ALBANY, N.Y. – The University at Albany baseball team will host America East Division A leader Maine for a three-game conference series this weekend. First pitch against the Black Bears at Varsity Field is set for 3:00 p.m. on Friday.

Series Info
Friday, April 15
3:00 p.m. ET
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Saturday, April 16
1:00 p.m. ET
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Sunday, April 17
1:00 p.m. ET
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Projected Starting Pitchers for UAlbany
Game 1: Ray Weber – R-Sr. | RHP | 6-1 | 180
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD
 
Projected Starting Pitchers for Maine
Game 1: Trevor LaBonte – Gr. | RHP | 6-6 | 220
Game 2: TBD
Game 3: TBD

Leading the Pack

• The Great Danes place second in the America East with an overall batting average of .278, with opponents batting .271.
• On the mound, UAlbany pitchers sit at a 6.21 ERA, ranking fourth overall in the conference.
• Brad Malm leads the team and the America East with 13 home runs and a .769 slugging percentage. The shortstop ranks second in the conference with 33 RBIs and 35 scored runs. Malm also leads the Great Danes with 41 hits and a .350 batting average.
• Johnny Marti is batting .465 on average in conference-only games, placing him second in the America East. He has accumulated 14 doubles this season, the most in the conference.
• Will Binder is batting an average of .330, ranking second on the team. He has collected the second-most RBIs (21) for UAlbany.
• Jason Bottari leads the team and the America East in stolen bases with 26. He is just two short of UAlbany's single-season record.
• Carson Dunkel has recorded 21 walks, placing first on the team and second in the conference.
• On the mound, Cregg Scherrer has allowed 3.74 earned runs on average in 33.2 innings of work. He leads the Great Danes with 38 total strikeouts. In conference-only games, the redshirt sophomore holds an ERA of 3.18 in 22.2 innings pitched, placing seventh in the America East. His opposing batting average of .210 is good for third place in the conference.
• Chase Carroll has yet to allow a run, holding a 0.00 ERA. He gave up just two hits in 4.2 innings pitched while also striking out three.

Last Time Out
The Great Danes played Ivy League opponent Dartmouth on Wednesday afternoon, falling 5-12 to the Big Green. Dartmouth took an early lead after scoring a run in the opening inning and adding four in the second on a two-run single and a two-run double. UAlbany got back two runs, one in the third and one in the fourth, making it 2-5. Brad Malm singled to right field, driving in John Daly and Will Binder brought home Michael Whalen with another single to right. Although Dartmouth scored on an RBI double and a passed ball in the top of the sixth, UAlbany made it a two-run game in the bottom of the same inning. Daly first scored on an RBI single by Mike Prisco, Jason Bottari followed with a scored run on an error and Prisco crossed home plate on a wild pitch. However, the Big Green secured their win in the final inning when they drove in five more runs on three RBI doubles and a two-run single.

Scouting Maine
The Black Bears currently hold an overall record of 12-14 and lead Division A with a 9-3 conference record. Maine won three of four conference series, including two series sweeps over Binghamton and UMBC and a 2-1 series win over NJIT. The Black Bears only lost their America East series with Stony Brook three weeks ago. In its most recent series, Maine lost game one 3-4 to NJIT but won games two and three 13-8 and 7-6 over the Highlanders. For conference-only games, the Black Bears lead the America East with a .353 batting average, 158 hits, 22 home runs, 112 RBIs and a .578 slugging percentage. On the mound, the team ranks second behind Binghamton with a 5.00 ERA.
 
Maine is led by graduate infielder Joe Bramanti who has accumulated 41 RBIs, placing first in the conference. He ranks second in the America East with 11 home runs and a .679 slugging percentage. In conference-only games, Bramanti has recorded 26 RBIs and seven home runs. Senior Jeff Mejia holds the best overall batting average (.376) for the Black Bears whereas sophomore Jake Rainess leads the America East with a .485 batting average in conference-only games. Defensively, freshman pitcher Colin Fitzgerald holds a 0.00 ERA after 7.0 innings of work. Graduate pitcher Trevor LaBonte has pitched the most innings (21.2) for Maine, holding an ERA of 3.32 and leading the team with 21 strikeouts.

Around the America East
The America East is split up into two divisions. UAlbany competes in Division A along with Hartford, Maine and UMass Lowell. Binghamton, NJIT, Stony Brook and UMBC are assigned to Division B. After four weekends of conference play, Maine and Stony Brook lead their respective divisions, both holding a 9-3 record. UAlbany and UMass Lowell are tied for second in Division A with 5-7 records. Hartford sits in fourth place with a 3-9 record. NJIT ranks second in Division B with a record of 8-4. UMBC's 5-7 record is good for third place and Binghamton places fourth with a 4-8 record.

Maine leads the America East after the first nine conference games with a .353 batting average. The Black Bears have won three of their four conference series so far. UAlbany is batting .261, placing seventh. Defensively, Binghamton leads the way with a 4.20 ERA. The Great Danes give up 7.49 earned runs on average, sitting in eighth place.
 
By the Numbers – Batting Leaders 

• Batting Average
  • Brad Malm - .350
  • Will Binder - .330
  • Johnny Marti - .324
• Slugging Percentage
  • Brad Malm - .769
  • Johnny Marti - .481
  • Will Feil - .465
• On-Base Percentage
  • Josh Loeffler - .431
  • Brad Malm - .426
  • Johnny Marti - .411
• Runs Scored
  • Brad Malm - 35
  • Will Feil - 24
  • Jason Bottari - 22
• Hits
  • Brad Malm - 41
  • Johnny Marti - 35
  • Will Binder - 33
• Runs Batted In
  • Brad Malm - 33
  • Will Binder - 22
  • Will Feil - 21
• Home Runs
  • Brad Malm - 13
  • Will Feil - 5
  • Carson Dunkel - 3
• Walks
  • Carson Dunkel - 21
  • Will Feil -18
  • Jason Bottari - 17
• Stolen Bases
  • Jason Bottari - 26
  • John Daly / Josh Loeffler- 5
  • Carson Dunkel - 3

By the Numbers – Pitching Leaders

• Earned Run Average
  • Chase Carroll - 0.00
  • Cregg Scherrer - 3.74
  • Connor Eisenmann - 4.91
• Opposing Batting Average
  • Chase Carroll – .133
  • Marshall Winn - .167
  • Cregg Scherrer - .210
• Wins
  • Anthony Germinerio / Connor Eisenmann - 3
  • Ray Weber / Rob Manetta / Cregg Scherrer - 2
  • Nicholas Jessen / Joseph Tobia / Chase Carroll - 1
• Strikeouts
  • Cregg Scherrer - 38
  • Anthony Germinerio - 37
  • Ray Weber - 35

2022 America East Preseason Poll
The UAlbany baseball team has been picked to finish fourth in the 2022 America East Coaches' Poll. The Great Danes earned 34 points in the annual poll, finishing ahead of Maine (27 points), UMass Lowell (18 points), UMBC (12 points) and Hartford (10 points). Stony Brook, 2021 regular-season champions and tournament finalist, was selected first, receiving 46 points and four first-place votes. Close behind, NJIT earned three first-place votes and a total of 40 points. Binghamton came in third with 37 points and a single first-place vote. Coaches were not permitted to vote for their own team.
 
2022 Captains
Leading the Great Danes in 2022 will be Ray Weber, Brad Malm, Will Feil, Johnny Marti, and John Daly. When asked about these selections, Head Coach Jon Mueller stated "These guys all exemplify what we're looking for in captains. They are tremendous in the classroom, they've shown great leadership qualities, and they've had an immediate and profound impact on our younger guys."
 
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