TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University baseball team is finally home and will host a pair of teams this weekend at John B. Schuerholz Park.  The Tigers will play in four of those games, taking on Cornell and Fordham during the weekend on March 15-17.
 
All four Towson games will be broadcast on the Towson Sports Network.  All games are free to attend for the public.
 
Full Schedule this weekend – All Game at Schuerholz Park
Friday, March 15^th – 3 p.m.: Towson vs. Fordham
Saturday, March 16^th – 11 a.m.: Cornell vs. Fordham
Saturday, March 16^th – 3 p.m.: Towson vs. Cornell
Sunday, March 17^th – 11 a.m.: Towson vs. Cornell
Sunday, March 17^th – 3 p.m.: Towson vs. Fordham
 
Towson, a member of the Colonial Athletic Association, has played in 12 true road games to begin the year, coming off a 13-8 mid-week defeat at George Washington to enter at 1-11 overall.  Ivy League member Cornell also has not played a home game yet either, last losing two of three at Navy the previous weekend to return to Maryland at 1-8.  Fordham, out of the Atlantic 10, had its winning streak snapped in a 3-2 mid-week defeat vs. Wagner, standing at 10-7 overall.
 
Towson has not seen its New York-based opponents very often.  This is the first-ever game vs. Cornell in the month of March, with the Tigers and Big Red being tied in the all-time series 1-1, the last game a 27-14 defeat on April 5, 2017.    Towson and Fordham have only met once, in Towson on Mar. 5, 2011.  The Rams won that game 16-9.
 
Stramara Named to NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watch List
Senior Dean Stramara is one of 75 players nationally to be selected to the 2019 NCBWA Stopper of the Year Watch List.
 
In 2018, he had the best ERA for Towson at 3.94 in 21 appearances, striking out 48 batters in 59.1 innings.
 
Tom Flacco Joins the Baseball Team
Tom Flacco, the 2018 CAA Offensive Player of the Year for the Towson football team, comes to the diamond for the baseball team in 2019.
 
Flacco, a graduate of Rutgers University, was drafted in the 32nd round out of high school in 2014 by the Philadelphia Phillies, electing to attend Western Michigan to play football.
 
His brother, Michael, played in the minors from 2009-12 after being drafted in the 31st round by the Baltimore Orioles.
 
Maryland, My Maryland
Towson sports 12 players from the home state of Maryland, coming from all areas of the region.
 
In addition, two freshmen, Trent Gast-Woodard and Nick Brown, each are from the home city of Baltimore.  Gast-Woodard and Brown each attended Archbishop Curley.
 
Time Zones Covered
Towson's roster covers all four time zones in the contiguous United States.
 
From the Pacific Time Zone comes three players from California: infielders Colin Conroy and Brad Powers plus catcher Jack Rotteveel.  John Cranston, from Scottsdale, Arizona, represents the Mountain Time Zone while Louisiana natives Travis Dowden and Nick Canevari represent the Central Time Zone.
 
Strong Start by Top Relievers
Two Towson relievers have had a strong start to the season from the bullpen: Austin Weber has allowed only three earned runs in nine innings with a win and eight strikeouts while Matt Watters has appeared six times, striking out 16 in 10 innings with a 0.90 ERA.
 
Towson is Traveling
The Tigers will be traveling quite a bit in 2019 with games scheduled in 10 different states, primarily up and down the East Coast. 
 
Along with the home state of Maryland, states Towson will have games in this year includes California, Florida, Georgia, New York, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Virginia and West Virginia.
 
Coaching Staff Intact for 2019
Head coach Matt Tyner, in his second year, returns all assistant coaches for the 2019 season.
 
Miles Miller is back as the team's pitching coach in his second season, as is hitting coach Tanner Biagini and volunteer assistant Mickey Williard, the infield coach.  Eric Franc is back, in his ninth season with the program, as the director of player development.
 
Two former players, Skyler Morris and Charlie Watters, will serve as student assistants.  Three other students will serve in other roles: Isabelle Pardew is the director of baseball analytics, Emma Toth is the student manager and Jon Wancowicz is the bullpen catcher.
 
Scouting the Opponents
Cornell was predicted to finish seventh in the Ivy League preseason coaches poll while Fordham was selected fourth in the Atlantic 10 preseason poll. 
 
As a team, Cornell is batting .140.  Senior Will Simoneit was an All-Ivy catcher last season, hitting .212 with a home run and two RBI this year.  Sophomore Ramon Garza is the leading hitter in 2019, batting .250 with four doubles.
 
Two right-handers are scheduled vs. Towson: junior Colby Wyatt is 0-1 with a 1.62 ERA with 11 strikeouts while classmate Seth Urbon is 0-3 with a 6.60 ERA and 13 strikeouts.
 
For Fordham, which bats .249, sophomore Jake MacKenzie, an all-conference second baseman in '18, is hitting .353 with seven extra-base hits and 13 RBI.  Senior catcher Justin Bardwell has a homer and 16 RBI, hitting .286.
 
Scheduled to start vs. Towson: sophomore lefty Matt Mikulski is 1-2 with a 5.50 ERA with eight strikeouts while junior righty Alvin Melendez is 1-0 off a 1.84 ERA and 15 strikeouts.
 
About Schuerholz Park
Named in honor of Towson alum John Schuerholz and his father, Schuerholz Park, next to the Student Union, underwent changes for the 2019 season, including the addition of Bermuda grass and new DuraEdge infield material.
 
- TowsonTigers.com –