The Games:             Towson (19-31, 9-12 CAA) vs. Hofstra (14-34, 4-17 CAA)
When:                        Saturday, May 10 at 12 p.m. (Doubleheader)
                                    Sunday, May 11 at 12 p.m.                                               
Where:                       University Field | Hempstead, N.Y.
Live Stats:                TowsonTigers.com
Streams:                   FloCollege
Series:                       Towson leads the all-time series 66-46
 
TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University baseball team faces Hofstra in its final Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) road series this weekend at University Field in Hempstead, N.Y. Due to inclement weather in Friday's forecast, the first game of the series has been postponed. The teams will now play a doubleheader on Saturday, with game one starting at 12 p.m. Sunday's series finale is set for noon.
 
All three games will be streamed live on FloCollege. Live stats for all three games can be found on TowsonTigers.com
 
SCOUTING THE TIGERS
Towson enters the weekend series at 19-31 overall and 9-12 in league play. The Tigers picked up wins over UMass Lowell, Holy Cross, George Washington, Massachusetts, Cornell and a series win over Maryland Eastern Shore in non-conference play to begin the season. In the CAA opener on March 21, the Tigers topped Northeastern 3-2 in 11 innings at Friedman Diamond for their first win in Brookline since May 21, 2016, before dropping the final two games of the series. In the first home conference series, a strong all-around effort from the Tigers delivered a series-opening win over Monmouth before TU lost the series in the final two games. The following weekend, the Tigers won the first two games of their series vs. Delaware to secure the team's first CAA series road victory since May of 2021. In the second-consecutive CAA road series, the Tigers dropped two of three to Elon, winning the second game of Saturday's doubleheader 23-5 in eight innings before a pair of eighth inning runs in the series finale on Sunday delivered the series win to the Phoenix. Against UNCW the following week, the Tigers dropped three games at Schuerholz Park. The Tigers followed that with their inaugural CAA visit to Buies Creek, N.C. for a weekend series vs. Campbell. After dropping the first two games of the series, a bases-loaded walk in the ninth delivered the winning run for the Tigers in the series finale. TU followed its Sunday win over Campbell with a mid-week win at George Washington and a series sweep over the Stony Brook Seawolves in CAA play over the weekend. The Tigers topped Richmond at home on Tuesday for their sixth-straight win before dropping their final mid-week contest of the season vs. Virginia on Wednesday.
 
SCOUTING THE PRIDE
Hofstra enters the weekend series at 14-34 overall and 4-17 in CAA play. The Pride won early season non-conference games vs. Iona, Marist, Albany, Fairleigh Dickinson and Kent State. They won their first CAA series of the season at Monmouth before series losses vs. William & Mary, UNCW, Northeastern, Stony Brook, Delaware and Elon. Hofstra was picked to finish ninth in the CAA Baseball Predicted Order of Finish while boasting one preseason all-conference selection in infielder Dylan Palmer.
 
TIGERS ARE HOT
After taking all three games vs. Stony Brook last weekend, Towson earned its first series sweep since taking three games vs. Wagner from March 3-5, 2017. It marks the first CAA series sweep since taking three games vs. James Madison from April 8-10, 2016.
 
Prior to last night's loss to Virginia, Towson was on a six-game winning streak, their longest since 2011.
 
WEEKLY HONORS
On April 7, AJ Kolb was named the CAA Rookie of the Week after batting .545 (6-for-11) with a double, triple, three RBIs and five runs scored in the Tigers' 3-1 week. Kolb went 2-for-4 with two runs scored in game one of Saturday's doubleheader vs. Delaware, helping secure the Tigers' first CAA road series victory since May of 2021.
 
On May 5, Ben Nugent was named the CAA Rookie of the Week after batting .462 (6-for-13) with a double, five runs scored and three RBI's in the Tigers' 4-0 week. The freshman went 2-for-4 with a double in an 8-6 win at George Washington and then went 4-for-7, scored four times and drove in three in the final two games vs. Stony Brook to help the Tigers record their first CAA series sweep since 2016.
 
The last time the Tigers had two players receive CAA Rookie of the Week awards in the same season was 2019 when Javon Fields (4/15/19) and Dallas Repine (4/22/19) each earned the distinction in back-to-back weeks.
 
ON THE MOVE
On April 1 vs. Coppin State, the Tigers successfully stole nine bases, marking a new single-game program record. Jordan Peyton (3), Brett Ahalt (2), AJ Kolb (2), Josh Janove (1) and Michael Mallas (1) all stole bases in the game to reset the Towson record. The previous single-game program record was eight stolen bases vs. Central Connecticut in 1992.
 
HECKELMAN ECLIPSES CENTURY MARK
Junior catcher Brian Heckelman has eclipsed 100 career hits, collecting number 100 against Monmouth on March 30. With 16 games still to play, Heckelman has eclipsed his previous highest hit total of 37 from a year ago as he currently stands second on the team with 53 hits this season.
 
HAVE A DAY
Towson outfielder Max D'Alessandro had a historic day on March 19 vs. Massachusetts, finishing with six hits to tie the program's single game record. He ended the day with a double, home run, five RBIs, four runs scored and a stolen base. He is currently tied for the league lead with eight home runs and has 22 RBIs, good for 13th among league leaders. The only other Tiger to record six hits in a game in program history was A.J. Tinnirella vs. Hofstra in 2006.
 
