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Cole Tyrell hit .400 last weekend with five RBI |
GAME NOTES
DAYTON, Ohio – Seeking a spot in next week’s Atlantic 10 Championship in Camden, N.J., the University of Dayton Flyers travel to Saint Louis to face the Billikens in a three-game series. Both teams are deadlocked at 12-12 in the A-10, which ties them for eighth overall.
The Flyers are just one game out of a playoff spot, and hold the tiebreaker over three of the four teams currently sitting at 13-11.
UD has momentum on its side, riding a three-game winning streak into this weekend against a Billiken ball club that has lost four in a row. The Flyers had solid production from their senior leaders as Cole Tyrell, Aaron Dunsmore and Zach Jacob accounted for 14 of Dayton’s 20 RBI on the weekend. The starting pitching rotation also combined for a 2.89 ERA.
The Billikens were swept by the first-place Charlotte 49ers last weekend. Despite that, SLU has two players that are hitting .360 or better. Danny Brock, the team’s leader in RBI and home runs, is hitting .363. Jon Myers checks in at .368 and leads the team with 16 RBI. Both have posted slugging percentages well into the .600’s.
Left-hander Cameron Hobson will start the series on Thursday for Dayton. Hobson earned the win in his last outing, pitching six innings with four strikeouts. He carries a 4-4 record and a 5.97 ERA into the weekend.
Hobson will face SLU’s right-handed pitcher Alex Alemann. He has a 7-5 record in 14 starts for the Billikens, and a 4.78 ERA. Alemann is second on the team with 57 strikeouts this season and has no problem going the distance, with five complete games this season. Thursday’s first pitch is slated for 8:00 p.m. ET.
Friday is a power versus power pitching matchup. Dayton’s strikeout ace Burny Mitchem, who has 77 this season, will face Bryant Cotton who has 80. Mitchem (4-7) has a 6.46 ERA and took a no-decision in a 9-8 walk-off victory in which he had seven strikeouts in 5.1 innings pitched.
Cotton has a 4.23 ERA and has thrown five complete games. He will make his 15th start and carries an 8-4 record into the weekend. First pitch on Friday is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. ET.
Neither team has officially named a starter for Saturday. However, both teams may call upon last weekend’s starters (UD – RHP Mike Hauschild, SLU – RHP Jerry Mancuso) to open the final game of the regular season.
Hauschild pitched brilliantly with a pair of wins last weekend. His first win came in one inning of relief in Dayton’s 9-8 win over the Hawks on May 15. Hauschild returned on Sunday to make the start. He pitched 7.1 innings with eight strikeouts and one walk. He is 4-6 this season and a 5.06 ERA. Mancuso has been off his game in his last few starts, he is 5-6 this season with a 7.00 ERA. First pitch on Saturday is scheduled for 2:00 p.m. ET.
Mike Ivcic will broadcast the series live on the Dayton Flyer Sports Network on 1660 AM and www.DaytonFlyers.com.
