Blue Hose Head to Radford for Final Series of 2023 Season

Baseball 5/17/2023 12:52:00 PM PC Athletic Communications

CLINTON, S.C. – The Presbyterian College baseball closes out the 2023 regular season beginning on Thursday with a trip to Radford to battle the Highlanders as first pitch is set for 6 p.m. from Sherman Carter Memorial Stadium. The same two teams line up for a 4 p.m. start on Friday and 1 p.m. for the finale on Saturday. All three games are set for ESPN+ throughout the weekend.

GAMEDAY CENTRAL WHAT: Presbyterian (19-33, 10-14 Big South) at Radford (9-43, 1-23 Big South)WHERE: Sherman Carter Memorial Stadium (Radford, Va.)WHEN: 6 p.m. (Thurs.) | 4 p.m. (Fri.) | 1 p.m. (Sat.)THE SERIES (Since 2008): RAD Leads 17-8FOLLOW THE ACTION LIVE STATS: Sidearm Stats (Thur.-Sat.)LIVE VIDEO: ESPN+ (Thurs.) | ESPN+ (Fri.) | ESPN+ (Sat.)RADIO: Fox Sports Spartanburg (98.3 FM, 1400 AM) (All Three Games)TWITTER: @PresbyterianBSBGAME NOTESON THE MOUND ThursdayPC – RHP Duncan Howard (3-5, 5.85 ERA, 50 K)RAD – RHP Zack Mallia (0-3, 14.26 ERA, 41 K)Friday PC – LHP Charlie McDaniel (4-7, 6.00 ERA, 56 K)RAD – RHP Dylan Howard (1-10, 7.11 ERA, 60 K)Saturday PC – RHP Daniel Eagen (0-1, 8.59 ERA, 10 K)RAD – RHP Ty Burton (3-6, 6.02 ERA, 53 K)About the Blue Hose• The Blue Hose are set to close out the regular season with a road trip to Radford to battle the Highlanders beginning on Thursday night. PC comes off of a 1-2 weekend against Longwood after having Tuesday's game canceled due to weather at Alabama State. The Highlanders were swept in Asheville last weekend in their most recent on-field action.

Scouting the Highlanders• Radford enters the final series of the season with a 9-43 record as the Highlanders have dropped their last eight contests including being swept by the aformentioned Bulldogs.• The Highlanders are led offensively by Zack Whitacre who is hitting .306 entering the weekend with 11 doubles, six homers, 30 RBIs and 12 stolen bases. Austin Stalker checks in with a .276 average as Stalker has tallied four doubles, three homers along with eight steals. Julian Rojas leads Radford with eight homers.• Scott Rouse leads the Highlanders pitching staff with a 1-2 record to go along with a 4.61 ERA as Rouse has allowed seven earned runs in 13.2 innings with 19 strikeouts. Dylan Howard leads Radford with 60 strikeouts over his 14 appearances toeing the rubber.Head to Head vs Radford• The Highlanders lead the all-time DI series against the Blue Hose with a record of 17-8 as the two teams split their 2021 meetings in Radford which served as the last matchup between the two schools.• The last Blue Hose win over Radford during the 2021 season gave head coach Elton Pollock the PC modern era record for wins at 321 in his time with the Blue Hose.

Blue Hose Close Season as Road Warriors• With the Blue Hose on the home stretch of the 2023 season, PC will have to do a majority of the work on the road as the Blue Hose are set to play 11 of their final 14 games away from Clinton.• The final three regular season road games are set for this weekend beginning on Thursday with a trip to Radford to battle the Highlanders.

Smith Named to NCBWA Midseason Stopper of the Year Watch List• Presbyterian College baseball senior pitcher Tanner Smith was one of 57 pitchers named to the 2023 NCBWA Midseason Stopper of the Year Watch List as announced by the association.• The award is given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball with this being the 18th year of the award. In total 25 conferences have representation with 10 of those leagues having two representatives.• Smith is currently 1-3 on the season with a 2.90 ERA along with an impressive 1.1 WHIP. He has allowed 10 earned runs in 31 innings of work and has totaled 42 strikeouts.• He leads the Big South with six saves and has not allowed an earned run in 14 of his 21 outings which includes a stretch of 10.2 innings he didn't allow an earned run over six appearances. Smith earned a pair of relief pitcher honors from the league in back-to-back weeks on March 20 and 27.Blue Hose in the Ranks• Brody Fahr is fourth in the league in hits with 69 on the season. Fahr is also tied for fourth in triples with three. He also ranks sixth in the conference with a .358 batting average.• Tanner Smith is atop the league in saves with seven as five of those have come in league play for the Blue Hose.• Charlie McDaniel is third in the Big South with a 3.73 strikeout-to-walk ratio. McDaniel is tops in the conference with 1.88 walks allowed per nine innings. He sits among the top 10 nationally in games started with a team-high 14 starts this season.• Tanner Smith sits in third in the conference and leads the team with 25 appearances as Colbey Klepper sits just one behind at 24 in a tie for fifth and Luke Gibson is tied for seventh with 23 outings.• In league play, Fahr is tied for third in the league with 36 hits and is fourth in average at a .396 clip.Deal Opening 2023 Season in Mississippi• Former Blue Hose pitcher Hayden Deal has began his 2023 season tossing 12.1 innings over 10 outings allowing six earned runs with 13 strikeouts for the Mississippi Braves, the AA Affiliate of the Atlanta Braves.• As he begins his sixth year in pro baseball in 2023, Deal is 24-18 with a 3.32 ERA as over 388.1 innings pitched he has racked up 346 strikeouts. He also added five saves in his minor league career.

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