The Terps host their first home series of the year.
After a brutal loss on Wednesday to VCU, Maryland baseball is back at Bob “Turtle” Smith Stadium for a weekend series against the Bryant Bulldogs.
The Terps head into this three-game series with a record of 6-3. In Maryland’s first two weekends, it was unable to complete a sweep. The Terps have played three midweeks thus far in 2024, including both of the team’s home games. In those three games, Maryland won two and is still undefeated at home.
This weekend marks Maryland’s first home series in the Matt Swope era, the Bryant Bulldogs come in from Rhode Island to face the Terps in a non-conference series.
Bryant Bulldogs (1-4)
2023 record: 26-24
Bryant comes into this series with a 1-4 record. Its first series of the season was against UCF, from which the Bulldogs took the first game before the final two were postponed. Bryant then played a second weekend series against Geroge Washington, but lost the final two games. During the week, the Bulldogs lost their first home game to Stonehill, 5-3.
Hitters to watch
Gavin Noriega, senior first baseman/outfielder, No. 25 — Noriega been on a remarkable tear this season. In only five games, he has hit five home runs, totaled seven RBIs and holds a batting average of .409. He usually hits second in the Bulldogs’ lineup.
Gavin Greger, sophomore outfielder, No. 7 — Greger was incredibly consistent in Bryant’s first five games; he has a .500 batting average with nine RBIs. Terps will need to shut him down in Bryant’s leadoff spot.
Pitchers to watch
Austin Wainer, senior right-handed pitcher, No. 1 — Wainer will most likely be on the mound for Bryant in the first game of the series on Friday. He pitched 7 2⁄3 total innings in his first two starts of 2024, holding a 4.70 earned run average. In his three previous seasons at Bryant, Wainer only made three starts, with the rest of his appearances coming out of the bullpen. If he is able to record one out in Friday’s game, he will reach the 100 innings pitched plateau.
Luke Delongchamp, junior right-handed pitcher, No. 31 — It is expected that Delongchamp will start on Saturday. In his first and only recorded start, Delongchamp pitched 3 2⁄3 innings and gave up one earned run, despite four being scored. He is a transfer from Boston College, where he made 13 appearances in two seasons with the Eagles.
Strength
Getting on base. In Bryant totaled 50 hits and got on base 72 times in its first five games. The team has an overall batting average of .284, an on-base percentage of .388 and a slugging percentage of .494.
Weakness
Strikeouts. Despite being able to get on base, Bryant has stuck out a ton in the early portion of its schedule — 50 times, to be exact.
Probable pitchers
Maryland and Bryant will play the first game of their series on Friday at 4 p.m. Kenny Lippman will be Maryland’s starter for the third straight week, with Wainer will most on the mound opposite him.
Saturday’s game will start at 2 p.m., and Logan Koester will be on the mound for his first home start as a Terp. The George Washington transfer has been key in Maryland’s victories in his past two starts. Delongchamp will most likely start for Bryant.
Maryland will change things up going into Sunday, with Joey McMannis making his first career collegiate start in favor of Meade Johnson, who’s had two difficult starts. Based on last Sunday, Tyler Horvat will most likely start for Bryant, despite giving up six runs in 3 ⅓ innings last week.
Three things to know
1. How will Maryland bounce back? The Terps had a brutal seventh inning in their last game at VCU, allowing 12 runs.
2. First home series. This weekend, the Terps will finally be able to reap the benefits of playing a home series at Bob “Turtle” Smith Stadium. Maryland is undefeated in its first two home games of the season, scoring a total of 28 runs in College Park.
3. Starting pitching. Lippman, Koester and McMannis have had strong starts to the 2024 season. In a home series against a struggling team, they will have every chance to make quality starts.