League-Leading UNCW Visits Elon Baseball’s Latham Park for Weekend Set

ELON, N.C. – With only three CAA series remaining for the Elon baseball team every game is critical. This weekend the Phoenix will play host to league-leading UNCW for three games. Game one between Elon and the 22nd-ranked Seahawks is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. on Friday, April 24. The two are scheduled to play at 4 p.m. on Saturday and at 1:30 p.m. on Sunday.

Elon Vs. Cancer
For the fourth straight year, the Elon baseball team will join forces with much of the collegiate baseball family to help raise money to fight childhood cancer. This season, the Phoenix will partner with the Vs. Cancer Foundation to hold a head-shaving event following its 1:30 p.m. game with UNC Wilmington on Sunday, April 26.

All players and coaches on the Elon roster will have their heads shaved in support of this important cause. In the past three years, Elon’s head-shaving events raised over $43,000 that went toward fighing childhood cancer.

To donate, visit team.vs-cancer.org/elonbaseball.

Saturday Tailgate
Beginning at 3 p.m. on Saturday, fans are encouraged to come out to the Phoenix Phanatics Spring Tailgate on Bank of America Drive. Admission to the tailgate is included with the purchase of a ticket to Saturday’s game. For more information on the tailgate, click HERE.

Live Coverage
Fans can follow the Phoenix via live stats by going to the Elon baseball schedule page at elonphoenix.com. Twitter updates will be posted on the @ElonScores account or fans can register to have score updates texted to their phone. All three games can be watched through Elon’s free video portal, Phoenix All-Access. Fans can also listen to the games live on WSML 104.5 FM and 1200 AM.

Starting Pitchers
Friday, April 24
Elon: RHP Nick Beaulac (3-1, 4.61 ERA, 27.1 IP, 39 K)
UNCW: RHP Nick Monroe (3-1, 5.81 ERA, 48.0 IP, 40 K)

Saturday, April 18
Elon: RHP Lucas Bakker (3-5, 5.83 ERA, 58.2 IP, 39 K)
UNCW: RHP Ryan Foster (4-0, 3.46 ERA, 54.2 IP, 36 K)

Sunday, April 19
Elon: TBA
UNCW: RHP Josh Roberson (1-1, 4.73 ERA, 32.1 IP, 28 K)

The Series
Elon and UNCW have played a total of 55 times, but this will be the first time meeting as conference mates. Elon is 24-31 in the previous 55 games. The series began in 1964 with the Seahawks picking up a 6-4 victory. The two split a pair of games last year. The maroon and gold is 11-10 in games played at Elon.

Coaching Continuity
Elon skipper Mike Kennedy is in his 19th year at the helm of his alma mater, but what may be more impressive is the tenure of his staff. Associate head coach Greg Starbuck is in his 17th season at Elon and assistant coach Robbie Huffstetler is in his 12th year in the maroon and gold. That group is one of just six in Division I baseball to have been together for at least 12 seasons. The others are Minnesota (33/30/17), Lamar (38/17/15), Miami (22/16/13), Virginia (12/12/12) and Gonzaga (12/12/12).

Venuto Matches Freshman HR Mark
James Venuto hit his sixth home run of the season during Elon’s April 21 game at UNCG. That tied him for first on the program’s NCAA Division I freshman record chart with Chris Price (2003).

Rally Time
Trailing UNCG 8-4 heading to the top of the ninth on April 21, Elon proceeded to send 11 hitters to the plate and score seven runs on seven hit on its way to an 11-9 victory over the Spartans. It marked the second time in three games that the Phoenix had scored at least seven runs in the ninth – Elon had plated eight in the top of the ninth in a 13-3 win at Towson.

Beaulac Collects Rookie Honor
Nick Beaulac became the first-ever Elon baseball player to be named CAA Rookie of the Week when he earned the honor on April 20. Beaulac, who made the first start of his career in game two at Towson, went 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA. He struck out a career-best nine hitters in just five innings of work and allowed just one run on two hits. Beaulac fanned five of the first 10 hitters he faced.

A Game of Firsts
Elon’s second game at Towson marked a few firsts for Phoenix players. Nick Beaulac earned the first start of his career, picking up the win after allowing one run on two hits and striking out nine in five innings. Kory Shumate led off the third inning with the first homer of his Elon career and Danny Lynch belted the first grand slam of his career in the sixth inning. Finally, Chris Hallcollected his first career save.

Elon Baseball Live Radio Show
The Elon Baseball Live Radio Show will be broadcast two more times this spring. Each show is broadcast live from Mellow Mushroom on Huffman Mill Road in Burlington from 7-8 p.m. Fans are encouraged to come out to the show to hear from Phoenix head coach Mike Kennedy and select players. The final dates will be May 4 and May 18.

On Deck
The Phoenix will head to Davidson for a 6 p.m. contest on Tuesday evening. The game had originally been scheduled to be played at Elon, but the two swapped home dates earlier this year when the Wildcats’ field was unplayable due to rain.