Central Connecticut, Bucknell Next for Baseball

University of Massachusetts Baseball Game Notes
Games 5-8	Massachusetts (1-3 overall) at Central Connecticut (2-4 overall) Massachusetts vs. Bucknell
Date \| Time	Central Connecticut Sun., March 11 \| 11 a.m. Bucknell Mon., March 12-Wed., March 14 \| 11 a.m./3 p.m./11 a.m.
Location \| Weather	CCSU: Northborough, Mass. (New England Baseball Complex) \| 43 Degrees, Sunny, Chance of Rain: 0% Bucknell: Kissimmee, Fla. (Osceola Heritage Park) Monday: 76 Degrees, Thunderstorms, Chance of Rain: 80% Tuesday: 71 Degrees, Sunny, Chance of Rain: 0% Wednesday: 69 Degrees, Sunny, Chance of Rain: 0%
Series History	CCSU: Massachusetts leads, 25-10. Last Meeting: Massachusetts 15, Central Connecticut 0 \| April 11, 2017 Bucknell: Massachusetts leads, 5-3. Last Meeting: Bucknell 3, Massachusetts 1 \| March 18, 2017
Live Video	None
Live Statistics	Central Connecticut: Presto Sports Bucknell: Sidearm Stats
Twitter	@UMassBaseball \| @UMassAthletics
Instagram	UMass Baseball \| UMass Athletics
Probable Starters	TBA
Season Statistics	Massachusetts \| Central Connecticut \| Bucknell

Batting Practice
University of Massachusetts baseball faces Central Connecticut in a single Sun., March 11 contest. First pitch is scheduled for noon at the New England Baseball Complex in Northborough, Massachusetts.

After Sunday's game, the Minutemen will travel to Kissimmee, Florida for the team's spring break trip which begins Mon., March 12 with a three-game series against Patriot League foe Bucknell.

Recap in a Minute
Massachusetts opened the 2018 campaign last weekend with a trip to Kissimmee, Florida, taking a victory from Saint Peter's (March 3) in the middle of a three-game series with Pittsburgh. That win over the Peacocks marked the first for UMass under the guidance of head coach Matt Reynolds. UMass belted out 13 runs on 16 hits and never trailed, posting eight runs in the game's first three innings.

Although Pitt came away with the series sweep, the Minutemen rallied back to tie the first game down to their final out. Luke Oliphant scored on a passed ball to even the score at two-apiece, but the Panthers countered in the bottom of the ninth with a double by Ron Washington, Jr. that scored Nico Popa to seal the walk-off win.

Scouting Central Connecticut
Picked second in the Northeast Conference Preseason Poll, CCSU (2-4) was most recently in action on Sun., March 4, dropping the rubber match of a three-game series to Furman by a 9-1 score. That followed a lopsided decision the other way on Sat., March 3 as the Blue Devils came away with a 10-2 victory.

Peyton Stephens went 6-for-13 during the Furman series and has reached base safely in five consecutive games. At this early point in the season both Stephens and Chandler Debrosse boast averages of .400. Catcher Nick Garland has clubbed two home runs and was named to the Johnny Bench Award Watch List on Tues., March 6. On the mound, Mike Appel has won both of his starts and has allowed just two earned runs in 12 innings of work.

Charlie Hickey is in his 19th season as CCSU skipper, guiding his team to five NEC titles and as many NCAA Tournament appearances, with the most recent coming a year ago. Current UMass assistant coach Nate Cole played under Hickey and was part of two NEC championship squads, reaching the NCAA Regionals in 2004 and 2007.

The All-Time Series With Central Connecticut
Massachusetts has won each of the last four meetings with CCSU dating back to 2013, as the sides have met annually since that year with the exception of the 2014 season. All-time, UMass holds a 25-10 advantage in the series, which began in 1988.

Scouting Bucknell
Bucknell faces Villanova for a pair (March 10-11) before meeting the Minutemen, entering the weekend with a 2-7 record. The Bison most recently took two of three from North Carolina A&T after being swept by No. 4 Arkansas and Duke.

