April 15, 2010

Game Notes (PDF)

COLLEGE PARK, Md. - The University of Maryland baseball team plays host to Atlantic Division foe NC State in a three-game set that starts Friday at 6 p.m.

The Terps and Wolfpack also play at 1 p.m. Saturday and Sunday. All three games are free of admission as the team celebrates Fan Appreciation Weekend.

Live stats for each game can be found on umterps.com.

Pitching Matchups:
Friday (6:00): LHP Eric Potter (2-5, 6.69) vs. RHP Jake Buchanan (3-3, 4.38)
Saturday (1:00): RHP Brett Harman (4-4, 4.53) vs. RHP Cory Mazzoni (4-2, 5.56)
Sunday (1:00): RHP Sander Beck (0-5, 7.85) vs. Alex Sogard (0-1, 4.43)

Leading Off...
• The Terps return home for a three-game set with NC State after playing five of the last six games on the road. Maryland defeated Boston College on Sunday behind Brett Harman's complete game and most recently defeated UMBC 10-7 on Wednesday. At 4-11 in conference action, the Terps are two games back of NC State and BC for third place in the Atlantic Division standings.

Tracking the Terrapins...
• The Terps used a combination of pitching, base-running and offense in their past two wins. Harman struck out a career-high 12 in the 4-2 win over BC, while the Terps set a school record with 10 stolen bases against UMBC and also racked up 15 hits on the evening.
• Harman has been one of the best pitchers in the ACC during conference action. His 2.65 ERA against ACC teams ranks sixth in the conference and he is second in innings pitched (37.1). In four of his five starts against ACC competition, Harman has gone at least seven innings, totaling 34 strikeouts and allowing just five earned runs in those games. The junior ranks third in the league with 57 total strikeouts this season.
• Eric Potter, who has pitched well in his last three starts, is scheduled to get the start on Friday. Against Navy on March 31, Potter didn't allow a hit in five innings, struck out four and walked two to get his second win of the season. The junior has allowed a total of three earned runs over his last three starts.
• Maryland has been creative all season in finding ways to manufacture runs. The Terps have used squeeze-plays, double-steals, and most of all, sacrifice bunts to get runners home. As a team, Maryland has 42 sacrifice bunts heading into the weekend, which leads the ACC and ranked tied for second in the nation entering the week. Alfredo Rodriguez is second in the league with 10 sacrifice bunts, while Jack Cleary is third with nine. Rodriguez's 10 bunts trail only Steven Braun (14, 2006) and Larry Long (14, 1999) in Maryland single-season history.
• Brandon Padula (.405) and Rodriguez (.303) are Maryland's leaders in batting average. Padula is one of only three players in the ACC with an above .400 average, while Rodriguez is coming off his first career four-hit game (vs. UMBC 4/14).

About the Wolfpack...
• Leadoff hitter Kyle Wilson paces NC State with a .398 batting average. He has scored 42 runs, stolen 12 bases in 13 attempts, has a .585 slugging percentage and an ACC-leading .523 on-base percentage.
• The Wolfpack are hitting .340 as a team, third-best in the ACC.
• NC State's two leaders in ERA come out of the pen: Grant Sasser (2-2, 2.28) and Rob Chamra (3-0, 2.66) have made 13 appearances each without a start.

SERIES HISTORY: Maryland trails the all-time series with NC State, 52-95-2. The Terps took two of three from the Wolfpack last season at Doak Field in Raleigh, N.C.

Versatile veteran...
Senior Dan Gentzler has served as the Terps' closer all season and has been the primary first baseman most of the year.
• Gentzler, who is now tied for second on Maryland's all-time saves list with 15, has made a team-high 18 appearances on the mound and has a 4.64 ERA.
• He is tied for second in the ACC with seven saves this season and earned his first win of the year by not allowing a base runner in the ninth and tenth innings in the win over North Carolina (4/2).
• Before this season, Gentzler did not have a career at-bat. In 2010, he has made 21 starts at first base and is hitting .235. The senior is coming off a three-hit, three stolen-base performance vs. UMBC (4/14).
• Against Georgia Tech on March 19, Gentzler belted two home runs off 2009 ACC pitcher of the year Deck McGuire, totaling four RBI and leading Maryland to a 5-2 win. Showing his versatility, Gentzler moved from first base to pitcher and threw a perfect ninth inning to preserve the win and earn a save.
• For his performance against the Yellow Jackets, Gentzler was given the Primetime Performer Award by CollegeBaseball360.com.

Immediate contributor...
Brandon Padula, who is in his first season with Maryland after transferring from West Virginia, has been the team's most reliable offensive contributor. The redshirt-sophomore has recorded three hits in a game six times this season, and has 18 multi-hit games.
• Padula leads the team with 27 RBI on the year, including a career-high four in a 7-5, come from behind victory over Hofstra on 3/7. In that game, Padula hit a two-out, three-run home run that proved to be the game-winner in the bottom of the eighth inning.
• Padula came through with his second game-winning hit of the season against Old Dominion (3/16), breaking a 2-2 tie with an RBI double in the eighth inning.
• In addition to leading the team in batting average and RBI, he also paces the Terps in doubles (9), slugging percentage (.548) and on-base percentage (.466).

Lefty out of the pen...
• The Terps have turned to lefty John Dischert in the most pressure-packed situations all season, and the senior has continually delivered. Dischert has accumulated 24 innings of work in 12 appearances this season and leads the team with a 1.88 ERA. He is holding opposing batters to a paltry .150 batting average and has recorded 32 strikeouts to just four walks, an 8-1 ratio that is best on the team. Dischert has allowed either one or no hits in 10 of his 12 appearances. Most recently, he pitched 3 1/3 innings against Boston College (4/10), striking out five, walking just one and not allowing a hit.

Blazing a path...
• Maryland ranks in the top 10 in the nation with 82 stolen bases this season. The Terps have broken the single-game school record for stolen bases twice this season; they had eight vs. Hofstra on March 6 and 10 vs. UMBC on April 14. Rodriguez leads the Terps with 20 stolen bases, which also leads the ACC. Matthew Murakami ranks second with 11 and Matt Marquis is third with 10.