CHARLESTON, S.C. – With non-conference season over, The Citadel baseball team continues Southern Conference action with a three-game series at home against ETSU May 5-7.

With The Citadel senior class graduating on Saturday, the baseball team will honor its two seniors a couple weeks early before Sunday's game. Beau Strickland and Barrett Charpia will be honored pregame, as they close out their second-to-last career series at Joe Riley Park.

The Bulldogs (12-29, 3-12 SoCon) look to respond after a tough road series at Furman last weekend. The Citadel enters the week tied with ETSU for eighth place in the SoCon and just game back of VMI for seventh place.

ETSU (20-22, 3-12 SoCon) snapped an eight-game conference losing streak on Friday with a 6-5 win over Wofford. The Bucs fell in the final two games of the series, however.

Friday's opener is scheduled for a 4 p.m. first pitch, followed by a 2 p.m. start on Saturday and 1 p.m. on Sunday. Prior to Sunday's game, the team will host its Senior Day celebration.

Live statistics and video will be available for the full series at CitadelSports.com. All three games will also be broadcast on ESPN Radio 94.7-FM and 910-AM in the Charleston market with Voice of the Bulldogs Mike Legg on the call.

Quick Hits

• The Citadel leads the overall series against ETSU with a 56-32 record. The Bulldogs have dominated at home against ETSU with a 46-12 record in Charleston and an incredible 26-3 record when playing at Joe Riley Park.
• The Bulldogs and Buccaneers enter the week tied for eighth place in the SoCon and one game back of VMI for seventh place.
• Ben Peden, who started the team's first 37 games, was injured April 23 against Mercer. He will be out indefinitely with Joe Sabatini and Bryce Leasure splitting time at first base in his absence.
• On April 12, left-handed pitcher JP Sears was named to the prestigious Golden Spikes Award Midseason Watch List by USA Baseball. He is one of just 40 players across the country on the list and the only player from the Southern Conference.
• Sears enters the week ranked fourth in Division I in total strikeouts with 102 after punching out six batters at Furman on April 28.
• Sears is just the 13th pitcher to record 100 strikeouts in a season for The Citadel since 1965, with the last time by James Reeves in 2015.
• The left hander is also sixth in the Bulldog record book in career strikeouts with 277. He is just 20 short of passing Bulldog pitching coach Britt Reames (296) for fifth on the list.
• Sears also ranks fifth in Division I in strikeouts per nine innings (13.11) and 22nd in strikeout-to-walk ratio (6.38).
• As a pitching staff, The Citadel ranks ninth in Division I and first in the SoCon with 9.7 strikeouts per nine innings.
• The starting pitching was dominant for The Citadel against Mercer. All three starters threw at least six innings, allowing three earned runs or less.
• Will Abbott pitched career-highs of 8.2 innings and nine strikeouts in the Bulldogs' 5-3 loss on April 22.
• Making just his second start of 2017, Thomas Byelick looked sharp shutting out Mercer over six frames on April 23.
• Taylor Cothran led the offense over the weekend against Mercer with three-straight three-hit games. Cothran was moved to the leadoff spot on April 23 for the first time in his career, finishing 3-for-5 at the dish.
• The top of The Citadel lineup finished a combined 10-for-18 in the 8-5 victory over Charleston Southern on April 18. The 1-5 hitters scored and drove in all eight runs for the Bulldogs.
• The Citadel used eight different pitchers in the win over CSU, with seven relievers accounting for the final 8.1 innings of the game.
• William Kinney' extended his streak of consecutive starts to 112 games, dating back to 2015. His streak of starts at shortstop ended at 97 on Saturday at Furman when he was the starting designated hitter for the Bulldogs.
• On April 6, Sears was awarded the Southern Conference Pitcher of the Month award for March after finishing 3-0 with a 1.43 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 37.2 innings pitched.
• The Bulldog southpaw was also selected the SoCon Pitcher of the Week for the second time this season and fourth time of his career on March 27. Sears struck out a career-high 20 batters at home against VMI in a two-hitter on March 24 to earn the award.
• Sears' performance against VMI ties him for the program record for strikeouts in a game and is tied for second all-time in the SoCon. 20 strikeouts is also the highest in a single game this season in Division I.
• Along with his 19 strikeout performance last year at VMI, Sears now has two of the top-six strikeout totals in SoCon history.
• Sears was also selected as one of Collegiate Baseball's National Players of the Week, March 24th's Pitcher of the Night by D1Baseball.com, College Sports Madness SoCon Player of the Week and was featured in USA Baseball's Golden Spikes Award Gold Standard Performance of the Week poll.
• The Citadel offense exploded for a record 34 runs on Tuesday, Feb. 14 against Winthrop. The Bulldogs also set records for hits (34), RBIs (31), margin of victory (26) and at-bats (56).
• The 34 runs remain the highest single-game total in NCAA Division I this season, topping 32 runs scored by both McNeese and South Alabama.
• The offense had multiple players with career days against Winthrop as five Bulldogs recorded at least four hits, five finished with four or more RBIs and four more scored at least four runs.
• Barrett Charpia drove in nine RBI on a 5-for-8 day at the plate. The senior smacked two home runs, driving in the second most runs by a Bulldog in program history. Charpia's nine RBI are tied for the third most in a single game in Division I this season.
• Charpia was selected the D1baseball.com Player of the Day and was one of four players nominated for the Golden Spikes Gold Standard Performance of the Week.
• Jonathan Sabo also finished 5-for-9 with two home runs against Winthrop. The junior transfer scored six runs and drove in five more.
• Sabo and Taylor Cothran each tied the program record with six runs scored apiece. The last time the feat was accomplished by a Bulldog was in 1998 by Jerry Simmons.
• William Kinney tied The Citadel record with four doubles in a six-hit ball game for the junior. The shortstop became the first Bulldog to hit four doubles in a game since Mark Mitchum did so in 1979. Kinney also posted career highs of six RBI and five runs scored.
• Cothran and J.D. Davis each posted their first career four-hit games against Winthrop. Ben Peden finished 3-for-6 with four runs scored and four RBI.
• Taylor Cothran and Cole Buffington each smacked their first career home runs at Western Carolina. Both home runs were of the solo variety. Buffington hit his on Friday, March 31 while Cothran crushed his first home run on Sunday, April 2.
• Jeffery Brown picked up his first career hit in the ninth inning against South Carolina on March 28, legging out an infield single.
• Will Pillsbury earned his first career win on March 26 vs VMI in a 4-2 victory. The freshman struck out five batters in 5.1 innings of work, allowing just two runs.
• Sears walked his first batter of the season against C of C on March 3 after beginning 2017 with 21 strikeouts in 13.2 innings before allowing his first free pass.
• Sears was selected the SoCon Pitcher of the Week for the first time this year on Feb. 27 after striking out 12 batters in a 4-0 victory over Delaware State.
• Kinney drew a walk-off walk in the bottom of the 10th inning on Saturday, March 18 against Dartmouth in an 8-7 victory. Kinney led the offense with a 3-for-5 day, two RBI, a run scored and a triple.
• The Bulldogs walked a season-high 13 times on Tuesday, March 1 in a 9-8 victory over Presbyterian College. It is the most walks in a single game for The Citadel since 2007.
• Barrett Charpia walked four times in the game, the most for a single Bulldog player since 2007 as well.
• Charpia hit a walk-off single on Feb. 25 against Delaware State in The Citadel's 6-5 victory.
• Relief pitcher Aaron Lesiak earned the win in relief against his former team on Feb. 27 vs Presbyterian.

For more information on The Citadel baseball follow @CitadelBaseball or visit CitadelSports.com.