Baseball Opens 2018 Season at Limestone

Matchup	Merrimack (0-0) at Limestone (3-1)
Date/Time	Friday, Feb. 9, 2018 (8/10 p.m.) Saturday, Feb. 10, 2018 (12/2 p.m.)
Venue	Founders FCU Stadium // Gaffney, S.C.
Multimedia	Live Stats // Twitter // Instagram

NORTH ANDOVER, Mass. – After rescheduling its weekend series at Limestone College to begin tonight rather than tomorrow, the Merrimack College baseball program is primed for Opening Day this evening when the Warriors play their first of two doubleheaders this weekend against the Saints at 8 p.m. from Founders FCU Stadium in Gaffney, S.C. at 8 p.m.  

Flashback to 2017:

• Eight of Merrimack's nine projected members of its starting lineup return after starting experience in 2017. The group is led by all-conference selections in junior Matthew Ronai graduate student Paul Buckley and sophomore Joey Porricelli
• An experienced outfield brings back graduate student Tyler Lyne as well as power-hitting corner outfielders in seniors Matt Nicholson and Mike Hoalcraft. Lyne has started every game he has appeared in over the last three seasons, while Nicholson enters his senior year with 13 career homers, the sixth-most in program history
• Porricelli is one of three sophomores expected to start in Merrimack's infield, joining classmates Nick Shumski and Thomas Joyce. Buckley rounds out the group at second, coming off a career-best .307 season at the dish
• Two-year captain Ricky Smith expects to be the workhorse behind the plate for the Navy and Gold. Ronai has experience at both corner infield spots but starts the season as the Warriors' primary DH after recording the program's longest hitting streak (22 games) in at least 17 years last season
• Senior lefthanders PJ Browne and Anthony Lupi return to lead the staff. Browne recorded the most strikeouts on the team last season, while Lupi notched the lowest ERA among Merrimack's primary starters
• Redshirt-junior Garrett Hudson anchors the bullpens as Merrimack's new closer, with returning junior Cam Monagle among the group expected to eat innings in the pen after a breakout season as a sophomore

The Saints:

• Limestone has already played four games this season, winning three of four to start the year
• A trio of Saints lead Limestone with four hits apiece early in the year, including two homers for Matt Orth
• Limestone has utilized four different starters in four games, including Orth, who threw a team-high six innings in his lone appearance this season
• The Saints are coming off a 22-win campaign, the most wins for the program since 2011

Inside the Series:

• Merrimack and Limestone will play against each other for the first time this weekend

Up Next:
The Warriors will have two weeks off before returning to the diamond on Thursday, Feb. 22, when the Navy and Gold face LIU Post in their first of five games in Myrtle Beach, S.C.