Friday, March 17
Spartanburg, SC
6 PM
Quinnipiac University
at
University of South Carolina - Upstate
QU Baseball Plays Three-Game Series With USC Upstate This Weekend
3/16/2017 10:18:00 AM | Baseball
Quinnipiac University Bobcats (6-8, 0-0 MAAC) at USC Upstate Spartans (9-9)
Dates: Friday-Sunday, March 17-19
Location: Harley Park | Spartanburg, South Carolina
MULTIMEDIA
Follow the Bobcats This Week:
HAMDEN, Conn. - Quinnipiac concludes its 2017 Spring Break trip when it plays a three-game series against the USC Upstate Spartans on Friday-Sunday at Harley Park.
LAST TIME OUT
Quinnipiac fell 5-2 against Gardner-Webb on Tuesday afternoon in its last action. Ryan Nelson (Knoxville, TN), Brian Moskey (Higganum, CT) and Joseph Burns (Shelton, CT) led the way for Quinnipiac, as all three recorded a pair of hits at the plate. Matthew Batten (Shelton, CT) and Liam Scafariello (Southington, CT) also chipped in with a hit of their own.
BATTEN NAMED MAAC PLAYER OF WEEK
Shortstop Matthew Batten (Shelton, CT) was named the MAAC Baseball Player of the Week, the league office announced on Tuesday, March 14. Batten tallied seven hits over three games in a weekend series at VMI, hitting 7-for-13 in total, scoring four runs and driving in three more. Batten went 1-for-5 on March 10, 3-for-5 on March 11, and 3-for-3 on March 12.
ROAD TRIP!
The Bobcats begin the new year down south, playing 18 games in Texas, North Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina before heading back to Connecticut on March 22 to face Yale in New Haven. Quinnipiac's first home game is on March 28 vs. the University of Rhode Island at 3 p.m.
SCOUTING USC UPSTATE
LIAM GOING LONG
First baseman Liam Scafariello has seven home runs in the Bobcats' first 14 games of the 2017 season, which placed him tied for No. 6 overall in the nation heading into the week. The sophomore transfer from San Jacinto College is 16-for-56 from the plate so far with 14 RBI's. Scafariello was named MAAC Baseball Player of the Week on Tuesday, Feb. 21 after opening the season with five homers in the first four games.
BIG BATS
Matthew Batten (Shelton, CT) and Joseph Burns (Shelton, CT) are both hitting over .300 so far this year. Batten is 18-for-54 (.333) while Burns is 18-for-55 (.327).
IMPRESSIVE ROTATION
Taylor Luciani (Berlin, CT) and Robert Hitt (Suffield, CT) have both been stellar on the mound in two starts so far this year. Hitt has thrown 8.0 innings while posting a 1.13 ERA, and Luciani has thrown 5.0 innings with a 1.80 ERA.
DEPTH IN THE 'PEN
Five different Bobcats' pitchers have an ERA under 4.00 so far this season over multiple appearances out of the bullpen:
HEAD COACH JOHN DELANEY
The Bobcats won 21 games in 2016, the program's second-straight 20-win season in the two years under head coach John Delaney. Quinnipiac has 56 total victories since Delaney took over. QU won 29 games in 2015, which ties the program record for most wins in a single season. The Bobcats went 29-27 (15-9 MAAC) overall that year, finishing No. 3 in the conference standings - their highest regular-season finish in the conference since finishing No. 1 in 2007, when Delaney played for team.
MAAC PRESEASON POLL
Quinnipiac baseball has been picked to finish 7th in the 2017 MAAC Baseball Preseason Poll, as announced by the league office on Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2017. The Bobcats received 51 total votes in the poll, finishing one spot behind Siena and one spot ahead of Rider. Fairfield (No. 1), Canisius (No. 2) and Monmouth (No. 3) were picked at the top of the poll.
MATTHEW BATTEN
Senior shortstop Matthew Batten (Shelton, Conn.) was selected to the Preseason All-MAAC team. Batten, who was named to the All-MAAC Second Team at the end of the 2016 season, hit .344 with four home runs and 25 RBI's last year in 52 games. Batten registered 73 hits last year, which were fourth most in a single-season program history.
BRINGING BACK THE OFFENSE
The Bobcats will return seven of nine players who registered 30 hits or more in 2016 (Matthew Batten, Joseph Burns, Brian Moskey, Matthew Oestreicher, Julius Saporito, Ryan Nelson, Ben Gibson).
