DAYTON – The University of Dayton baseball team will open a four-game series on Friday against Central Michigan. The first pitch for Friday's contest is scheduled for 3 p.m. The Flyers will return for a doubleheader beginning at noon before finishing the series on Sunday at 1 p.m. All four games will take place at Woerner Field at AES Ohio Stadium and will feature live stats for fans to follow along.
 
SCOUTING THE FLYERS
The Flyers failed to have much luck against North Dakota State, dropping all four contests, putting the team's record in 2021 at 3-11. Senior Hunter Wolfe was dominant in Friday's loss, going six innings and striking out 13 Bison while allowing just one run. The Flyers came up just short with home runs from graduate student Alex Brickman and senior Riley Tirotta in Sunday's 4-3 loss.
 
Junior Benjamin Blackwell leads Dayton offensively, hitting .341 in 14 games this season. Junior Marcos Pujols has been a consistent run producer as well, driving in eight runs to lead the team while also tying for the team lead in stolen bases with four.
 
Senior Andrew Zapka has been a strong force out of the bullpen, allowing just one run in nine innings in relief this season across five appearances. Wolfe's 27 strikeouts put him in second in the Atlantic 10, two behind Davidson's Gabe Levy for the league lead. The senior is also tied for the conference lead with seven strikeouts looking. His 13 strikeouts on Friday against North Dakota State is the highest strikeout total of anyone to this point in the conference.
 
SCOUTING THE CHIPPEWAS
Central Michigan enters the series 5-5 in 2021 after taking two of three from West Virginia last weekend in Morgantown. The Chippewas were tabbed the favorites in the Mid American Conference 2021 Baseball Preseason Coaches Poll. CMU received four first place votes and are the reigning MAC champions in both the regular season and in the conference tournament.
 
Zach Gilles leads the team offensively, hitting .419 through 10 games this season. Gilles has drawn 14 walks as well and sports a .617 on base percentage, despite having just one extra-base hit this season. Jakob Marsee has led the team when it comes to producing runs, having driven in nine to lead CMU while also leading the team in stolen bases with three and sporting a .310 batting average.
 
On the mound, Andrew Taylor has been a dominant force in the rotation for the Chippewas, allowing just one run in 18.1 innings for a 0.49 ERA spanning three starts. He has held opponents to a batting average of just .159 while picking up 25 strikeouts to this point. Jordan Patty has also made three starts for CMU, while J.T. Rogoszewski and Cameron Brown have made the other four. Ian Leatherman leads the team with two saves out of the bullpen.
 
MATCHUP HISTORY
This will mark the first ever matchup between these two schools.

ATTENDANCE POLICY
Based on campus and local COVID-19 protocols and capacity restrictions, Dayton home athletic events will not be open to the general public.

Limited seating is available to guests of Dayton student-athletes (names must be on a pass list for admission). Currently, visiting team fans are not permitted in/at the facility.

Additionally, attendance at Dayton home athletic events will be socially distanced and fans are required to wear masks.

These protocols will be reviewed as the season progresses.