UMBC

Head Coach Bob Mumma

BALTIMORE, Md. – After picking up its first series sweep in nearly four years, the UMBC baseball team (5-10) heads down to New Orleans to take on Tulane (14-6) in a three-game series starting on Friday at Greer Field at Turchin Stadium.  The Retrievers swept local rival Coppin State last weekend while the Green Wave took all three games at home against Brown.  Tulane’s midweek game at Louisiana-Lafayette was canceled due to rain. 

Friday’s series opener is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. EST (6:30 CST), with Saturday’s first pitch set for 3 p.m. and the finale slated to begin at 12 p.m. on Sunday.

Sophomore Shane Vlasic (Ashburn, Va./Broad Run) (1-1, 4.76) will take the mound in game one against Green Wave sophomore Kyle McKenzie (0-0, 6.35).  Vlasic picked up his first win of the year last Saturday, throwing six innings and giving up only one run against Coppin State.  The right-hander has limited opponents to a .256 batting average this season and has recorded nine strikeouts in 23 innings pitched. 

UMBC will give the ball to fellow sophomore Mac Gill (Bethesda, Md./Walter Johnson) on Saturday to face Tulane’s David Napoli (3-0, 1.53).  Gill is 1-1 this season with a 1.54 ERA after earning both decisions last week.  Last Wednesday against Buffalo, the righty lasted only 3.2 innings in his first collegiate start, taking the loss.  He rebounded over the weekend, however, and earned the win on Sunday against the Eagles after striking out seven batters and not giving up an earned run in seven innings of work.

UMBC’s starter for Sunday has not yet been determined, but senior Steve Miller (Newark, Del./Dickinson) (0-2, 5.40) is the front-runner for the job to throw against Tulane’s freshman righty Randy LeBlanc (1-1, 5.68).  The Retriever veteran has made six appearances this year with five of them coming out of the bullpen.  His last start came against Towson on Mar. 7 when he threw three innings, giving up three runs on five hits. 

The Retrievers and Green Wave last played in 2004 when UMBC traveled to New Orleans to open the season with a three-game series.  Tulane swept all three games that year, en route to reaching the NCAA Super Regionals before losing to Cal State Fullerton.

UMBC did not win a game away from the Baseball Factory Field last year, but already has three away wins in 2012 after last weekend’s sweep over Coppin State. 

Freshman Anthony Gatto (Hauppauge, N.Y./Smithtown West) picked up seven hits in 15 at-bats over the weekend, including his first career homerun on Saturday, to be named the America East Rookie of the Week.  He also drove in seven runs and scored seven runs against the Eagles.  He proved his versatility by closing out Saturday’s game on the mound with a three-up, three-down ninth inning.  The rookie outfielder leads the squad with a .313 average (15-for-48) in 13 games played this season.

Classmate Ian Glassman (Basking Ridge, N.J./Rutgers Prep) has also impressed early on, starting in 14 of the Retrievers’s first 15 games and hitting .296 (16-for-54) with five doubles and one homerun.

In addition to Vlasic and Gill picking up their first wins of the season last weekend against Coppin State, sophomore Jon Cohn won his first game of the year, defeating the Eagles, 17-8, in the series opener on Friday.  The right-hander pitched five innings giving up six runs, four of them earned, while scattering eight hits.

DAWG BITES

-           Sophomore D.J. Smith (Millersville, Md./Old Mill) leads UMBC with a .471 average (8-for-17) in road games this season.

-          Gatto is 11th in the America East in batting average (.313)

-          Senior Max Himmelstein (Moorestown, N.J./Moorestown) is tied for second in the league with three homeruns so far this season.

-          The Retrievers have scored more runs (94) than any other team in the conference.

-          UMBC is second in the America East with a .269 batting average.