JohnPaul Bell leads the Patriot League with four home runs and also boasts a team-high seven RBI through nine games. Through nine games, seven different hitters have compiled averages at or in excess of .250, helping the Bison to a team clip of .227 early on the season. Right-hander Connor Van Hoose (1-2, 7.43 ERA) is the only arm with three starts, with one each coming against Arkansas and Duke.

Scott Heather is in his sixth season as Bucknell head coach after eight years as an assistant coach with the Bison. Heather's club was projected to win the Patriot League with six first-place votes in the league's preseason poll.

The All-Time Series With Bucknell
Massachusetts has crossed paths with the Bison just eight times since the squads first met in 1996. The Maroon and White won each of the first three matchups in 1996 and 1997, however more recently the sides have split the last four. Last season the Minutemen exploded for 17 runs and 20 hits in game one of a three-game set, before Bucknell would ultimately come back to take the middle and rubber matches.

Your Destination Is On The Right
Sophomore Eddy Hart has reached base in 10 consecutive games dating back to last season, a span in which the Middleboro, Massachusetts native has batted .407 with a double, five walks and two runs batted in. Classmate Nolan Kessinger has hit safely in all four contests in 2018, including lacing a double and triple to help Kessinger to a team-high .375 clip and four RBI.

Welcome Back, Coach
A former UMass infielder and captain, head coach Matt Reynolds returns to the Pioneer Valley after three years (2014-17) guiding Washington College in Chestertown, Maryland and seven seasons as an assistant coach at Navy (2007-14).

Prior to Navy, Reynolds served as a graduate assistant under Mike Stone at UMass for three seasons (2005-07). He played his final two collegiate seasons in Amherst after transferring from the University of Maine. He earned Atlantic 10 All-Tournament Team honors in 2003 and was named the Minutemen's Most Valuable Player the following year.

Summer Catch
Junior right-hander Justin Lasko had two different stints with the Chatham Anglers of the Cape Cod Baseball League in the Summer of 2017. Widely regarded as the premier summer collegiate league in the United States, Lasko went 2-0 over his four starts and turned in a 2.79 ERA. Against some of the nation's top bats, the Stratford, Connecticut surrendered only two walks in 19.1 innings.

New Faces
UMass welcomes 10 additions to the squad in 2018, a group that includes four pitchers. The newest Minutemen hail from five different states, including Massachusetts (5), New Hampshire (2), Connecticut, Delaware and New York.

Not To Be Confused With Brothers Osborne
The Minuteman pitching staff features one set of twin brothers in sophomores Brooks Knapek and Carter Knapek. Brooks made eight starts on the bump in 2017 and is second among all UMass returners with a 3.69 ERA. He posted 35 strikeouts and allowed only one home run over 42 innings. Carter saw time in 10 contests, including nine out of the bullpen, fanning 18 in 21.2 innings of work.

Newell Inducted Into Western Mass Baseball Hall of Fame
Former UMass standout Steve Newell (1971-73) was inducted into the Western Massachusetts Baseball Hall of Fame on Feb. 1. Newell, a native of East Longmeadow, Massachusetts, batted .332 over his three seasons at UMass, capped by a 1973 campaign in which he led the squad in batting (.374), home runs (5) and RBI (33). In part as a result of those performances, that season he was named an ABCA All-American as well as a member of the respective All-New England and All-Yankee Conference teams.

After signing with Montreal in 1973, he played three years in the Expos organization, the latter two of which with Double-A Quebec. At that level, Newell batted .232 over 245 games, hit 16 home runs and drove in 89 runs.

All Across The Map
Throughout the 2018 campaign, the Minutemen will play at least one game in seven different states: Florida, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Virginia, New York, Missouri and Pennsylvania.

On Deck
UMass rounds out its trip to Florida with two games against Bradley in Winter Haven, Florida on Fri., March 16 and Sat., March 17.

Follow UMass Baseball
Follow UMass baseball on Twitter (@UMassBaseball), Instagram (UMassBaseball) and Facebook (UMass Baseball) for the latest news and updates around the team.

Scoreboard

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Eddy Hart

Nolan Kessinger

Brooks Knapek

Carter Knapek

Justin Lasko

Luke Oliphant

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics