Friday, April 12
Richmond, VA
2 p.m.
George Washington University
at
Richmond
Baseball Travels Down I-95 to Battle Richmond
4/11/2024 3:46:00 PM | Baseball
WASHINGTON – The George Washington baseball team is set for its third A-10 series of the season, facing off with Richmond for a three-game set starting on Friday. All three contests will be streamed on ESPN+.
LAST TIME OUT
GW got back in the win column on Tuesday afternoon, defeating Coppin State 12-7 to move to 20-12 on the season. The Revolutionaries were led by Ellis Schwartz who had a monster day at the plate. Schwartz finished 3-for-4 on the day and a double short of the cycle to propel the Buff & Blue offense. He recorded four RBI including his second home run of the season and scored three runs as well. Schwartz added to his day by drawing a walk, reaching base four times out of five plate appearances. Along with Schwartz, Sam Gates continued his stellar season, going 4-for-4 from the dish and scoring two runs. Gates and Schwartz both tallied triples in the contest, the first multi-triple game of GW's season. The Buff & Blue have now won nine of their last 12 games and still sit tied for second place in the A-10 standings with a conference record of 4-2.
SHOWING STEADY IMPROVEMENT
GW's 12-7 victory over Coppin State is the squad's 20th win of the 2024 season. The Revolutionaries now need just one more win to equal the team's total of 21 from the 2023 campaign. GW didn't reach 20 wins until May 19th last season, getting to that mark over a month sooner (April 9) this year.
Along with wins, GW has also showed steady improvement in multiple statistical categories as well. In 2023, GW finished with a team batting average of .287. The Buff & Blue are currently hitting eight points higher at .295 this season. GDUB has four players hitting over .315 on the season and two above .350. On the pitching side, GW tallied a staff ERA of 7.03 last season. This year, the team's earned run average is down by nearly two runs per game at 5.19. GW is also holding opposing batters to a .238 average, significantly lower than last year's average of .305. The Revolutionaries are sharper in the field, recording a team fielding percentage of .975, up from last year's mark of .959.
SCOUTING THE SPIDERS
Richmond enters the weekend 13-20 after dropping two mid-week contests on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Spiders are 3-3 in A-10 action, taking two of three against George Mason and only mustering one win in a series against Fordham. Across the past two mid-week loses, Richmond was outscored 37-17. On Tuesday, the Spiders fell 23-13 to Virginia Military Institute, before dropping a 14-4 contest at James Madison on Wednesday. Richmond is led by head coach Mik Aoki who's in his first season with the Spiders. Aoki has 23 years of head coaching experience with two stops in the "Power Five". Aoki served as Boston College's skipper from 2007-10, while also making a stop at Notre Dame from 2011-19. He has a combined coaching record of 554-601-2 in his 23 years.
Leading the team offensively is D.J. Pacheco with a .333 batting average and 34 hits on the season. He has 21 RBI and leads the team in home runs with six. Pacheco also has Richmond's top on-base percentage at .439, drawing 17 walks in 2024. Along with Pacheco, Phil Bernstein is batting .320 this season with a team- best 41 hits and 29 RBI. He has 10 doubles on the year and boasts an on-base percentage of .436. Bernstein has scored 20 runs this year and stolen four bases.
On the mound, Richmond's typical weekend rotation features Kyle Roche starting on Friday. Roche is 2-5 on the season in his eight starts. He holds a 2.96 ERA and has 36 strikeouts. Roche holds opposing batters to a .280 average and has only walked two batters in 48.1 innings pitched. On Saturday, the Spiders hand the ball to Brian Reinke who is 0-5 this season. Reinke has an ERA of 5.97 and has totaled 35 strikeouts across 31.2 innings. Opposing batters hold a .315 average against him in eight total starts. For Sunday series-finales, the Spiders have leaned on Esteban Rodriquez. Rodriguez has eight total appearances but has only made four starts this season. He has a record of 2-1 this year and has a team-best 43 strikeouts in 38 innings of work.
