STAFF REPORTS
news@allwnynews.com
As the schedule continues to wear on, teams continue to jockey for postseason positioning, and the Canisius baseball program welcomes Rider to town for a key conference matchup, Saturday and Sunday. The two programs will battle in a three game set, with a doubleheader on Saturday, and a single game on Sunday. The Griffs enter the series with a 20-15 overall record and a 4-5 conference mark, while Rider is 16-16-1 overall but is 8-4 in conference action.
The Griffs are coming off a successful weekend, when the squad took two-of-three from Siena in Loudonville prior to the Easter holiday. The Blue and Gold dropped the first contest, 8-4, but bounced back with a pair of victories, 4-2 and 7-2, to improve to 4-5.
Meanwhile Rider is coming off a three-game sweep of Niagara, defeating the Purple Eagles with a pair of 2-1 victories in game one and game two, followed by a 12-inning 6-5 win.
Offense continues to be one of the strengths for Canisius as the team is second in team batting average with a mark of .269, with 205 total runs and 308 hits. Fairfield is the only team in the MAAC with a higher average (.284).
Rider is middle of the pack when it comes to batting average with a mark of .261 and 278 hits.
Pitching as of late has been a rollercoaster for the Blue and Gold, with the squad ranking fifth in the league in team ERA with a mark of 4.88. The Broncs are behind the Griffs with a team ERA of 5.68.
Jake Lumley continues to lead the league in batting average with a .379 mark. He also paces the league in hits, with 53. Liam Wilson is sixth in the league in batting average with a mark of .341 with 46 hits.
Rider’s Lee Lipinski holds the best batting average on the team with a mark of .333, as he has notched 29 hits and 27 RBI.
Rider’s Nick Margevicius comes in as one of the leagues best pitchers, sporting a 2.10 ERA and a 4-1 record so far this season. Meanwhile Canisius sends J.P. Stevenson out to the hill as the Griffs’ top pitching option. Stevenson is 5-3 overall and holds a 3.32 ERA to go along with 40 strikeouts.
Following this weekend’s series the Blue and Gold have a pair of midweek contests, hosting Youngtown State on Tuesday at 3 p.m., before facing Niagara on Wednesday up at Sal Maglie Stadium in Niagara Falls at 3 p.m. Canisius will be on the road next weekend, taking on Quinnipiac on April 29 and 30.
All WNY is made possible thanks to coffee and sleep deprivation.
We appreciate your readership. We like money, too.
