HIGHLAND HEIGHTS, Ky. – Northern Kentucky baseball (2-5) opens league play this weekend with a four-game set at Wright State (0-5).
NORTHERN KENTUCKY at WRIGHT STATE
Friday, March 5 – Dayton, Ohio – 3:00 p.m. – Live Stats
Saturday, March 6 (DH) – Dayton, Ohio – 12:00 p.m. – Live Stats
Sunday, March 7 – Dayton, Ohio – 1:00 p.m. – Live Stats
SERIES HISTORY
Wright State currently leads the series, 24-12. The Raiders took the last matchup, 9-1, for a series sweep on May 12, 2019.
LAST TIME OUT
Northern Kentucky played four games in Nashville, Tennessee, last weekend, dropping three of them. NKU's best two games came in a doubleheader with Belmont, losing game one by a slim 5-4 margin, while winning game two, 11-10. The win came in unbelievable comeback fashion as NKU was down 9-1 with two innings of play left. The Norse plated six runs in the sixth inning of the game thanks in part to a double from Michael Hall and a triple from Liam McFadden-Ackman. In the final inning, hits from Andrew Bacon and Treyvin Moss, as well as walks from Jayden Wakeham and McFadden-Ackman, plated four more scores to put NKU up a run. Kurt Lange punched out five batters in the final two innings to get the win.
SCOUTING WRIGHT STATE
Wright State begins the season winless, but that's misleading without looking at its schedule. The Raiders have played two series against ranked SEC opponents, No. 2 Vanderbilt and No. 23 Alabama, and they held their own. Wright State had a total of three one-run games between the two opponents, including a pair of 1-0 pitcher's duels. Freshman Julian Greenwell currently leads the Raiders with a .273/.364/.385 slash line, but Tyler Black will also be dangerous, going .353/.600/.469 in 2019.
PROBABLES
Southpaw Ben Gerl (0-1, 8.71 ERA) remains the series-opener starter for the Norse this weekend. He'll be followed by right-handers Kyle Klingenbeck (0-1, 8.38 ERA) in game one and Nick Noble (1-1, 8.31 ERA) in game two of the doubleheader. Finally, Bryson Lonsbury (0-0, 18.90 ERA), who has mainly served as a reliver this season, will get the game four start.
HOME-RUN KING
NKU returns the 2019 College Home Run Derby Champion for his senior season. Griffin Doersching, a junior, took the 10th annual prize in Omaha, Nebraska, after clubbing 20 home runs to Tyler Keenan's (Ole Miss) 15 in the final round. In the 2019 season, Doersching smacked 13 out of the park, had a .503 slugging percentage and drove in 44 runs. At 29 career home runs, he is the sole owner of second in the all-time record books and is chasing John Heeter's 48.
TIMES NEW ROMANS
Josh Romans impressed in his debut for the Norse. The freshman shortstop picked up the start in NKU's season-opener at ETSU on Friday, Feb. 20, going 1-for-3 with a double down the left-field line and a walk. A day later, he proved the early success wasn't a fluke, sending a solo-shot out of the park in the third inning.
A QUALITY DEBUT
After missing his freshman year to injury, Klingenbeck made his Norse debut on Saturday at ETSU in game one of a doubleheader and it was worth the wait. The sophomore tossed a quality start, going 6.1 innings and yielding two runs on the afternoon, which kept the Norse in the hunt for their first win of the season.
NOTHING TASTES BETTER THAN BACON
Andrew Bacon came alive in the 2020 season, ending it on a 13-game hitting streak. The senior carried a .303/.470/.342 slash line, smashed out a Horizon League-leading three home runs, and batted in 15 runners, which also led the league.
NEW YEAR, NEW NORSE
In total, 10 players joined the Norse over the offseason: Camden Brandt, AJ Clegg, Gerl, Lucas Gulczynski, Hall, McFadden-Ackman, Romans, Tyson Shaw, Bryce Smith and Bryce Thomas.
ONE FINAL RIDE
On Feb. 26, head coach Todd Asalon announced that the 2021 season will be his last as he is retiring at season's end. Now in his 21st year with the Norse, Asalon owns a 549-561-1 record. He guided the Norse through its Division I transition, which began in the 2013 season, and helped NKU post its winningest Division I season in 2017 with a 25-33 record. Prior to the Division I era, he led NKU to the NCAA Division II tournament in eight-consecutive seasons.
Joining Asalon on his staff are his assistants and former Norse Dizzy Peyton (14th season) and Pat Hyde (sixth season). Accompanying them is Matthew James, who is in his second season with NKU.