LAST TIME OUT
GW got back in the win column on Tuesday afternoon, defeating Coppin State 12-7 to move to 20-12 on the season. The Revolutionaries were led by Ellis Schwartz who had a monster day at the plate. Schwartz finished 3-for-4 on the day and a double short of the cycle to propel the Buff & Blue offense. He recorded four RBI including his second home run of the season and scored three runs as well. Schwartz added to his day by drawing a walk, reaching base four times out of five plate appearances. Along with Schwartz, Sam Gates continued his stellar season, going 4-for-4 from the dish and scoring two runs. Gates and Schwartz both tallied triples in the contest, the first multi-triple game of GW's season. The Buff & Blue have now won nine of their last 12 games and still sit tied for second place in the A-10 standings with a conference record of 4-2.
SHOWING STEADY IMPROVEMENT
GW's 12-7 victory over Coppin State is the squad's 20th win of the 2024 season. The Revolutionaries now need just one more win to equal the team's total of 21 from the 2023 campaign. GW didn't reach 20 wins until May 19th last season, getting to that mark over a month sooner (April 9) this year.
Along with wins, GW has also showed steady improvement in multiple statistical categories as well. In 2023, GW finished with a team batting average of .287. The Buff & Blue are currently hitting eight points higher at .295 this season. GDUB has four players hitting over .315 on the season and two above .350. On the pitching side, GW tallied a staff ERA of 7.03 last season. This year, the team's earned run average is down by nearly two runs per game at 5.19. GW is also holding opposing batters to a .238 average, significantly lower than last year's average of .305. The Revolutionaries are sharper in the field, recording a team fielding percentage of .975, up from last year's mark of .959.
SCOUTING THE SPIDERS
Richmond enters the weekend 13-20 after dropping two mid-week contests on Tuesday and Wednesday. The Spiders are 3-3 in A-10 action, taking two of three against George Mason and only mustering one win in a series against Fordham. Across the past two mid-week loses, Richmond was outscored 37-17. On Tuesday, the Spiders fell 23-13 to Virginia Military Institute, before dropping a 14-4 contest at James Madison on Wednesday. Richmond is led by head coach Mik Aoki who's in his first season with the Spiders. Aoki has 23 years of head coaching experience with two stops in the "Power Five". Aoki served as Boston College's skipper from 2007-10, while also making a stop at Notre Dame from 2011-19. He has a combined coaching record of 554-601-2 in his 23 years.
Leading the team offensively is D.J. Pacheco with a .333 batting average and 34 hits on the season. He has 21 RBI and leads the team in home runs with six. Pacheco also has Richmond's top on-base percentage at .439, drawing 17 walks in 2024. Along with Pacheco, Phil Bernstein is batting .320 this season with a team- best 41 hits and 29 RBI. He has 10 doubles on the year and boasts an on-base percentage of .436. Bernstein has scored 20 runs this year and stolen four bases.
On the mound, Richmond's typical weekend rotation features Kyle Roche starting on Friday. Roche is 2-5 on the season in his eight starts. He holds a 2.96 ERA and has 36 strikeouts. Roche holds opposing batters to a .280 average and has only walked two batters in 48.1 innings pitched. On Saturday, the Spiders hand the ball to Brian Reinke who is 0-5 this season. Reinke has an ERA of 5.97 and has totaled 35 strikeouts across 31.2 innings. Opposing batters hold a .315 average against him in eight total starts. For Sunday series-finales, the Spiders have leaned on Esteban Rodriquez. Rodriguez has eight total appearances but has only made four starts this season. He has a record of 2-1 this year and has a team-best 43 strikeouts in 38 innings of work.
Players Mentioned
OF
/ BaseballGW Baseball Trains with U.S. Marine Corps
Tuesday, November 29
NFCA All-American Sierra Lange
Wednesday, June 22
Elana Meyers Taylor Heads to Fourth Olympics
Friday, February 11
GW Softball Opening Day 2022
Thursday, February 10