RETURNING PITCHERS
The Bobcats will also return three of its top five innings eaters from the past year. Taylor Luciani (Berlin, CT) threw 69.0 innings in 12 appearances, going 4-3 with a 3.13 ERA (team-high for pitchers who threw more than 20 innings) and 42 strikeouts. Robert Hitt (Suffield, CT) threw 51 innings over 24 appearances, striking out 43 batters to go along with a 6.18 ERA, and Brandon Shiliekis (North Dighton, MA) threw 29 innings over 11 appearances, striking out 19 batters and posting a 4.81 ERA.
2016 ACCOLADES
Quinnipiac had two All-MAAC players in 2016, Thomas Jankins and Matthew Batten), two All-New England players (Batten and Lou Iannotti) and one all-Northeast Selection (Batten). Jankins was also drafted in the 13th round of the 2016 MLB Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers, the 17th player in program history to be selected in Major League Baseball's First Year Amateur Player Draft.
SUMMER BALL
13 different Bobcats' from the 2016 roster participated in college baseball leagues around the United States this past summer:
Coastal Plain League (CoastalPlain.com)
Matthew Batten – Morehead City Marlins
Joseph Burns – Florence RedWolves
Wyatt Hamilton – Morehead City Marlins
New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL.com)
Ryan Nelson – Danbury Westerners
Alex Vargas – Danbury Westerners
Taylor Luciani – Ocean State Waves
Robert Hitt – Ocean State Waves
Futures Collegiate Baseball League (TheFuturesLeague.com)
Brandon Shileikis – Pittsfield Suns
Brian Moskey – Pittsfield Suns
Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League (PGCBL.com)
Anthony Cruz – Saugerties Stallions
Mike Davis – Saugerties Stallions
Andrew Workman – Saugerties Stallions
Julius Saporito – Saugerties Stallions
NEXT UP
The Bobcats return to the Northeast for a mid-week game with crosstown rival Yale on Wednesday.
Dates: Friday-Sunday, March 17-19
Location: Harley Park | Spartanburg, South Carolina
MULTIMEDIA
Follow the Bobcats This Week:
- Live Stats - Friday (6 p.m.): UpstateSpartans.com
- Live Stats - Saturday (2 p.m.): UpstateSpartans.com
- Live Stats - Sunday (1 p.m.): UpstateSpartans.com
- Follow on Twitter: @TheQBaseball
HAMDEN, Conn. - Quinnipiac concludes its 2017 Spring Break trip when it plays a three-game series against the USC Upstate Spartans on Friday-Sunday at Harley Park.
LAST TIME OUT
Quinnipiac fell 5-2 against Gardner-Webb on Tuesday afternoon in its last action. Ryan Nelson (Knoxville, TN), Brian Moskey (Higganum, CT) and Joseph Burns (Shelton, CT) led the way for Quinnipiac, as all three recorded a pair of hits at the plate. Matthew Batten (Shelton, CT) and Liam Scafariello (Southington, CT) also chipped in with a hit of their own.
BATTEN NAMED MAAC PLAYER OF WEEK
Shortstop Matthew Batten (Shelton, CT) was named the MAAC Baseball Player of the Week, the league office announced on Tuesday, March 14. Batten tallied seven hits over three games in a weekend series at VMI, hitting 7-for-13 in total, scoring four runs and driving in three more. Batten went 1-for-5 on March 10, 3-for-5 on March 11, and 3-for-3 on March 12.
ROAD TRIP!
The Bobcats begin the new year down south, playing 18 games in Texas, North Carolina, Virginia and South Carolina before heading back to Connecticut on March 22 to face Yale in New Haven. Quinnipiac's first home game is on March 28 vs. the University of Rhode Island at 3 p.m.
SCOUTING USC UPSTATE
- The Spartans are 9-9 so far this season, including six wins in their last seven games.
- USC Upstate has won a pair of 12-inning games this year, including a wild 21-20 win over Dayton on Feb. 25.
- The battle for the team hitting lead is extremely close, with Brendan Brundage (.357), J.J. Shimko (.356) and Charlie Carpenter (.354) separated by three points. Carpenter leads with four homers, while Shimko leads with 19 RBI
- Kevin Hickey has been USC Upstate's top starter, with a 2-2 record and a 2.38 ERA.
LIAM GOING LONG
First baseman Liam Scafariello has seven home runs in the Bobcats' first 14 games of the 2017 season, which placed him tied for No. 6 overall in the nation heading into the week. The sophomore transfer from San Jacinto College is 16-for-56 from the plate so far with 14 RBI's. Scafariello was named MAAC Baseball Player of the Week on Tuesday, Feb. 21 after opening the season with five homers in the first four games.
BIG BATS
Matthew Batten (Shelton, CT) and Joseph Burns (Shelton, CT) are both hitting over .300 so far this year. Batten is 18-for-54 (.333) while Burns is 18-for-55 (.327).
