Baseball Set For Three-Game Series at ETSU

Friday, February 27

Johnson City, TN

3:00 PM

Quinnipiac University

ETSU

Nick Balcom vs. Niagara in MAAC Tournament (May 20, 2025)

Photo by: Patrick Kraemer

2/26/2026 12:21:00 PM | Baseball

Quinnipiac Bobcats (2-4) at East Tennessee Buccaneers (6-2)
Date: Friday, Feb. 27
Time: 3:00 PM
Location: Thomas Stadium | Johnson City, Tenn.
Live Stats: Click Here | @TheQBaseball

Quinnipiac at ETSU
Date: Saturday, Feb. 28
Time: 2:00 PM
Location: Thomas Stadium | Johnson City, Tenn.
Live Stats: Click Here | @TheQBaseball

Quinnipiac at ETSU
Date: Sunday, Mar. 1
Time: 1:00 PM
Location: Thomas Stadium | Johnson City, Tenn.
Live Stats: Click Here | @TheQBaseball

JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. – The Quinnipiac baseball team heads down to Johnson City, Tennessee, to take on the East Tennessee State Buccaneers for a three-game set. The Buccaneers hold a 6-2 record this season after making an NCAA Regional Appearance last season.

LAST TIME OUT

The Bobcats dropped their series to the North Florida Ospreys, two games to one.
Quinnipiac fell in the first game of the series, 10-0, in seven innings. Kyle Garbowski picked up two of QU's four hits in the contest.
On Saturday, the Bobcats and Ospreys split the doubleheader with the Bobcats winning game one, 6-3, before falling in game two, 5-4. Kyle Garbowski drove in two runs to lead the offense, while J.c. Franconere recorded the win on the bump.
In game two of the doubleheader, the Bobcats led 4-2 entering the final half of the ninth, before the Ospreys rallied for three runs to take the series from the Bobcats.

HISTORY VS. EAST TENNESSEE STATE

Friday's matchup will be the first-ever meeting between the two teams in their respective programs' histories.

SCOUTING THE BUCCANEERS

ETSU holds a 6-2 record early in the 2026 season. The Buccaneers swept both of their weekend series but dropped both midweek contests early this season.
ETSU swept the Marist Red Foxes to begin the year and lost to Virginia Tech to wrap up their first week of play.
Last weekend, the Buccaneers swept the Sacred Heart Pioneers, outscoring them 47-11.
Last time out, ETSU dropped its midweek contest to Appalachian State, 8-5, on its home field.
Henry Ferguson leads the ETSU offense with a .481 batting average in eight contests this season. Ferguson has recorded six RBIs and has hit one home run so far this season.
Tristan Curless and Axel Melendez are tied for the team lead with 12 RBIs each. Curless and Melendez are two of five Buccaneers to have started every game so far this year.
East Tennessee has sent fourteen pitchers to the mound so far this season, with three of those pitchers not allowing an earned run. Of the four different starting pitchers so far this season, Michael Harpster and Tadan Bell both have a 3.12 ERA in 8.2 innings pitched. Harpster leads the squad with 13 strikeouts this year and is tied for the team lead with one win on his record.

BOBCAT LEADERS (Among Players that Qualify: 2PA/G and 75% of Games Played)

Batting Average: Kyle Garbowski (.455)
Runs: Alex Irizarry (5)
Hits: Kyle Garbowski (10)
Doubles: Kyle Garbowski (3)
Triples: Kyle Garbowski, Matt Park (1)
Home Runs: None
RBIs: Jack Balcer (5)
Stolen Bases: Kyle Garbowski, Alex Irizarry, and Chase Camac (2)
ERA: Andrew Rubayo (3.00)
WHIP: Andrew Rubayo (0.67)
Wins: Matt Alduino, J.C. Franconere (1)
Saves: Matt Alduino (1)
Innings Pitched: Sam Wright (6.2)
Strikeouts: James Pazdera (11)

PRESEASON ACCOLADES

The Quinnipiac Baseball team was picked to finish 3^rd in the MAAC Preseason Poll after last season ended in the MAAC Semifinal round against the Rider Broncs.
Christian Smith was named to the Preseason All-MAAC team as he returns to Hamden.
Smith finished the year with a .329 batting average in 56 contests. Smith tied for the team lead in home runs with 15 and led the Bobcats with 67 runs batted in.
Smith had a tremendous MAAC Tournament last season, finishing the week with a .375 clip (6-for-16), while driving in nine runs in the five games in Pomona, earning him a nod on the All-Tournament team.

KEY RETURNERS

The Bobcats return 19 players from last year's team, with of those players seeing game action.
Of those returners, nine are pitchers: J.C. Franconere, Sam Wright, Griffin Seibel, Mike Poncini, Matt Alduino, Nick Balcom, Andrew Rubayo, Josh Lajoie, and Mason Ulsh.
Ten position players return: Cole Constable, Kyle Garbowski, Sam Ametrano, Christian Smith, Alex Irizarry, Luke Zeisloft, James Marino, Matt Park, Ian Nilsen, and Christian Nilsen.

LOTS OF NEW FACES

Quinnipiac welcomes 16 new faces to its campus this season.
The Bobcats used the transfer portal to bring in sophomore right-handed pitcher Maddex Labuda (Liberty), junior outfield/first baseman Jack Balcer (Widener), senior right-handed pitcher James Pazdera, and graduate outfielder Brendan Edvardsen (AIC).
Quinnipiac also brought in 12 first years, with six being pitchers and six being position players, Peyton Vancas (Pleasant Gap, Pa.), Timothy Park (Bridgewater, NJ.), Chase Camac (Northfield, NJ.), Caden Williamson (Broomfield, Co.), Teagan Beames (New Fairfield, Conn.), Brayden Hromada (Center Moriches, NY.), Joseph Hiller (Center Moriches, NY.), Kevin Rusinak (Manalapan, NJ.), Ethan Freed (Limerick, Pa.), Frank Orrei (Verona, NJ.), Langdon Hazen (Underhill, VT.), and Jacob Belecky (Komoka, Ontario, Canada).

NEXT TIME OUT

The Bobcats will play their final weekend non-conference series before MAAC play as they head to UNC Greensboro for a three-game set.

For more information on the Quinnipiac baseball team, visit gobobcats.com/baseball and follow the team on Twitter/X, @TheQBaseball, and Instagram, @TheQBaseball.