The Malone University baseball team will take on NCAA Division II #15 Ohio Dominican University, who is currently in first place in the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC) North Division, this weekend in a three-game home set. The Friday-Saturday series could play a big factor in determining postseason positioning not only in the G-MAC, but also the Midwest Region.
 
In what should be a classic battle of pitching vs. hitting, the Pioneers enter the weekend as the only team in Division II with three starting pitchers ranked inside the top-20 in ERA. Ohio Dominican, meanwhile, comes into the weekend as the highest scoring team in the nation. The two teams will meet Friday for a doubleheader beginning at 11:00 am before a standalone game on Saturday at 1:30 pm. All three games will be played at Munson Stadium.
 
GameDay
4/13 Malone vs. ODU (DH) – 11:00 am
4/14 Malone vs. ODU – 1:30 pm
Live Stats: portal.stretchinternet.com/malone
Twitter: @BaseballMaloneU
 
Series History
Malone is 67-48 all-time against Ohio Dominican, including wins in seven straight. The Pioneers swept a four-game set from the Panthers as members of the GLIAC in 2016 before claiming both ends of a non-conference doubleheader last season.

Team Comparison

Malone	Category	ODU
22-10 (11-4 G-MAC)	Record	22-6 (11-2 G-MAC)
.292	Avg	.351
.396	OBP	.441
5.9	Runs/Gm	9.9
9	HR	20
65	SB	36
4.33	ERA	3.93
1.37	WHIP	1.43
7.8	K/9 IP	9.8

Malone Notes - Roster | Schedule | Stats

• After being held to just four hits while being shutout against Hillsdale this past Sunday, the Pioneers responded with a season-high 17 runs and 22 hits, the most in a game since 2008, in a non-conference win at Tiffin on Wednesday.
• The Pioneers improved to 16-2 on the season in games they out-hit their opponents and 19-4 in games they scored first.
• The road victory gave Malone a 13-9 record in Midwest Region games this season. Malone was voted seventh in this week's NCBWA Midwest Region Poll, up from 10th a week prior, and could climb even higher with a solid showing against ODU, who is currently second in the Region.
• Eight different players collected multiple hits in Wednesday's win at Tiffin, including junior designated hitter Austin White, who finished with three. So far this season, White leads the team in both batting average (.338) and slugging percentage (.500).
• Nate Cobb reached base five times from the leadoff spot on Wednesday and scored a career-high four runs. He leads the team in on-base percentage (.474), runs (31), stolen bases (21) and homers (3).
• Cobb, Joe Crank, and Turner Hill each hit homeruns at Tiffin. Crank leads Malone with 14 extra-base hits, including four in his last five games, and is second in runs (25) and RBI (20). He owns a .304 average with a .444 OBP.
• Hill is reaching base at a .441 clip from his two spot in the lineup. He is batting a team-high .345 during G-MAC games this season and is third on the team in steals with nine behind Cobb's 21 and Zach Mottice's 13.
• Matt Noel (.318), Damian Maglione (.311) and Jacob Mottice (.300) are all hitting .300 or better during G-MAC play. The trio combined for five RBI in the win at Tiffin.
• Senior first baseman Todd Ropp added three hits, three RBI, and a career-high three runs scored in the victory. On the season, he is hitting .327 with a team-high 35 hits and 21 RBI while playing outstanding defense at first.
• That defense has been much appreciated by the three-pronged starting pitching attack of Roscoe Blackburn, Joshua Hurford, and Eric Mullet, who own the top three spots in the G-MAC in ERA.
• Blackburn is 6-1 on the season, including a 4-0 mark in conference. He is 11th in Division II with a 1.17 ERA, 4th in the G-MAC in WHIP (0.98), and he leads the team with 47 strikeouts.
• Hurford carries a 3-2 record with a 1.47 ERA which ranks 16th in DII. He is 8th in the country (1st in the G-MAC) with a 0.84 WHIP and he boasts a 39:6 strikeout-to-walk ratio.
• Mullet is 4-0, second on the team in strikeouts (45), and second in the G-MAC with a .188 batting average against. His 1.47 ERA is identical to Hurford's and his 0.98 WHIP matches Blackburn's.
• Malone is 15-3 in its last 18 games started by Blackburn, Hurford, and Mullet, who will have to be at their best against an ODU offense that has scored at least 10 runs in 13 of its last 20 games.
   

Ohio Dominican Notes - Roster | Schedule | Stats

• Led by 2017 Midwest Region Player of the Year Justin Childers (.440, 6 HR, 28 RBI, .578 OBP), the Panther order features eight regulars hitting .300 or better and four hitting at least .390.
• Childers is joined by Colin Kaucher (.426, 5 HR, 45 RBI), Joey Machuga (.394, 12 2B, 38 RBI) and Cody Paterniti (.394, 5 XBH, 16 RBI) in arguably the most potent lineup in the country.
• The starting staff includes Mitchell Bault (4-1, 4.68 ERA, 57 K, 50 IP), Matt Kittleberger (4-3, 4.62 ERA), and Joe Filosa (3-0, 3.67 ERA, 44 K, 41.2 IP), the reigning G-MAC North Pitcher of the Week.
• A dominant bullpen features three strong arms in Brad Wilson, Tim Zeller, and Dustin Cowart. The trio are a combined 8-1 with a 0.59 ERA, six saves, and 67 strikeouts in 46 innings pitched.