Baseball Ready for Home-Opening Series with Maine

Friday, March 7

Lewisburg, Pa.

2:30 p.m.

Bucknell University

Maine

Photo by: Alisa Mitchell

Baseball Ready for Home-Opening Series with Maine

3/6/2025 12:24:00 PM | Baseball

Maine (2-8) at Bucknell (5-4)
When: Friday, Mar. 7, 2:30 p.m., Saturday, Mar. 8, 1:00 p.m., Sunday, March 9, 12:00 p.m.
Where: Depew Field
Watch: Game 1
Live Stats
*There will be no stream for Games 2 and 3 or the series.*

Bucknell at a Glance

The Bison host Maine in its home-opener on Friday afternoon for the first of a three-game series this weekend at Depew Field.
Bucknell is 4-2 in its last six contests, taking two-of-three games from Davidson before defeating Pitt in a midweek contest last week. Most recently, the Bison split a doubleheader at Saint Joseph's last Saturday, taking a 2-1 win before falling 11-0 in the later game.
Senior Tyler O'Neill tossed a complete game in the early seven-inning contest. The right-hander fanned seven batters and allowed six hits as he held Saint Joseph's to just one run. The only blemish on the day was a solo home run in the second inning.
O'Neill is etching his name into the Bucknell record books. After Saturday's game, O'Neill ranks eighth with 171 strikeouts, 13th with 32 starts on the mound, and 15th with 203.1 innings pitched.
The Bison only needed its two-run second inning to take Game 1, pushing its two runs across on Hawks' ace, Colton Book. Book came into the contest with no runs allowed in 13.0 innings with 23 strikeouts.
Bucknell scored its two runs strategically, using three bunts in the two-run second inning. A walk and consecutive bunt singles by sophomores Luke Nascimento and Chris Morabito loaded the bases. A good piece of hitting by sophomore Andrew Swenson brought in a run and another great bunt from senior Matt Alexander pushed across the winning run.
Overall, it was a tough day at the plate for the Bison. Morabito and junior Michael Trommer combined for five of the seven hits in Game 1 and the Bison only managed two hits in Game 2.
Last Tuesday, seven Bison pitchers combined for a four-hit, 17 strikeout effort against the Pitt on Tuesday. The 17 strikeouts were four shy of the team record of 21, set in 1956 against Franklin & Marshall (all by Don Richards) and in 1989 against Wilkes.
Sophomore Jonathan Adelmann has been the top reliever out of the bullpen. In four appearances, Adelmann has allowed no runs and four hits in 7.2 innings. The right-hander has struck out 11 batters compared to just three walks.
Junior Hadley Maxwell also has no earned runs to his name to start the year. The righty has allowed three hits and five walks, but has navigated his way out of innings to keep opponents off the board. In 4.0 innings, Maxwell has struck out five batters.
Michael Trommer and Senior Billy Kender lead the Bison offensively. The two infielders both lead the team with eight hits, seven RBIs and a .242 batting average, and have combined to draw 10 walks. Kender was a problem in the Davidson series, going 6-for-12 at the plate with six RBIs and a home run.
Junior Ryan Facinelli and sophomores Michael Chiravallo and Billy Fluharty each have six hits this season.
Through seven games, the Bison have a .195 team batting average and a 9.25 team ERA entering the weekend. Opponents are batting .330 and have had a 3.72 ERA against the Bison.
The Bison are 2-2 against ACC foes this season. Bucknell won its single game against Pitt, and took Game 2 from Virginia Tech in its opening series.
The Bison will have a quick turn-around into a busy week, heading south for the Spring Break. The Bison take on Florida Atlantic in a two-game series starting on Tuesday before a four-game set with Florida International (Mar. 11-16).
Head coach Scott Heather is in his 13th season at the helm, passing Bill Lane (1946-57) as the third-longest tenured coach in program history. Heather's 228 career wins are second-most in team history, trailing only Hall-of-Famer Gene Depew (591).

Maine at a Glance/Series History

Maine is 2-8 to start the year. The Black Bears won two-of-three games against The Citadel, but were swept by Louisiana Tech and George Washington.
The Black Bears are most recently coming off its series with George Washington. George Washington edged Maine in Games 1 and 3 with 3-1 and 10-9 wins, respectively. George Washington ran away with Game 2, winning 26-7.
Maine is batting .234 as a team and averaging 4.3 runs per game. Drew Reynolds leads the team with a .333 batting average and a .478 on-base percentage. Reynolds is 12-for-36 on the season with six RBIs.
On the mound, the Black Bears have a 7.71 ERA and opponents are batting .292. In 81.2 innings, the staff has struck out 62 batters.
Maine was 12-37 overall last season with an 8-15 record in the America East.
Bucknell and Maine will meet for the third time. The Bison are 2-0 against the Black Bears with its wins coming back in 2015 and 2016.

Looking Ahead

After the series with Maine, the Bison quickly head to Florida for six games in six days over the Spring Break. On Tuesday and Wednesday, the Bison take on Florida Atlantic in a two-game series. Game 1 is set to start on Tuesday at 5:30 p.m.
The Bison finish the week with a four-game series at Florida International with Game 1 set for Thursday at 6:30 p.m.