IMPRESSIVE ROTATION
Taylor Luciani (Berlin, CT) and Robert Hitt (Suffield, CT) have both been stellar on the mound in two starts so far this year. Hitt has thrown 8.0 innings while posting a 1.13 ERA, and Luciani has thrown 5.0 innings with a 1.80 ERA.
DEPTH IN THE 'PEN
Five different Bobcats' pitchers have an ERA under 4.00 so far this season over multiple appearances out of the bullpen:
- Mike Davis (Sandy Hook, CT): 6 appearances, 8.0 IP, 1.13 ERA
- Mike DellaMedaglia (Somers, NY): 5 appearances, 6.2 IP, 2.70 ERA
- Chris Enns (Canton, CT): 5 appearances, 13.0 IP, 2.77 ERA
- Nick Paasch (Tolland, CT): 4 appearances, 6.1 IP, 2.84 ERA
- Andrew Workman (Pound Ridge. NY): 7 appearances, 12.1 IP, 2.92 ERA
HEAD COACH JOHN DELANEY
The Bobcats won 21 games in 2016, the program's second-straight 20-win season in the two years under head coach John Delaney. Quinnipiac has 56 total victories since Delaney took over. QU won 29 games in 2015, which ties the program record for most wins in a single season. The Bobcats went 29-27 (15-9 MAAC) overall that year, finishing No. 3 in the conference standings - their highest regular-season finish in the conference since finishing No. 1 in 2007, when Delaney played for team.
MAAC PRESEASON POLL
Quinnipiac baseball has been picked to finish 7th in the 2017 MAAC Baseball Preseason Poll, as announced by the league office on Tuesday, Jan. 31, 2017. The Bobcats received 51 total votes in the poll, finishing one spot behind Siena and one spot ahead of Rider. Fairfield (No. 1), Canisius (No. 2) and Monmouth (No. 3) were picked at the top of the poll.
MATTHEW BATTEN
Senior shortstop Matthew Batten (Shelton, Conn.) was selected to the Preseason All-MAAC team. Batten, who was named to the All-MAAC Second Team at the end of the 2016 season, hit .344 with four home runs and 25 RBI's last year in 52 games. Batten registered 73 hits last year, which were fourth most in a single-season program history.
BRINGING BACK THE OFFENSE
The Bobcats will return seven of nine players who registered 30 hits or more in 2016 (Matthew Batten, Joseph Burns, Brian Moskey, Matthew Oestreicher, Julius Saporito, Ryan Nelson, Ben Gibson).
RETURNING PITCHERS
The Bobcats will also return three of its top five innings eaters from the past year. Taylor Luciani (Berlin, CT) threw 69.0 innings in 12 appearances, going 4-3 with a 3.13 ERA (team-high for pitchers who threw more than 20 innings) and 42 strikeouts. Robert Hitt (Suffield, CT) threw 51 innings over 24 appearances, striking out 43 batters to go along with a 6.18 ERA, and Brandon Shiliekis (North Dighton, MA) threw 29 innings over 11 appearances, striking out 19 batters and posting a 4.81 ERA.
2016 ACCOLADES
Quinnipiac had two All-MAAC players in 2016, Thomas Jankins and Matthew Batten), two All-New England players (Batten and Lou Iannotti) and one all-Northeast Selection (Batten). Jankins was also drafted in the 13th round of the 2016 MLB Draft by the Milwaukee Brewers, the 17th player in program history to be selected in Major League Baseball's First Year Amateur Player Draft.
SUMMER BALL
13 different Bobcats' from the 2016 roster participated in college baseball leagues around the United States this past summer:
Coastal Plain League (CoastalPlain.com)
Matthew Batten – Morehead City Marlins
Joseph Burns – Florence RedWolves
Wyatt Hamilton – Morehead City Marlins
New England Collegiate Baseball League (NECBL.com)
Ryan Nelson – Danbury Westerners
Alex Vargas – Danbury Westerners
Taylor Luciani – Ocean State Waves
Robert Hitt – Ocean State Waves
Futures Collegiate Baseball League (TheFuturesLeague.com)
Brandon Shileikis – Pittsfield Suns
Brian Moskey – Pittsfield Suns
Perfect Game Collegiate Baseball League (PGCBL.com)
Anthony Cruz – Saugerties Stallions
Mike Davis – Saugerties Stallions
Andrew Workman – Saugerties Stallions
Julius Saporito – Saugerties Stallions
NEXT UP
The Bobcats return to the Northeast for a mid-week game with crosstown rival Yale on Wednesday.
Players Mentioned
Baseball vs. Niagara (April 4)
Saturday, April 04
Baseball vs. Niagara (April 3)
Friday, April 03
Baseball vs. Niagara (April 2)
Thursday, April 02
Baseball vs. Rhode Island (3/24)
Tuesday, March 24
