LOWELL, Mass. – Another quick turnaround and it is right back to work for the UMass Lowell baseball team (16-21, 7-7 AE) as the River Hawks visit the Harvard Crimson (11-21, 7-8 IVY) on Tuesday afternoon before hosting the UMBC Retrievers (16-17, 7-5 AE) for an America East clash.
 
April 23 at Harvard – 3:00 p.m.
 
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April 26 vs. UMBC – 3:00 p.m.
 
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April 27 vs. UMBC – 1:00 p.m.
 
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April 28 vs. UMBC – 12:00 p.m.
 
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LAST TIME OUT
The River Hawks went 2-2 last week, including a 2-1 series defeat at Bryant over the weekend. UMass Lowell won the rematch against Merrimack 12-5 behind two home runs from Ryan Strand and strong outings on the mound from Brendan Holland and Cam Sime. The River Hawks fell in game one at Bryant 6-1before tying the series with a 9-7 win in game two. UMass Lowell had the lead late in game three, but the Bulldogs mounted a comeback and walked off the finale. Ryan Proto was outstanding at the plate, hitting .563 in four games with team-highs in runs (7), hits (9), doubles (3) and total bases (15). Alex Luccini also tallied his team-leading eighth homer of the season with a pivotal grand slam in game two at Bryant. Brendan Holland is expected to get the start for the River Hawks against Harvard.
 
SCOUTING THE CRIMSON
Harvard has won six of its last eight games, including a 17-14 win over Stonehill and a 2-1 series win over Dartmouth over the weekend. Ben Rounds leads the team hitting .400 in 32 starts this season and has team-highs in runs (38), hits (48), doubles (11), and home runs (6) while tallying in 23 RBIs. Brian Dowling is expected to start Tuesday afternoon and has a 10.49 ERA, 1-2 record and 20 strikeouts. His last outing came on April 16 against Stonehill where he went 4.1 innings with three strikeouts and six earned runs. Harvard is 3-4 at home this season with two of those wins coming this past weekend.
 
MATCHUP HISTORY
Tuesday's meeting will be the fifth matchup between the teams. The first meeting took place on April 27, 2016, with Harvard taking a 9-4 win. The Crimson won three straight against the River Hawks until last season where UMass Lowell came out on top with a 12-4 victory in Cambridge.
 
SCOUTING THE RETRIEVERS
UMBC is coming off a 2-2 record last week with a midweek 10-6 win at Georgetown and a 2-1 series defeat at NJIT over the weekend. The Retrievers will play Towson at home on Tuesday before making the trip to Lowell. Matt Ryan leads the team hitting .322 with 39 hits. His 33 runs and 12 doubles are tied for the team lead, and he is one of seven players to tally 20+ RBIs this season. Luke Johnson remains a threat on the mound with a 3.47 ERA and a 2-3 record. Sam Downs leads the pitching staff with a 2.74 ERA and a 3-0 record. Johnson leads the team with 56 strikeouts while Downs is second with 32.
 
MATCHUP HISTORY
Friday will be the 36^th meeting between River Hawks and Retrievers. UMBC swept the weekend series last season in Baltimore and have won four of the last five meetings. UMass Lowell defeated UMBC 7-6 in the 2022 America East Tournament but have not won a regular season game against the Retrievers since April 9, 2022. The River Hawks are 10-5 at home against UMBC.
 
A LOOK AT THE LEAGUE
Bryant sits atop the standings at 13-2 in conference play with UMBC in second at 7-5. NJIT is third with a 6-5 mark and UMass Lowell's 7-7 record has them fourth. Binghamton has won three straight and moves to fifth at 6-9 in conference while Maine and UAlbany round out the rankings at 4-7 and 3-11 in league play, respectively.
 
The River Hawks lead the league hitting .275 as a team while UMBC is tied with Binghamton for second at .269. The Retrievers have the second-best team ERA in the league at 5.46 with UMass Lowell fourth at 6.95. UMass Lowell and UMBC have similar fielding numbers, sitting second and third in the league, respectively, with just one error separating the teams.