WEEKEND PREVIEW• The University of Dayton baseball team will host St. Bonaventure for three games of Atlantic 10 action this weekend at Woerner Field. The series begins Friday at 4 p.m. followed by games at 1 p.m. on Saturday and 12 p.m. on Sunday.
• The Flyers are 18-20 overall and 9-6 in A-10 play. Dayton has won nine of its 12 home contests and returns from a five straight games on the road. UD has won six consecutive games at Woerner Field. The Flyers currently sit fifth in the conference standings and hope to improve on that position this weekend against the Bonnies.
• St. Bonaventure is 8-24 on the season and 2-11 in the A-10. The Bonnies actually have a better record on the road with five wins away from home compared to two victories in Olean, N.Y. Most recently, SBU fell to Binghamton at home 7-2 on Wednesday. In their last conference series, the Bonnies dropped all three games to Fordham last weekend.
• Before Friday's game, there will be shot ceremony commemorating Dayton head coach
Tony Vittorio's 400th career win at Dayton, which took place on April 13th. This is the first home game since the historic victory.
WHO TO WATCH - DAYTON• The Dayton offense is batting .266 through 38 games this season with a slugging percentage of .375 and an on-base percentage of .357. The Flyers have stolen 67 bases this year and drawn 114 walks and 72 hit by pitches.
• Leading the way for Dayton are
Robby Sunderman, who is batting .372 with 38 runs, 14 doubles, 18 RBI, and 15 steals, and
Alex Harris, who is batting .333 with 34 runs, 22 RBI, and 10 steals. There are nine different Flyers with double-digit RBI totals and eight batters with a .300 average or better.
• The UD pitching staff has posted an ERA of 5.92 and 187 strikeouts in 328 1/3 innings of work.
Nick Weybright and
Nate Harris both have three saves each while
Bryce Lahrman has two.
• Getting the start for Dayton this weekend will be senior
Joe Wahl (6.61 ERA, 28 k's, 10 starts), junior
Noah Buettgen (5-4, 3.67 ERA, 43 k's), and sophomore
Charlie Dant (4.76 ERA, 4-5, 36 k's).
• In the Atlantic 10 conference, the Flyers rank fifth in batting average, 12th in team ERA and sixth in fielding percentage. Individually, Sunderman leads the conference in batting average and Harris ranks 11th in the same category. Sunderman also leads the league in hits, ranks fourth in runs scored, second in doubles, and third in steals.
Ryan Berry is second in the A-10 with six home runs this season.
WHO TO WATCH - ST. BONAVENTURE• St. Bonaventure offensively is batting .259 this year with 70 extra-base hits and 135 RBI in 32 contests. The Bonnies have a slugging percentage of .353 and a .345 on-base percentage as well.
• Leading the team is Joel Rosencrance, who both designated hits and pitches. The senior is batting .324 with eight doubles, three home runs, and 17 RBI. Dylan Dunn has added 23 RBI and four home runs while Tyler Bell has chipped in 18 RBI and eight doubles.
• The Bonnies' pitching staff has combined for an ERA of 5.61 through 32 games, with 155 strikeouts compared to 116 walks. Thad Johnson has two saves in relief with Asa Johnson providing the other save.
• The starters for this weekend have yet to be announced.
• In the Atlantic 10, St. Bonaventure ranks right behind Dayton in batting average in sixth, 10th in team ERA, and ninth in fielding percentage. Individually, Rosencrance is eighth in batting average while Weightman is sixth and Bell is seventh in stolen bases.
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE FORECAST – DAYTON, OHIO
Friday - Rainy, High of 67 degrees, low of 48 degrees.
70% chance of rain, Wind at 21 mph.
Saturday - Mostly Sunny, High of 74 degrees, low of 46 degrees.
0% chance of rain, Wind at 11 mph.
Sunday - Partly Cloudy, High of 69 degrees, low of 52 degrees.
0% chance of rain, Wind at 12 mph.
NATIONAL RANKINGSDayton currently ranks 12th in the country in doubles per game and 35th in total doubles. On top of that, the Flyers are 20th in the nation in stolen bases per game and 32nd in total steals. They are also 12th in hit by pitch. Individually, Sunderman is 46th in batting average and 39th in doubles per game. Harris is 27th in the nation in hit by pitch per game while
Sergio Plasencia is 34th in sacrifice bunts per game. Buettgen is sixth in the country in complete games as well.
AGAINST THIS OPPONENTDayton last played St. Bonaventure on the road last season where the Flyers dropped all three contests to the Bonnies. SBU outscored UD 13-5 in the series.
COACH VITTORIO GETS 400TH WIN AT DAYTONHead coach
Tony Vittorio recorded his 400th win at the University of Dayton on Sunday, April 12, 2014 with a 9-5 victory over Rhode Island at home.
