FAIRFIELD, Conn. – If you thought the emotion and suspense was high for one series with first place on the line, it's time to double that energy. The Fairfield University baseball team will travel to West Long Branch, N.Y., to take on second place Monmouth with the league's top spot at stake. The Hawks are currently 15-6 in the conference, percentage points behind the Stags. However, this will be the final MAAC series for Monmouth, while the Stags still have three games remaining against Quinnipiac. The excitement begins with a Saturday doubleheader at noon and a single game on Sunday at 12pm. All the games will be streamed live on ESPN3.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: The Stags passed their first big test in their journey to first place, winning the series against reigning MAAC champions Canisius, coming back from a 3-0 deficit in the rubber game. In that decisive game, the Stags used a two-run bloop single from Kevin Radziewicz to get on the board, a Jake Salpietro double to tie the game, and a big two-run double from Troy Scocca for insurance. Kyle Dube settled down after a rough start and gave his team six innings with seven strikeouts. Mike Bonaiuto and Aaron Howell took it from there as they combined for three shutout innings. Scocca had the best statistical numbers offensively, going 5-for-10 with three runs scored and two RBI. It was the fourth time in Head Coach Bill Currier's five-year reign where the Stags won the series over Canisius.
THE PLAYOFF PICTURE: The Stags have not clinched a spot in the MAAC tournament yet, but are five games cleared from the seventh spot, currently held by both Manhattan and Rider, with six MAAC games left. If the Stags to win two of their final six contests, that would be enough to clinch a spot. The road for the regular season championship is a little rougher for the Stags. Currently sitting at 13-5 in the MAAC, the Stags are percentage points in front of Monmouth at 15-6. However, if the Stags were to lose two-out-of-three against the Hawks, the Stags would lose the one seed based on tie breakers (they can still win a share of the regular season championship). On the positive side, if the Stags were to win two games in the series, they would need to win just one game against Quinnipiac to finish ahead of Monmouth (however, Canisius is still one game behind the Stags).
FAIRFIELD VS MONMOUTH: This will be only the second series with these two conference teams in program history, as the Stags and the Hawks did not meet last season. Only two active hitters have had at-bats against the Hawks, with Jake Salpietro leading the way with a .417 average (5-for-12) with five RBI and a homer. Brendan Tracy has three career hits against the Hawks with a run scored. On the pitching side, Aaron Howell got the win in the opener, throwing seven innings and allowing three earned runs.
THE HAWKS SCOUTING REPORT: Monmouth is the only team in the conference with a better batting average than the Stags at .281. That is what the Hawks team is built around as they lead the MAAC in doubles and is third in home runs. A big reason for this offensive prowess comes from sophomore infielder Shaine Hughes who leads the MAAC with a .385 batting average, and is the third toughest batter in the country to strikeout (one in every 26.8 at-bats). Senior Dan Shea leads the Hawks for the second year in-a-row in home runs with six this season. The Hawks have lost just one MAAC series all year which came against Siena.
UP NEXT: The Stags will host their final mid-week game of the season when UMASS comes to Alumni Diamond on Tuesday at 2pm.
