DAYTON – The University of Dayton baseball team kicks off the 2024 season with a three-game home series against Lindenwood University at Woerner Field at AES Ohio Stadium this weekend.
 
Friday's contest will kick off the 2024 season with a 10 a.m. first pitch, while Saturday is currently scheduled for 11 a.m. and Sunday for 12 p.m. All game times are subject to change.
 
KICKING OFF THE SEASON
- With Dayton and Lindenwood moving its game time to 10 a.m., the Flyers and Lions will officially start the 2024 college baseball season. One other game, Illinois and Akron, will also start at 10 a.m.
 
THE #FLYBOYS ARE BACK IN TOWN
- Dayton opens the 2024 season in the Gem City for the first time since the 1998 campaign. That season, the Flyers played Cincinnati in the friendly confines of Stuart Field (UD Baseball's home from 1972-2003) to kick off the campaign. UD won 13-11 over UC, with John Scott getting the win.
 
20 YEARS OF WOERNER FIELD
- This season marks the 20th that the Flyers have called Woerner Field at AES Ohio Stadium home.
- Originally "Time Warner Cable" Stadium, Woerner Field has seen 241 wins, including 62 during the Jayson King era.
- When the stadium opened on February 28, 2004, Dayton played a doubleheader against Bowling Green. Though falling in the opener to the Falcons, 2-0, the Flyers bounced back in a big way to win a slugfest in the nightcap, 9-6.
 
MEET THE NEWCOMERS
- The #FlyBoys welcome 15 newcomers to the program in 2024, including nine freshmen, four JUCO transfers and two four-year school transfers.
- UD's freshmen class includes Logan Barnett (Pontiac, Ill.), Chris Carroll (Miami, Fla.) Connor Fennell (Londonderry, N.H.), Jack Fitzgerald (Braintree, Mass.), Bennett LaPalm (Bellbrook, Ohio), Ryan MacDougall (Taunton, Mass.), David Mendez (Aldie, Va.), Treston Nemeth (Rayland, Ohio) and Ayden Tran (Jacksonville, Fla.).
- The four #JUCOBandits transferring in are Alejandro Cazorla (Bossier Parish), Michael Fortes (Palm Beach State), Jacob McGovern (Palm Beach State) and Will Newell (Pasco Hernando State).
- Dayton's two four-year transfers are graduate transfer Travis Densmore (Oakland) and Ivan Arias (Vanderbilt).
 
SCOUTING THE LIONS
- Lindenwood is in its second season under head coach PJ Finigan.
- The Lions went 13-42 overall last season with an 8-16 mark in the Ohio Valley Conference. As an institution Lindenwood is a new member of NCAA Division I, having played its first DI season last year. Before that, it was an NCAA Division II member.
- Lindenwood's top returning hitter is senior 1B/C Dawson Hokuf, who turned in a .274/.423/.348 slash with five homers, nine doubles, 26 RBI and 26 runs a season ago. His five home runs tied for the team's best.
- On the pitching side, the Lions return all three of their primary rotation pieces from a season ago, including Eli Brown and Preston Salazar, who each registered 14 starts. Junior Michael Walsh made seven starts on the season and led the team in wins (3) while posting an 11.30 ERA.
 
FLYBOYS PICKED SIXTH IN A-10 POLL
- Dayton was picked sixth in the 2024 Atlantic 10 Preseason poll, the league office announced Wednesday, Feb. 14. The Flyers received one first place vote and 96 total points, just behind fifth-place VCU, who received 97.
Saint Louis was named the preseason favorite, garnering 125 total votes and a league-high three first-place tallies. Last year's A-10 Tournament champion George Mason received 121 votes for second, Saint Joseph's 114 for third, and Davidson 113 for fourth.
 
THE 800 CLUB
- With Dayton's 7-6 victory over Butler on May 10, 2023, head coach Jayson King reached the 800 win mark for his coaching career, becoming the 27th active Division I coach to reach the milestone.
 
HISTORY MADE
- Last season's game against cross-town rival Wright State broke the #FlyBoys attendance record. 6,743 fans watched UD beat the Raiders, 8-3.
 
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