PEYTON, BISHOP & ROBINSON COLLECT PRESEASON ALL-CAA HONORS
Infielders Jordan Peyton, Casey Bishop and Taye Robinson each earned 2025 Coastal Athletic Association (CAA) preseason praise.
 
Jordan Peyton was named to the 2025 All-CAA Preseason Team after batting .336 with 40 runs scored and a team-leading 41 RBI's last year. The 2024 All-CAA Honorable Mention finished the season with multiple hits in 11 of his final 13 games, batting .545 (30-for-55) with 13 runs scored, five home runs and 18 RBI's during that stretch.
 
Bishop earned preseason honorable mention recognition for the second-straight season after earning a 2023 CAA All-Rookie Team nod. He batted .216 with 12 runs scored, six RBI's and two stolen bases in 25 games played after missing more than half the season due to injury.
 
Robinson was tabbed as a preseason honorable mention after a 2024 CAA All-Rookie Team selection. The Gaithersburg, Maryland native hit .310 with 26 runs scored, 28 RBI's and seven stolen bases in 51 games played. He closed the season on a seven-game hitting streak with multiple hits in 14 games during the campaign.
 
EARNING STRIPES
The Tigers have welcomed multiple coaches to the staff ahead of the 2025 season. J.D. Pulfer, who formerly served as a volunteer assistant for two seasons, returns in a full-time role after his most recent stint as an assistant coach for Eastern Illinois. Pulfer was a three-year starter with the Oregon Ducks, where he has the sixth-most hits in program history and was drafted in the 19th round of the 2011 MLB Amateur Draft by the Arizona Diamondbacks. Assistant Coach Joel Aviña most recently coached Towson infielder Jordan Peyton for the Bristol Blues in the New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL) this summer, helping Peyton win the league's Defensive Player of the Year award. Prior to that stint, Aviña served as an assistant at Post University for three seasons, where he led the Eagles to a .974 fielding percentage in 2024, the 16th best mark in Division II. Former Tiger pitcher Justin Rebok, who stands eighth all-time in program history in career appearances, joins the staff as the Director of Pitching Development. Third year Tiger pitching coach Mike Ruppenthal was also elevated to associate head coach in the offseason.
 
TIGERS IN THE PROS
On March 24, John Cristino became the second Tiger from the 2023 season to ink a deal with a Major League Baseball (MLB) organization after signing a minor league contract with the New York Yankees. The New Jersey native played for the New England Knockouts, now the Brockton Rox, of the Frontier League in the 2024 season. Cristino finished the season with a league-best 26 home runs, earned a Frontier League All Star nod and was named the league's catcher of the year. The catcher slashed .293/.367/.583, adding 20 doubles, a triple, 72 RBIs and 65 runs scored in 89 games before being traded to the York Revolution of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB), where he helped the Revolution win the league title.
 
In July 2023, former Tiger right-handed pitcher Ethan Pecko was picked in the sixth round (194) of the MLB draft by the Houston Astros as the 19th Towson player in program history to be selected. In his first full season with the club, he ascended to Double-A Corpus Christi and was named the 2024 Astros Minor League Pitcher of the Year after finishing 4-6 with a 3.47 ERA and 125 strikeouts in 96.0 innings pitched across stops at Low-A, High-A and Double-A.
 
Former infielder Richie Palacios, a third-round pick in 2018, had previous MLB stints with Cleveland and St. Louis before being traded to Tampa Bay before the 2024 season. Palacios is on the Rays' 40-man roster to begin the season for the second year in a row, despite landing on the 10-day injured list with a right ring finger fracture. The Brooklyn native has found a home with the Rays, finishing 24th in the American League with 19 stolen bases in 92 games played a season ago.
 
RUNS IN THE FAMILY
The Tigers roster is littered with familial connections to professional sports, starting with pitcher Nate Nabholz. His uncle, Chris Nabholz, was the second Towson baseball player drafted in program history. Nabholz started 100 games in the Majors after being selected in the second round of the 1988 draft by the Montreal Expos. Red-shirt freshman pitcher Joey Zito is the nephew of Cy Young award-winning pitcher Barry Zito, who pitched for 15 seasons in the Major Leagues. Newcomer pitcher Jace Cunnane is the son of eight-year MLB pitcher Will Cunnane. Infielder Casey Bishop's father was previously the strength and conditioning coach for the Baltimore Orioles for 14 years. Outside of baseball, Jordan Peyton is the cousin of former Towson football player and Super Bowl champion Jermon Bushrod and infielder Taye Robinson is the cousin of current Miami Dolphin Chop Robinson.
 
2024 RECAP
The Tigers finished the 2024 season at 15-39 overall and 5-20 in CAA play. The Tigers had two Honorable Mention All-CAA selections in outfielder Elijah Dickerson and infielder Jordan Peyton. Red shirt freshman Taye Robinson was named to the CAA All-Rookie Team. The Tigers' 369 strikeouts were the seventh-most in a single season in program history, while their 11 saves were fifth-most in TU history.