The Matchup: Towson (3-15, 0-0 CAA) vs. UNC Wilmington (11-10, 0-0 CAA)
When: Friday, March 22 – 3 p.m. ET | Saturday, March 23 – 2 p.m. ET | Sunday, March 24 – 1 p.m. ET
Where: John B. Schuerholz Park - Towson, Md.
Online Broadcast: Towson Sports Network (Friday and Sunday)
Series: UNCW leads 43-19
TOWSON, Md. – The start of CAA play is on Friday as the Towson baseball team hosts reigning conference tournament champion UNC Wilmington for a three-game series from March 22-24 at Schuerholz Park.
Admittance to Schuerholz Park is free to the public. In addition, Friday and Sunday's games will be broadcast online on the Towson Sports Network.
Eight of the nine members of the Colonial Athletic Association are playing their first league games this weekend. Towson, coming off mid-week road defeats to N.C. State and VCU, comes in at 3-15 overall. UNC Wilmington last played over the weekend in Tennessee, falling in two of three games at Memphis to have an 11-10 overall record. Towson was picked to finish ninth in the league in the preseason coaches poll while UNCW was tied for second.
Despite Towson outscoring UNCW in last year's series in Wilmington, the Seahawks won two of three games on the weekend. All-time, UNCW leads the series 43-19, with the two teams splitting the last four games.
Seils Earns CAA Pitcher of the Week
Josh Seils earned his first-ever CAA Pitcher of the Week honor on March 18th. His award came after a stellar start vs. Fordham, picking up the win with eight scoreless innings and six strikeouts.
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.
Towson Predicted to Finish 9th in the CAA Preseason Poll
In the coaches preseason poll, Towson was predicted to finish ninth in the CAA in 2019. Towson got 13 points.
Elon is predicted to finish first with 57 points and four first-place votes, followed by a tie for second between UNC Wilmington and Northeastern.
CAA Preseason Poll (first place votes, points)
1. Elon (4), 57
t2. UNC Wilmington (1), 54
t2. Northeastern (4), 54
4. Charleston, 47
5. Delaware, 34
6. James Madison, 32
7. William & Mary, 19
8. Hofstra, 14
9. Towson, 13
Strong Home Weekend for Starters
The Towson starting rotation in the four-game home weekend from March 15-17 was stellar.
Josh Seils,
Gavin Weyman,
Kody Reeser and
Oluwasayo Kintunde combined to go 2-0 with a 0.36 ERA in 25.1 innings, including 28 strikeouts against Cornell and Fordham.
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.
Scouting UNC Wilmington
UNC Wilmington is the defending CAA Tournament champion, plus won two games in the 2018 NCAA regional in Greenville last season.
The Seahawks are led by 28th year head coach Mark Scalf, who will be retiring after this season.
UNCW is second in the CAA with a .264 batting average. Two infielders made the Preseason All-CAA Team: junior third baseman Cole Weiss is third in the league with a .372 batting average, adding 15 walks and 25 RBI, while sophomore shortstop Greg Jones is hitting .284 with 21 walks, 13 stolen bases and 11 RBI.
Set to go in the UNCW starting rotation: Luke Gesell, junior righty, will go Friday, being 1-2 with a 2.77 ERA. On Saturday, sophomore right-hander Brody Lawson goes with a 2-0 record, 4.57 ERA and 29 strikeouts. Finishing on Sunday will be sophomore righty Gage Herring at 0-1, a 4.87 ERA and 32 strikeouts.
About Schuerholz Park
Named in honor of Towson alum John Schuerholz and his father, Schuerholz Park, next to the Student Union building, underwent some changes for the 2019 season, including the addition of Bermuda grass and new DuraEdge infield material.
