The Matchup: Towson (10-29, 5-7 CAA) vs. UMBC (19-18, 5-10 America East)
When: April 23^rd – 3 p.m.
Where: Schuerholz Park – Towson, Md.
Online Broadcast: Towson Sports Network
Series: Towson leads 39-36-1
 
TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University baseball team continues its homestand with a single mid-week contest on Tuesday, April 23rd as the Tigers rematch against UMBC at 3 p.m. at Schuerholz Park.
 
All games at Schuerholz Park are free admittance.  The game will be broadcast on the Towson Sports Network.
 
This is the final scheduled mid-week home game for Towson this season.  Towson is coming off a series victory over Delaware to come into the week at 10-29 overall and 5-7 in the Colonial Athletic Association.  UMBC finished a five-game homestand with a weekend series victory over Hartford to come in at 19-18 overall and 5-10 in the America East Conference.
 
Towson and UMBC are meeting for the second time in a week.  The Tigers rode a no-hitter through seven innings to defeat UMBC 7-2 on April 16th in Catonsville.  With that victory, Towson now leads the all-time series 39-36-1 having played every year since 1985, with the exception of 1999.
 
Freshman Leading the Way
Javon Fields, a true freshman, has proven to be a top tier newcomer, currently leading Towson in several categories including hits (43), doubles (9), triples (4) and stolen bases (13).  He had a 14-game bases reached streak snapped on March 30.
 
Fields - CAA Rookie of the Week
Javon Fields earned his first league weekly honor on April 15th, hitting .333 with seven runs and four RBI, helping Towson to three victories.
 
When There is a Will, There is a Weyman
Gavin Weyman has been a rock as the Saturday starter in his last two appearances, going 3-0 with four earned run in 21 innings (1.71 ERA) in victories over Elon, Hofstra and Delaware, striking out 16 batters in that time.
 
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.
 
John Schuerholz Headlines First Pitch Dinner
Kicking off the 2019 season, Towson held its second annual First Pitch Dinner on February 2nd, at the Valley Mansion.
 
John Schuerholz, a Towson alum and member of the Baseball Hall of Fame, was the headline speaker for the event, MCed by Jay Rokeach, the PA announcer for the Miami Hurricanes baseball team.  Local media personality Keith Mills held a question and answer session with Richie Palacios and Brady Policelli, former Tigers currently in the minors.
 
Almost 300 people in total attended the dinner, including Towson President Dr. Kim Schatzel and Athletics Director Tim Leonard.
 
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
 
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.
 
Scouting UMBC
UMBC, the America East champion in 2017, is currently in last place in its league under eighth-year head coach Bob Mumma.
 
Senior outfielder Terrence Pinkston, a transfer from Norfolk State, is the UMBC leader in batting average at .328, adding 13 doubles, four home runs and 23 RBI.  Classmate AJ Wright is in the infield with a team-best five home runs, adding a .264 batting average, 12 doubles and 29 RBI.
 
Freshman righty Reid Celata had the start last time against Towson, entering at 1-1 with a 7.23 ERA and 16 strikeouts in 23.2 innings.  From the bullpen comes junior right-hander Stephen Schoch, throwing 33.2 innings with a 3.42 ERA and a team-best 47 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.
 
Towson Athletics – Helper Helper Community Service National Champion
The Towson University athletics department considers community service to be one of its highest priorities, and today, the NCAA has announced that Towson is the Division I national champion of the NCAA Team Works Helper Helper Competition for the Fall 2018 semester.
 
Towson completed the most community service hours among all schools in the competition, including 75 different Division I departments and approximately 300 total programs across the country.
 
"It is a great honor to be a national champion of community service," said Towson director of athletics Tim Leonard. "Community service is a part of our DNA here at Towson University, and our student-athletes represent this institution with pride here in the Greater Baltimore area.  This is a fantastic achievement for everyone in our department, including all student-athletes, coaches, administration and staff."
 
Towson student-athletes and staff completed 5,583 hours of community service from September to November around the Greater Baltimore area. 
 
- TowsonTigers.com –