DAYTON – The University of Dayton baseball team plays host to Rhode Island this week, starting Thursday, May 16 with a doubleheader and wrapping the regular season on Saturday, May 17 at Woerner Field at AES Ohio Stadium.
Because of poor weather in the area, the Flyers and Rams will play a doubleheader on Thursday beginning at 12 p.m. The series finale remains scheduled for Saturday with first pitch at 12 p.m. All three games will be broadcast on ESPN+.
SEE YOU IN VIRGINIA
No matter the results this weekend, Dayton has secured a spot in the Atlantic 10 Tournament held at Capital One Ballpark in Tysons, Va.
Though the seeding is still determined by the outcomes of this weekend, with every spot No. 1 through No. 7 theoretically in play, the FlyBoys can fall no lower than seventh and thus guaranteed a shot at the A-10 Tournament Championship.
SENIOR DAY
Saturday's Senior Day will honor 15 members of the Dayton Baseball program prior to the game:
Paxton Tomaini,
Carlos Castillo,
Ryan Packard,
Nolan Watson,
Luke Baker,
Austin Brush,
Eli Majick,
Parker Bard,
Nick Wissman,
Ryan Steinhauer,
Michael Adair,
Anthony Hattrup,
Travis Densmore,
Nick Rispoli, and Director of Operations
Connor Hinerman.
30 WIN MARK
With UD's 6-3 win in the series finale at Richmond, the Flyers reached the 30-win mark for the season. It is the second time Dayton has reached 30 wins in the
Jayson King era (32 - 2019), and the 10th time in program history.
MENDEZ MANIA CONTINUES
Freshman
David Mendez had the first four-hit game of his career in the Flyers' season finale at Saint Louis on Sunday, going 4-for-5 with a double and a pair of RBI.
The Atlantic 10's best rookie leads all qualifying freshmen in average (.343), OPS (.945), hits (57), runs (43), RBI (44), triples (2), home runs (4), on-base percentage (.451), slugging percentage (.494), and stolen bases (21).
DAVID PEDANOU - ONE MAN WRECKING CREW
Junior
David Pedanou has been a pain in the sides of opposing pitching all season, tying for the team-lead in average (.343) and getting on base at a .444 clip. In fact, the Worcester, Mass. native has an active on-base streak of 28 games, dating back to early March. It is the second-longest on-base streak of the season for the Flyers, as
David Mendez had a 35-game streak.
Pedanou has also been a menace on the base paths, stealing 30 bases in 34 attempts. He's just the second player in Dayton baseball history to reach 30 steals in a season and is currently tied for the Atlantic 10 lead.
CASTILLO RETURNS
Senior
Carlos Castillo returned to the starting lineup after missing 21 games due to injury. All the Hialeah, Fla. native did in his return was go 3-for-5 at the plate with four RBI and two doubles.
The shortstop has a .347 average on the season with an impressive .974 OPS, and is fourth on the team in doubles despite his missed time.
WISSMAN WHEELIN' AND DEALIN'
Senior
Nick Wissman pitched the final 3.2 innings against Saint Louis to pick up his seventh save of the season. He currently leads the Atlantic 10 in wins this season with 10 and is second in the conference in saves.
Wissman's win total is good for second in program history for a single season, while the seven saves ranks third. He is the only player in program history to have his name on both lists in the same season.
DOBIE DRIVES 'EM IN
Junior
Mason Dobie drove in runs in all three of Dayton's games against Saint Louis last weekend, and is on an active four-game streak with at least one RBI.
Dobie drove in two in Saturday's game against the Billikens and now has 10 multi-RBI games this season. Senior
Michael Adair also has 10 multi-RBI games on the campaign, with freshman
David Mendez registering 11 and sophomore
Eddie Yamin IV leading the way with 13.
SCOUTING THE RAMS
Rhode Island comes into the weekend with a 17-27 record overall and a 9-12 mark in Atlantic 10 play. The Rams are fighting for their A-10 Tournament lives, needing to win all three games this weekend to give themselves a shot at a spot.
Three different URI pitches have made double-digit apperances and hold an ERA under 4.00 this season. Tommy Hughes is 4-0 on the campaign with a 2.63 ERA in 16 appearances, while Game One starter Jeremy Urena has made 19 appearances and has a 2.92 mark. Evan Maloney has a 3.95 ERA in 10 appearances with eight of them being starts. As a whole, the Rams have a staff ERA of 7.21 while opponents hit .292 against them.
The hitting side sees the Rams come into the weekend with a .239 average, last in the A-10. They rank sixth in home runs as a team with 51.
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