UD GETS ANOTHER PLAYER OF THE WEEK IN RYANJunior AJ Ryan received his first award this season when the Atlantic 10 Conference named him Player of the Week on April 7. Ryan led the Flyers to a 3-1 record the week prior by batting .563 with nine hits, three doubles, and seven RBI.
SUNDERMAN PICKS UP SECOND STRAIGHT A10 PLAYER OF THE WEEK AWARDSenior leader
Robby Sunderman had another oustanding week for the Flyers and was named Atlantic 10 Player of the Week for the second time in a row. The veteran third baseman led the team in batting average, runs, hits, and total bases yet again.
SCHIRA EARNS ROOKIE OF THE WEEK HONORSJunior transfer
Zach Schira was named A-10 Rookie of the Week on March 10 after leading the Flyers offensively the weekend prior. The Chandler, Arizona native batted. 400 with three RBI, six hits, two doubles, and caught all four games behind the plate.
A PAIR OF FLYERS PICK UP A-10 AWARDSLast week's Atlantic 10 Weekly Baseball release saw two Dayton baseball players recognized for their efforts on the diamon.
Sophomore pitcher
Charlie Dant was named Co-Pitcher of the Week after tossing a complete game in a 4-1 win over Belmont. Dant struck out seven and walked just one while giving up a single run to the Bruins. It was his first career complete game and moved his record to 2-0 on the year.
Freshman pitcher
Mark Giesler was named Rookie of the Week after pitching three shutout innings for the Flyers in their contest against Middle Tennessee State. The Jasper, Ind. kept Dayton in a tight ball game and held the Blue Raiders in check over the last three innings.
HUESMAN NAMED A10 CO-PLAYER OF THE WEEKIn the first Atlantic 10 awards release of the season, sophomore
Aaron Huesman picked up Co-Player of the Week honors after his performance the first two days of the Spartanburg Classic. The Dublin, Ohio native batted .556 with nine RBI, two home runs, including a grand slam in Dayton's two contests.
FLYERS PICKED TO FINISH TENTH IN A10The Atlantic 10 released their 2014 preseason poll and tabbed the Flyers to finish 10th in the league this year. After failing to reach the postseason in 2013, Dayton reconstructed its lineup and brought in a number of new faces. Little is known about the Flyers around the league, which puts them in prime position to upset the A-10 favorites.
PRESEASON ALL-CONFERENCE RECOGNITIONMark PodlasPreseason Second Team All-Atlantic 10 – College Sports Madness
Robby SundermanBest Baserunner - College Baseball Insider
COVERING THE NATIONThe 2014 Dayton roster has players from across the United States has Coach Vittorio and his staff have recruited the best in brightest players not only in the Midwest, but from each region of the country. Flyers hail from 10 different states, including Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin, Colorado, Texas, Arizona, New York, Washington, and California.
GETTING BACK TO THE A10 CHAMPIONSHIPThe Dayton Baseball won both the regular season and tournament titles in 2012, advancing to the first NCAA tournament in school history. This year's squad has eight players that were members of the 2012 Championship team and four coaches that were involved in that title run as well. With many new faces in the line-up these returners have stressed the importance and what it takes to get back on top of the A10.
THE NEW AND IMPROVED ATLANTIC 10This season will mark a new era in the Atlantic 10 Conference as far as baseball is concerned with schools leaving and joining the A10. Departing after last season were Butler, Xavier, and Charlotte. New to the A10 this year will be George Mason, with Davidson joining in 2015.
HONORARY FLYER CAMERON NEALDuring the 2013 season, the Dayton Baseball program announced the addition of
Cameron Neal to its family. Cameron is a local boy that has battled a brain tumor. He was partnered up with the Flyers through the Friends of Jaclyn foundation. What started out as a young boy meeting with a few players has blossomed into a tight-knit relationship that not only benefits Cameron, but the players as well.
With his own locker and uniform, Cameron will be seen at as many of the games as he can attend this season. He is not part of just a community service project, but truly a member of the Dayton Baseball team.
WEYBRIGHT AN ALL-ROOKIE PERFORMERDayton closer
Nick Weybright was named to the Atlantic 10 All-Rookie team after a breakout freshman season for the Flyers. The Indianapolis native had a 2.53 ERA, a 3-1 record, and four saves in 21.1 innings of work. Weybright also had a 20-8 strikeout-to-walk ratio and was a solid component of the UD bullpen.
VITTORIO JOINS 600-WIN CLUBWith a dramatic 5-4 win over Wofford on Friday, March 1, 2013 Coach Vittorio got the 600th win of his career. Already the winningest coach in Dayton history, Coach V surpassed yet another milestone in his career.
FORMER FLYERS IN THE MINOR, MAJOR LEAGUESMike Hauschild - Lancaster Jethawks (Houston Astros)
Cameron Hobson - Jackson Generals (Seattle Mariners)
Jerry Blevins - Washington Nationals (MLB)
Craig Stammen - Washington Nationals (MLB)
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