Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell Baseball Continues League Play This Weekend with Series Against Army
4/6/2007 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 6, 2007
LEWISBURG, Pa. - The Bucknell baseball squad will continue its Patriot League schedule this weekend as the squad will play host to a four-game set against Army this Saturday and Sunday with a pair of doubleheaders, each set for noon on Depew Field. After opening league play with a series win at Lehigh the Bison, currently 10-12 overall (3-1 PL), will look to keep pace with first-place Navy (4-0 PL) and Lafayette (4-0 PL) in the standings. The Black Knights, who hold an overall record of 8-13-1, will be fighting to climb back from a 0-4 league start after being swept by Lafayette last weekend.
As a part of Bucknell's radio broadcast schedule for this spring, Sunday's doubleheader will air on WVBU 90.5 and will also be available over the internet through www.SportsJuice.com. Doug Birdsong, Bucknell's coordinator of radio, television, marketing and promotions, as well as the lead play-by-play voice of the Bison Sports Network, will serve as the play-by-play voice for the broadcast, which will begin at 11:45 a.m.
In the all-time series between the squads, which began in 1910, Army holds the advantage at 47-26. However, last season in West Point, N.Y., the Orange and Blue swept the league series against the Black Knights for the first time in history, taking the games by the scores of 4-0, 9-2, 1-0 and 6-1.
In that series, two Bison starters, senior Matt Curry (Towanda, Pa./Towanda) and junior Mathew Wilson (Toronto, Ontario/Northern S.S.), tossed two-hit complete game shutouts. Both are slated to pitch games one and three, respectively, again this season. Nick Hill will oppose Curry for the Black Knights. The left-hander is 2-3 on the year and ranks second in the league with a 1.84 ERA. Curry has posted wins in his last three outings to pull to 3-3 on the season and is fifth in the Patriot League with a 3.03 ERA. Wilson is the current ERA leader, pacing the PL with a 1.07 ERA, and holds a record of 3-1. His counterpart is scheduled to be Cole White (2-2, 5.52 ERA).
In games two and four, senior Nathan Mittag (0-3, 4.73 ERA) and sophomore Jimmy Murphy (Syosset, N.Y./Syosset) are the projected starters for Bucknell, while Ben Mayhew (0-5, 5.95 ERA) and Drew Clothier (2-2, 3.78 ERA) are expected to throw for Army in those contests.
Offensively for the Bison, freshman Ben Yoder (Belleville, Pa./Indian Valley) leads the way with a .375 batting average. The two-time Patriot League Rookie of the Week is currently fifth in the league in hitting and has three doubles, two triples, 14 runs scored and 10 RBI on the season. Senior Ryan Gryskevicz (Dallas, Pa./Dallas), who ranks seventh in the league with an average of .353, has a squad-best 16 RBI on the year along with seven doubles, one triple, two homers and 10 runs scored. Sophomore Dane Grandizio (Bloomsburg, Pa./Bloomsburg) has scored 16 runs, a team high, and is hitting .347 with nine doubles and eight RBI.
For the Black Knights, White boasts a team-best .427 average with seven doubles, three triples two home runs, 14 runs scored and 12 RBI. Milan Dinga, who holds a .301 batting average, leads the squad with 17 RBI.
Bucknell will play host to one more Patriot League regular season series in 2007, next weekend, Apr. 14-15, as the Orange and Blue will face Lafayette on Depew Field.
