ELON, N.C. – The Elon University baseball team will play just one mid-week contest this week as the Phoenix will host the High Point Panthers for a 6 p.m. game on Tuesday, March 22.
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.
The Series
Elon has met High Point more than any other opponent. The maroon and gold is 124-83 in the previous 207 meetings with the Panthers. The series dates back to 1926 when Elon downed High Point 10-5 in the first-ever contest between the two squads. Last season, the two played just once, with the Phoenix claiming a 6-5 win in Aiken, S.C. Elon also won the last time the two met at Latham Park – a 12-5 victory on April 9, 2014.
Pitching Matchup:
Elon: RH Michael Elefante (0-0, 3.86 ERA)
High Point: LH Cooper Jeffers (1-0, 1.88 ERA)
About High Point
With a 15-5 overall record, High Point is off to its best start of its NCAA Division I tenure. The Panthers have won eight of their last 10 and are coming off of a three-game Big South Conference sweep at UNC Asheville. The HPU offense has scored 129 runs, has 41 doubles, nine triples and 49 stolen bases and is hitting .304 in 20 games. Austen Zente leads the Panthers with a .387 batting average and 13 stolen bases, while Dominic Fazio’s 17 RBI pace the squad. The pitching staff boasts a 3.44 ERA and has held opponents to a .245 batting average. The Panther hurlers have 168 strikeouts in 178.0 innings of work.
Pair Near Nationlal 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 20). Zammarelli currently has 11 doubles to rank sixth in the nation, just two behind the leaders. Jackson’s eight home runs rate fifth and are two shy of the national lead. He also rates ninth in total bases and 11th in slugging percentage.
Swiped
In Elon’s 13-7 win over William & Mary, the Phoenix stole six bases. The last time that Elon recorded six stolen bases in a game was on March 30, 2014 in the first game of a doubleheader against The Citadel. Elon also swiped six bags against Saint Joseph’s on Feb. 28, 2014.
On Deck
Elon will play its first weekend set away from Latham Park as the Phoenix visits UNC Wilmington for a three-game CAA series that gets started at 6 p.m. on Friday, March 25.