Baseball | 5/7/2019 12:57:00 PM

 
THE STORY
AGAINST THE LAKERS
• Following last season's Atlantic Regional setback against Mercyhurst, the Huskies dropped to 3-6 lifetime against the Lakers in the all-time series. The two teams have only played each other twice over the span of the last six seasons with Mercyhurst winning both games by a combined 9-1 score. The Lakers earned a 4-1 win in Nashville, Tennessee on March 15, 2014, and then posted the 5-0 victory over the Huskies in the opening game of the regional playoffs on May 17, 2018, in West Lawn, Pennsylvania. Bloomsburg's last victory over Mercyhurst was an 11-5 win during the 1996 season.

BLOOMSBURG IN THE PSAC CHAMPIONSHIP
• For the first time in program history, the Huskies will appear in the PSAC Championship in back-to-back seasons having advanced to the final day of the tournament last season. Last year, Bloomsburg opened with a victory over Slippery Rock before suffering its first loss against eventual champion Seton Hill the following night. After another win over Slippery Rock to stave off elimination, the Huskies were ousted by Millersville in the opening game on Saturday, May 12. All told, Bloomsburg has won three PSAC titles but none since the program's last victory in 1965.

LOOKING AHEAD
• With a victory in the opening game on Wednesday, the Huskies would then play the winner of the Millersville/Seton Hill contest on Thursday evening, May 9, at 6:30 p.m. In the event of a loss on Wednesday against the Lakers, Bloomsburg would play the loser Millersville/Seton Hill game on Thursday afternoon with first pitch scheduled for 12:30 p.m.

THE HUSKIES AT A GLANCE
• The Huskies are tied for seventh in the PSAC with a .287 team batting average on the season. Bloomsburg has hit 44 home runs as a team this season - fifth in the league - while ranking fourth in the conference with a .401 on-base percentage. Redshirt freshman Carter Chasanov (Magnolia, Del./Polytech) has taken over the team-lead in hitting at .336 on the season. Chasanov also leads the team with 17 stolen bases. Senior Ryan Shiffer (Toms River, N.J./Toms River South) is at .333 on the year with five home runs and 28 RBI while junior Andrew Holmes (Egg Harbor Township, N.J./Egg Harbor Township) is batting .323 with career-highs in home runs (8) and RBI (33). Sophomore Jared Burcin (Bethlehem, Pa./Liberty) and junior Nate Krizan (Montoursville, Pa./Home School) are also hitting above .300 on the season as they enter the tournament with averages of .308 and .307, respectively. Sophomore Kyle OFier (Pittston Township, Pa./Pittston Area) has raised his average to .275 and leads in both home runs (12) and RBI (41). His 12 home runs are third-most in school history.

• Bloomsburg enters the tournament with a team ERA of 3.99 - second only to Mercyhurst's 3.95 mark in the PSAC this season. The Huskies are limiting opponents to a .235 batting average - also second only to Mercyhurst's .213. Bloomsburg pitchers have struck out a school-record 360 batters this season, breaking the previous record of 332 established during the 1999 campaign. Senior Ashton Raines (Wallingford, Pa./Strath Haven) leads the starters with a 6-2 record and a 2.31 ERA - fifth among starters in the PSAC. Raines is the program's all-time leader in career strikeouts with 189. Junior Chad Cooperman (Allentown, Pa./Salisbury) is 6-3 with a 2.91 ERA in 11 appearances (nine starts). He leads the team with 67 strikeouts in 55.2 innings and is holding opponents to a .194 average. Junior JJ Spehrley (Pottsville, Pa./Pottsville Area) is 5-2 and has a 3.51 ERA while sophomore Nick Stoner (Elizabethtown, Pa./Elizabethtown) is 5-3 with a 5.67 ERA and 55 strikeouts in 46 innings. Out of the bullpen, seniors Trey Hinkle (Macungie, Pa./Emmaus) and Zach Newmyer (New Cumberland, Pa./Red Land) have been sensational. Hinkle is 4-1 with two saves and has not allowed an earned run in 18.2 innings while striking out 20. Newmyer, meanwhile, is 1-2 with a 3.75 ERA and a PSAC-leading seven saves. He has 38 strikeouts in 24 innings of work.

SCOUTING THE FIELD
• Joining Bloomsburg from the east are top-seeded Millersville, second-seeded West Chester, and fourth-seeded East Stroudsburg. Gannon won the west with Mercyhurst taking second, Cal U finishing third, and Seton Hill rounding out the top four.

• #1E - Millersville (37-12, 23-5) | Series History: Millersville leads Bloomsburg, 109-82 | Offense: .309 (T-1st PSAC) | Pitching: 4.10 (4th PSAC)
• #2E - West Chester (29-13, 19-9) | Series History: West Chester leads Bloomsburg, 69-32 | Offense: .297 (T-3rd PSAC) | Pitching: 4.33 (5th PSAC)
• #4E - East Stroudsburg (31-17, 17-11) | Series History: East Stroudsburg leads Bloomsburg, 105-104-4 | Offense: .295 (5th PSAC) | Pitching: 4.48 (T-6th PSAC)

• #1W - Gannon (31-13, 21-7) | Series History: Bloomsburg leads Gannon, 2-0 | Offense: .287 (T-7th PSAC) | Pitching: 4.48 (T-6th PSAC)
• #2W - Mercyhurst (29-11, 19-9) | Series History: Mercyhurst leads Bloomsburg, 6-3 | Offense: .266 (12th PSAC) | Pitching: 3.95 (1st PSAC)
• #3W - Cal U (35-13, 19-9) | Series History: Cal U leads Bloomsburg, 4-3 | Offense: .297 (T-3rd PSAC) | Pitching: 4.00 (3rd PSAC)
• #4W - Seton Hill (29-19, 18-10) | Series History: Seton Hill leads Bloomsburg, 3-2 | Offense: .309 (T-1st PSAC) | Pitching: 5.61 (9th PSAC)