UNCG Baseball to Welcome in Triad Foe High Point
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNC Greensboro (UNCG) baseball team will play one non-conference midweek game against High Point University on Wednesday, April 24 with a 6 p.m. first pitch at the UNCG Baseball Stadium.
Game Info
When: Wednesday, April 24 | 6:00 p.m.
Where: UNCG Baseball Stadium | Greensboro, N.C.
Live Stats | ESPN+
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Pearl Kitchen Food Truck will be in attendance.
LAST TIME OUT FOR THE SPARTANS
UNCG is coming off a three-game non-conference series victory hosting Radford over the weekend. After falling 6-4 on Friday, the Spartans won 9-6 in the first game of a doubleheader on Saturday before cruising to a 17-1 victory in seven innings during the finale.
Caleb Cozart paced the Spartans with seven RBI in the series, which included a solo home run on Friday for his 17th homer of the season to tie UNCG’s single-season record.
Jake Ogden crossed the plate eight times to score in Saturday’s doubleheader, including three times in game one and five times in game two.
SCOUTING THE SPARTANS
UNCG enters the midweek tilt with a 22-16 overall record and 13-10 mark so far in non-conference games. Its 7-5 record in conference games has them at third in The Southern Conference (SoCon) standings.
Prior to taking down Radford over the weekend, the Spartans overwhelmed Elon on the way to a 15-1 victory on April 16.
Over its last eight games, UNCG has totaled 92 runs while only allowing 44 during the same stretch.
Additionally, the Spartans have scored 10 or more runs in five of their last eight games played.
The Spartans’ 11-run eighth inning on April 16 at Elon marked their first time posting double-digit runs in one frame since previously accomplishing it by scoring 11 on April 29, 2023, at Mercer in the eighth inning of an eventual 18-13 victory.
As a team, UNCG is ranked in the top-30 nationally over three categories, including 15th in sacrifice bunts (31), 20th in stolen bases (81) and 21st in stolen bases per game (2.13).
Cozart paces the SoCon and ranks among the best in the country in several offensive categories, including home runs (17, 10th in NCAA), HR per game (0.46, 12th in NCAA), RBI (60, 6th in NCAA), RBI per game (1.62, 3rd in NCAA) and slugging percentage (.778, 30th in NCAA).
Jeremy Wolf and GC Jarman have played a large part in the Spartans’ sacrifice bunting efforts. They are tied for second in the conference with eight sacrifice bunts (20th in NCAA) and lead the SoCon with an average of 0.24 sac bunts per game (17th in NCAA).
Mitchell Smith is now tied for first in the SoCon with 14 doubles after hitting two in the finale against Radford last Saturday.
Rob Ready was named the SoCon Pitcher of the Week after the team’s SoCon opening series win against Mercer when he threw for a complete game with a career high nine strikeouts in game two against the Bears. He ranks 22nd in the nation and is tied for the top spot in the SoCon with 10 starts so far this season.
Cozart was named the SoCon Player of the Week and the Perfect Game Player of the Week after hitting four home runs in the season opening series against Fairfield.
Julien Peissel was selected as the SoCon Pitcher of the Week after starting off on the mound in UNCG’s win over No. 1 Wake Forest on Tuesday, Feb. 20. Peissel is leading the team with 41 strikeouts.
Ready was named to the Preseason All-SoCon second team.
UNCG was tabbed to finish sixth in the 2024 SoCon Preseason Coaches’ Poll after finishing the 2023 season with a 25-34 overall record and 9-12 mark in SoCon play.
UNCG concluded last season in the semifinal round of the SoCon Tournament, falling to No. 1 Samford, 9-5.
The Spartans have 22 newcomers for the 2024 season: 10 transfers and 12 freshmen.
Eighteen Spartans have returned from last season for UNCG.
SCOUTING THE PANTHERS
High Point is 22-18 overall and 11-4 in conference action for second in the Big South.
The Panthers are coming off a three-game road series victory at UNC Asheville, where HPU dropped Friday’s opener 6-4 before winning 8-0 on Saturday and 5-2 on Sunday.
HPU is scheduled to face Queens University of Charlotte on Tuesday at 5 p.m. on the road before heading into Greensboro for Wednesday’s test against the Spartans.
The Panthers rank seventh in the nation and pace the Big South with a .982 fielding percentage this season.
HPU also leads the Big South and stands at 30th in the country with 87 doubles on the season.
Cael Chatham leads the Panthers offensively in batting average (.329), on-base percentage (.474), slugging percentage (.629), home runs (10) total bases (90) and walks (37).
On the mound, Matt Little leads HPU with 13 appearances backed by the eight starts. He leads the Panthers with a 3.35 earned run average.
Gus Hughes is HPU’s best pitcher statistically, leading the Panthers in opponent batting average (.189), innings pitched (63.1), strikeouts (69) and games started (10).
High Point was voted to finish third in the 2024 Big South Baseball Preseason Coaches’ Poll.
Hughes was selected as the conference’s Preseason Pitcher of the Year.
SERIES HISTORY VS THE PANTHERS
UNCG is 29-14 in the all-time series against High Point, which dates back to the first meeting on Feb. 19, 2000, where the Spartans won 22-8 at home.
In the previous meeting between the Spartans and Panthers, UNCG prevailed 13-7 back on March 5 at Williard Stadium in High Point for its first road win of the season. Aidan Brewer matched a UNCG record with nine RBI thanks to a pair of grand slams in the second and third innings.
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UP NEXT
The Spartans resume their SoCon slate with a three-game series against the Virginia Military Institute Keydets at the UNCG Baseball Stadium on Friday, April 26 through Sunday, April 28. First pitches are scheduled for 6 p.m. on Friday, 2 p.m. on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday.
Courtesy of Connor Wachtel
Strategic Communications Coordinator
UNC Greensboro