LOWELL, Mass. – Fresh off back-to-back wins against James Madison, the UMass Lowell baseball team (2-7, 0-0 AE) returns to the field for an action-packed week. The River Hawks will take on #11 Virginia Tech for two games before a weekend series against Saint Joseph's.
 
Series Info at Virginia Tech
 
Tuesday, March 7 at #11 Virginia Tech (2 p.m.)
 
English Field (Blacksburg, Va.)
 
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Probable Starters: RHP Shane Bogli (0-0) vs. RHP Nick Finarelli (0-0)
 
 
Wednesday, March 8 at #11 Virginia Tech (1 p.m.)
 
English Field (Blacksburg, Va.)
 
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Probable Starters: RHP Frankie Venezia (0-0) vs. RHP Kiernan Higgins (1-0)
 
 
Series Info at Saint Joseph's
 
Friday, March 10 at Saint Joseph's (2 p.m.)
 
Smithson Field (Merion Station, Penn.)
 
Live Stats
 
Probable Starters: LHP LJ Keevan (0-3) vs. RHP Will McCausland (0-1)
 
Saturday, March 11 at Saint Joseph's (1 p.m.)
 
Smithson Field (Merion Station, Penn.)
 
Live Stats
 
Probable Starters:  RHP Matt Draper (1-1) vs. RHP David Oswik (1-1)
 
Sunday, March 12 at Saint Joseph's (12 p.m.)
 
Smithson Field (Merion Station, Penn.)
 
Live Stats
 
Probable Starters: RHP Nick DiRito (1-0) vs. RHP Domenic Picone (0-2)
 
SERIES HISTORY
 
UMass Lowell and Virginia Tech have met twice before Tuesday's game. The Hokies took the first meeting 4-3 before the River Hawks took a 6-4 win in Blacksburg on March 2, 2014. 
 
UMass Lowell and Saint Joseph's have never met before Friday's game.
 
LOOKING AT UMASS LOWELL
The River Hawks enter the weekend series after going 2-1 last weekend against James Madison. UMass Lowell picked its first win of the season, and first series win of the season with back-to-back wins over the Dukes. Junior Fritz Genther (Kingston, N.Y.) hit .500 with five hits and two home runs over the weekend for a team-high eight RBIs. Graduate student Gerry Siracusa (Kinnelon, N.J.) tallied seven RBIs on five hits. Senior Ryan Proto (Centerville, Mass.) hit .385 in three games with four runs and five hits, including two doubles.
 
On the mound, graduate student Matt Draper (Lowell, Mass.) picked up his first win of the year after throwing a complete game against James Madison. Draper struck out 11 and allowed just five hits and one earned run. Freshman Nick DiRito (Plymouth, Mass.) earned his first collegiate win in the series finale, throwing 5.0 innings and striking out four. Fellow freshmen Michael Simes (Rutland, Mass.) and Jacob Jette (Franklin, Mass.) both had strong outings in the series finale to help the River Hawks secure the victory.
 
SCOUTING THE HOKIES
Virginia Tech welcomes the River Hawks as the 11^th ranked team in the country following a 9-2 start to the season. The Hokies have won six straight contests after two wins over Bryant, a midweek win over Radford and a series sweep of Charlotte. Chris Cannizzaro leads the team hitting .540 through 11 games with team-highs in hits (27), RBIs (17), runs (16), home runs (5) and total bases (51). Four other Hokies have tallied double digit hits and runs, providing Virginia Tech with plenty of offensive weapons. Christian Worley and Grant Umberger have 2-0 records on the mound to lead the team this season. Drue Hackenberg has a 1-0 record in three starts with a 1.72 ERA.
 
SCOUTING THE HAWKS
Saint Joseph's will have a few extra days of rest before the River Hawks come to town. The Hawks have dropped four straight games after a midweek loss to Rutgers and three straight to Old Dominion over the weekend. They hold a 1-6 record, with the lone win coming against Duke, a 5-4 extra inning victory on February 19. Conlan Wall leads the team hitting .375 through seven games. Wall is tied for the team lead with nine hits this season. As a team, Saint Joseph's is hitting .224 entering the weekend.
 
STOLEN GOODS
The River Hawks are 7-9 on stolen base attempts through nine games this season. Jacob Humphrey and Gerry Siracusa are 3-3 and 2-2, respectively, while Conor Kelly is 1-1. Robert Gallagher has one stolen bag on two attempts in nine games.
 
YOUNG GUNS
Head Coach Ken Harring has not been shy about using his young talent this season. LJ Keevan returns to the starting rotation after a strong rookie campaign. Freshmen Brian Foley, Jacob Jette, Nick DiRito and Michael Simes all made appearances in each of the opening three weekends of the season. DiRito picked up his first collegiate win against JMU while Simes and Jette helped close the game with strong pitching late in the game. The young pitching group has shown good signs early on and will look to build on that success as the season progresses.
 
EXTRA BASES
After just one home run in the first six games of the year, the River Hawks' offense got the bats going against JMU. Fritz Genther hit a three-run shot and a grand slam over the weekend while Gerry Siracusa and Frank Wayman hit their first homers of the year against the Dukes. As a unit, the River Hawks hit six doubles against JMU with Genther and Proto recording two each. Jacob Humphrey has the team's only triple of the year.