs that are raising money for the worthy cause of battling childhood cancer. The money raised will be donated to the Vs. Cancer Foundation, a non-profit organization based in Raleigh. The foundation, which operates on a 50/50 model of giving, raises funds for childhood cancer research as well as helps children live more comfortably during treatments at local children's hospitals. Vs. Cancer gives half of the proceeds raised to pediatric brain tumor research and the other half goes back to a local hospital in the community where the money was raised. For UNC Asheville, that is Mission Children's Hospital.
BACK-TO-BACK SERIES WINS: When UNC Asheville won the first game of a doubleheader against UMBC on Saturday, March 11, it marked the first time since the 2012 season that the Bulldogs had won back-to-back weekend series. The 7-6 walk-off win over UMBC gave UNC Asheville a 2-1 series win over the Retrievers. The weekend before, the Bulldogs won the series 2-1 over Iona. The last time the Asheville baseball program strung together multiple weekend series was the 2012 campaign. The 2012 Bulldogs won three straight weekend series, including 2-1 over Liberty, a clean sweep (3-0) on the road at High Point and 2-1 at College of Charleston.
NOT ONE, NOT TWO, BUT THREE: The Bulldogs turned a rare 1-3-5-6 triple play in the bottom of the first inning at Appalachian State on Wednesday, March 8. It is just the second triple play to be turned in NCAA Division I this season as George Washington turned one earlier this year. It is also the second triple play in as many years in the Big South Conference as Gardner-Webb turned the only triple play in Division I last season.
YOUNG SQUAD: The Bulldogs' starting lineup has featured 12 players who are either freshmen or sophomores to start the year. Freshmen Chris Troost, Brandon Lankford, Kole Harris, Joe Gruszka, Jake Madole, Tyler Serricchio and Greg Gasparro have all contributed in the starting lineup very early. Sophomores Carmine Pagano, Andrew Friedholm, Danny Wilson, Austin Fahr and Ryan Tapp have all picked up where they left off as freshmen and are beginning to see their roles increase as well.
MOVING RUNNERS ACROSS THE PLATE: Senior center fielder Joe Tietjen moved seven runners across the plate on Friday, Feb. 24, against Dayton, coming up just two shy of the individual single-game school record. Tietjen had a double and a home run to help his efforts. He also had two other hits that came close to clearing the fence. One was just foul and the other came up just short of the center field fence.
LANKFORD NAMED BIG SOUTH FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK (2/27): After a stellar week in Spartanburg, UNC Asheville baseball true freshman Brandon Lankford was named the Big South Conference's Come Ready Nutrition Freshman of the Week, as announced by the conference office Monday, Feb. 27. Lankford's honor marks the second week in a row that a UNC Asheville freshman has earned the honor and gives UNC Asheville a sweep of the award in the first two weeks of its existence. Last week, fellow true freshman Chris Troost earned the first-ever Come Ready Nutrition Freshman of the Week honors for baseball in the Big South. Lankford led the Bulldogs to a 2-2 record this past week in Spartanburg. Over the course of the Bulldogs' four games, he batted a team-best .389 with an outstanding .833 slugging percentage and .500 on-base percentage. He led the team with four extra base knocks, including two home runs and two doubles. The third baseman from Mocksville, N.C., had multiple hits in all but one game last week and also had at least one RBI in each game. He scored seven runs himself, including the game-winner Sunday to lift Asheville over Wofford 7-6, and batted in six others. In the field, he recorded a putout and nine assists for a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage. In Wednesday's game at USC Upstate, Lankford started the scoring drive for the Bulldogs with a double to score Carmine Pagano, putting Asheville up 1-0. On Friday against Dayton, his single through the left side to score fellow freshman Kole Harris in the top of the second inning put the Bulldogs ahead of the Flyers for good. He then scored the first of his two runs of that game when Joe Tietjen doubled to left field. His second run of the game came when Tietjen ripped a home run to center field. In the game against the Flyers, Lankford went 2-for-4 at the plate and drew two walks. In the weekend finale at Wofford, Lankford went 2-for-4 with two RBIs and three runs scored. In the fourth inning, he scored off a Danny Wilson double down the right field line. Then, in the eighth inning, Lankford hit his third home run of the season, second of the week, scoring last week's Big South Come Ready Nutrition Freshman of the Week Troost. He ended his week by scoring the game-winning run in the top of the ninth inning when fellow freshman Joe Gruszka was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
TROOST NAMED FIRST-EVER BIG SOUTH FRESHMAN OF THE WEEK (2/20): UNC Asheville baseball true freshman Chris Troost was named the first-ever Big South Conference's Come Ready Nutrition Freshman of the Week as announced by the conference office Monday, Feb. 20. Troost led the way offensively for Asheville during the opening weekend series at Samford. The 5-8 Medford, N.J., native batted .444 through the three-game series and boasted an on-base percentage of .615 while scoring a run and batting in another. He showed enough improvement over the weekend to move up from the seven-hole of the lineup to the two-hole. In the season-opener on Friday, Troost showed a lot of patience in the batter's box to draw three walks compared to just one strikeout and also had an RBI. In Sunday's series finale, Troost went 3-for-4 at the plate with a run scored and also drew another walk. He scored his run in the ninth inning to add an important insurance run, helping Asheville defeat Samford 6-4 for the first win of the season.
TIETJEN NAMED PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE BY PERFECT GAME: UNC Asheville baseball player Joe Tietjen has been named to the Perfect Game Preseason Big South All-Conference Team by the staff of Perfect Game and was listed in the top-five of the top prospects of the conference for this year's graduating class. A senior outfielder from Waxhaw, N.C., Tietjen was named to the Big South All-Conference Second Team following the 2016 season. During his junior campaign, he led the team in nine offensive statistical categories, including batting average (.344), runs scored (44), hits (74), home runs (10) and stolen bases (12). He also boasted a .553 slugging percentage, batted in 55 runs and collected 119 total bases in 215 at bats. For his career, Tietjen boasts a .306 batting average, has scored 101 runs, collected 145 hits and has driven in 90 runs. He has also swiped 23 bases and has 342 putouts in the field.
QUOTABLES
"We are looking forward to getting back on the diamond after a long layoff. The coaching staff is excited to see our guys perform and compete against a very well-coached App State team." - Scott Friedholm
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/ BaseballHighlights || Baseball || UNC Asheville vs Presbyterian (Game 3)
Tuesday, May 28
Highlights || Baseball || UNC Asheville at Presbyterian (Game 2)
Tuesday, May 28
Highlights || Baseball || UNC Asheville at Presbyterian (Game 1)
Tuesday, May 28
Highlights || Baseball || UNC Asheville vs Gardner-Webb (Game 3)
Monday, May 13