ELON, N.C. – The Elon University baseball team will open up Colonial Athletic Association (CAA) play by hosting the William & Mary Tribe for three games at Latham Park this weekend. Game one of the series is scheduled for 4 p.m. on Friday, March 18. The two are then slated to play Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 1:30 p.m.
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 during the game. All three games will have Taylor Durham on the call and will be broadcast live on WSML 104.5 FM and 1200 AM as well as at elonphoenix.com.
The Series
Elon and William & Mary have played just 13 games prior to this weekend’s series. The Tribe won two of the three games played in Williamsburg, Va., last season to trim Elon’s lead in the series to 7-6. The two first met in 1916 with William & Mary claiming a 5-4 win.
About William & Mary
William & Mary enters this weekend series with a 7-10 overall record. The Tribe snapped a five-game losing streak by defeating Norfolk State 10-6 on Tuesday. The only common opponent that both the Tribe and Phoenix have faced is Liberty. Elon defeated Liberty 10-5, while William & Mary fell 8-4 to the Flames. Charley Gould, the preseason CAA Player of the Year, leads the Tribe with a .371 batting average. He has eight doubles, 11 runs scored and seven RBI. As a team, William & Mary is hitting .284 with 36 doubles, 10 home runs and 102 runs scored. The pitching staff sports a 6.21 ERA and has 96 strikeouts in 146.1 innings.
Picked Off
Through 17 games, Elon pitchers have picked off eight base runners, surpassing last year’s total of seven, which included two by a catcher. Lefty Jordan Barrett leads the way with three, while Nick Beaulac, Matt Harris, Dimitri Lettas, Derek Pike and Robbie Welhaf each have one.
Pair Near National Stats Lead
Nick Zammarelli and Kyle Jackson are both off to solid starts to the 2016 season and are both near the top of a couple of NCAA statistical rankings (thru games of March 16). Zammarelli currently has 10 doubles to rank seventh in the nation, just one behind the leaders. Jackson’s eight home runs rate third and are one shy of the national lead. He also rates third in total bases and fourth in slugging percentage.
McVicar, Conroy Garner League Honors
Senior first baseman Tyler McVicar was honored as the CAA player of the week, while freshman pitcher Ryan Conroy shared rookie of the week honors on March 14.
McVicar led Elon to a 3-1 week by hitting .529 (9-for-17) with a double, home run, three runs scored and eight RBI. He had at least two hits in all four games, including a 3-for-5 day with a career-high five RBI in a win over Liberty.
Conroy went 2-0 with a save out of the bullpen in Elon’s four games. He allowed just one hit and no runs in the final 3.1 innings to earn his first career save against Liberty. He then tossed 1.2 shutout frames to pick up his first win against The Citadel on Saturday and gave up just one run over 3.0 innings to get another victory on Sunday. He struck out six on the week.
On Deck
The Phoenix will remain at home for a 6 p.m. game against High Point on Tuesday, March 22.