Friday • 4 p.m.
LWU: Jr. LHP
Steven Farkas (0-2, 7.20 ERA)
USC: Sr. RHP Blake Whitney (1-0, 0.82 ERA)
Saturday • 2 p.m.
LWU: Jr. RHP
Cody Boydstun (0-1, 10.24 ERA)
USC: Sr. RHP Kevin Hickey (0-0, 0.84 ERA)
Sunday • 1 p.m.
LWU: Sr. LHP
Michael Catlin (1-1, 6.52 ERA)
USC: Fr. RHP Jordan Marks (0-1, 6.52 ERA)
Leading Off
•Longwood plays a weekend series at future Big South rival USC Upstate after falling to N.C. Central at home Wednesday.
•Longwood enters the series with a pair of .300 hitters in
Nate Blakeney and
Jawan McAllister leading the way.
•The Lancers begin a five-game stretch away from Buddy Bolding Stadium with a weekend series at USC Upstate, followed up by a game at N.C. Central Tuesday and at Duke on Wednesday during the university's Spring Break.
Last Time Out
•
Nate Blakeney in the weekend series against Niagara had two hits in each game, bringing his average over .400 before going hitless in the game against N.C. Central.
•Longwood looks to get back to its winning ways after dropping a midweek game against N.C. Central. The Lancers had won consecutive games entering the midweek contest.
By The Numbers
•In just his second career start junior right-hander Cody Boydstun put together a gem, tossing 7.2 innings against Niagara on February 24. Boydstun struck out eight batters with two earned runs allowed, setting career highs in punchouts and innings pitched.
•Longwood won via walk-off for the first time in 2018 when Nate Blakeney plated pinch-runner Scott Carter on the first pitch with the bases loaded in the second game of a doubleheader against Niagara on February 24.
•The Lancers had a pair of walk-off wins in 2017. Michael Osinski ripped a walk-off home run against Winthrop in the first game of a doubleheader on April 21, 2017.
•Blakeney provided his first-career walkoff in the first game of a doubleheader against Lehigh on May 6, 2017.
•Sophomore shortstop Antwaun Tucker picked up his eighth career triple against Niagara on February 24. His eight triples have him inside the top 10 for triples in a career at Longwood, tied for eighth place with three others.
•Tucker led the Big South and finished seventh in the NCAA in 2017 with seven triples.
•The seven triples were the second most in a single season in program history and the most in the Division I era.
Scouting USC Upstate
•Longwood and USC Upstate are meeting for the first time since the Lancers played a midweek game at Upstate in 2017.
•Longwood led 3-2 going into the bottom of the fifth inning before Upstate rallied for eight runs in the next three innings on the way to a 10-5 Upstate victory.
•USC Upstate has yet to play away from Harley Park. USC Upstate, a future Big South rival beginning in 2018-2019, took down Big South favorite Winthrop, 9-5, in a midweek matchup in February.
•USC Upstate is led in hitting by Atlantic Sun Preseason Player of the Year Charlie Carpenter. A senior catcher, Carpenter is hitting .313 with pair of doubles with a team-high 10 RBI. Carpenter was drafted by the Atlanta Braves in the 2017 MLB draft after hitting .357 with 11 homers and threw out a league-best 21 runners.
•Kyle Gensler is also hitting .313 and is tied with Carpenter for team highs with a pair of doubles and 10 hits in 2018.
•Through two weekend starts a pair of Upstate starters and one relief pitcher who all have ERAs lower than 1.00.
•Blake Whitney is 1-0 with a 0.82 ERA in 11.0 innings across two starts with a team-high 13 strikeouts with two walks.
•Kevin Hickey has gone 10.2 innings in two starts, has a 0.84 ERA, and 12 K's.
•Relief pitcher Grant Hoppock has a 0.00 ERA in four appearances, has tossed 7.1 innings with nine strikeouts and no walks.
#GoWood
