CHARLESTON, S.C. – The Citadel baseball team will open a four-game road swing this weekend with a three-game, Southern Conference series at ETSU. The Bulldogs and Buccaneers will kick off the series with a 6:30 p.m. first pitch on Thursday, May 3 and will continue the series on Friday, May 4 at 6:30 p.m. The two programs will close out the series on Sunday, May 6 with a 1 p.m. first pitch.

Probable Weekend Pitching Matchups
Game 1: Thursday, May 3 – 6:30 p.m. – Live Stats – Live Video – Live Audio
RHP Dylan Spence (3-4, 3.62 ERA, 72 IP) vs. RHP Micah Kaczor (4-4, 4.79 ERA, 67.2 IP)

Game 2: Friday, May 4 – 6:30 p.m. – Live Stats – Live Video – Live Audio
RHP Thomas Byelick (1-6, 4.28 ERA, 48.1 IP) vs. RHP Ryan Simpler (5-4, 5.37 ERA, 67 IP)

Game 3: Sunday, May 6 – 1 p.m. – Live Stats – Live Audio
RHP Jonathan Sabo (1-2, 4.50 ERA, 26 IP) vs. RHP Russell Koesters (2-2, 5.63 ERA, 46.1 IP)


Since 1965, The Citadel is 58-33 against ETSU, but the Buccaneers hold a 19-10 record over the Bulldogs in Johnson City, Tennessee. Last season, the 'Dogs took two of three from the Bucs at home, but the last Citadel win in Johnson City came back on March 17, 2001, when the 'Dogs swept a doubleheader over the Bucs by scores of 9-6 and 18-0. Since then, ETSU is 8-0 over The Citadel in Johnson City, including a pair of three-game sweeps in Southern Conference play in 2016 and 2004.

ETSU comes into the weekend series with a 23-17 overall record and an 8-7 mark in Southern Conference action. The Buccaneers have won four head-to-head series on the year, including clean sweeps over Winthrop and at Western Carolina. The Bucs also took two of three at home against Northern Kentucky and VMI and went on the road to best Samford for the series win. In the Tri-Star Classic hosted by the University of Tennessee, the Bucs claimed wins over Middle Tennessee State and Memphis, but dropped their game against the Volunteers. Later in the season, on Tuesday, March 20, the Bucs avenged that loss with a 9-6 win over the Vols. The Bucs have won four straight, including the three-game sweep at Western Carolina and a midweek home game over Big South foe Radford. The Bucs are currently batting .276 as a squad with 117 extra-base knocks and 249 runs scored. In SoCon play, ETSU is batting .260 with 93 runs scored and 47 hits that have gone for extras. The Bucs are 10-6 at home on the year, but have won just two of six home SoCon games.

The Buccaneers boast four players batting over .300 for the season, highlighted by Chris Cook's .346 average off 55 hits. Cook is currently slugging .516 with an on-base percentage of .429. He is tied for tops on the team with Caleb Longley with 15 doubles. Longley, who is batting at a .317 clip, is tied with Christian Bailey for most runs batted in at 39 on the year, but is in sole possession of first on the team with 10 home runs and a .655 slugging percentage. Cook leads the team with 37 runs scored while Aaron Maher is second with 33. Bailey is currently batting .331 and Ben Jackson is batting at a .308 clip. Cullen Smith and Hunter Parker lead the way on the base paths with six stolen bases each, but Cook and Maher are close behind with five swiped bags each. In SoCon action, Cook's average has gone up to a .367 while Longley is batting at a .327 clip in league play. Longley, who boasts 12 extra-base hits in Southern Conference games, is slugging .727 in conference and is getting on base at a .412 clip.

ETSU will start right-hander Micah Kaczor on the mound on Thursday, righty Ryan Simpler on Friday and right-hander Russell Koesters on Sunday. Kaczor and Simpler have both made 11 starts this season while Koesters has made nine starts in 12 appearances. Both Kaczor and Simpler have pitched at or just above 67 innings. Simpler, who is 5-4 on the year with a 5.37 ERA, leads the team with 70 strikeouts compared to just nine walks, but opponents are batting .307 against him. Kaczor, who is 4-4 with a 4.79 ERA, boasts 61 strikeouts compared to 23 walks and is holding his opposition to a .247 batting average. Koesters is 2-2 on the year with a 5.63 ERA and has 32 strikeouts on the season compared to 17 walks. Opponents have batted .285 against the ETSU pitching corps, but the Bucs have struck out 310 batters this season combined.

UP NEXT
The Citadel will close out the four-game road swing with a game at College of Charleston on Tuesday, May 8. The 'Dogs and Cougars will square off at 6 p.m. at Patriots Point before welcoming UNCG to Charleston for the final home SoCon series of the season.

For more information on The Citadel baseball team, please visit CitadelSports.com or follow @CitadelBaseball and @CitadelSports on Twitter.