TEANECK, N.J. – The Fairleigh Dickinson baseball team welcomes Sacred Heart to the Naimoli Family Baseball Complex this weekend for a three-game Northeast Conference series.
 
Fairleigh Dickinson (3-17-1, 1-2 NEC) vs. Sacred Heart (6-16, 2-1 NEC)
 
Live Coverage
NEC Front Row (Friday and Saturday)
Live Stats (all three games)

Friday, March 29
3:00 PM
Pitching Matchup:
James Donlon – RHP (FDU) vs. Cooper Thompson - RHP (SHU)

Saturday, March 30
1:00 PM
Pitching Matchup:
Griffin Gilbert - RHP (FDU) vs. Ryan LaMay – RHP (SHU)
 
Sunday, March 31
1:00 PM
Pitching Matchup:
Emmanuel Corporan - RHP (FDU) vs. Justin Jordan – LHP (SHU)

The Series
All-Time Series: Sacred Heart leads 55-19
Last five: 1-4
Last season: 0-4
Last meeting: Sacred Heart 7, Fairleigh Dickinson 3 (5/6/18 at FDU)
The Knights received 7.2 innings of solid relief from freshmen Peter Theodorellis and Austin Crebs but were unable to overcome an early five-run deficit in a 7-3 series-finale loss to the Pioneers.

Pitching in relief of starter Aaron Cohn, Theodorellis provided the Knights with 5.1 innings of two-run ball, while striking out a team season-high nine batters in the loss. 

Aided by designated hitter P.J. DeFilippo's two-run blast, the Pioneers (14-30, 9-12 NEC) struck for five runs in the first inning, which proved to be more than enough start for right-hander Ryan LaMay, who pitched seven frames, allowing one run and four hits, while striking out eight Knights.
 
Scouting Sacred Heart
The Pioneers have dropped four straight including a three-game series with Stony Brook and last game's outing against Fordham in which they lost 8-2 at home. Despite the skid, the Pioneers are 2-1 in NEC play having taken two of three from LIU Brooklyn two weeks ago. Offensively, junior Stephen Thibault is the lone Pioneer batting over .300 on the season. Thibault is hitting .304 and has a team-leading .448 on-base percentage. Classmate Austin Markmann has been the leading powersource for the Pioneers in 2019 with a team-high 13 RBIs, while junior catcher Bobby Garbuio has two of the team's six home runs this season. On the mound, the Pioneers' rotation features sophomores Ryan LaMay and Cooper Thompson along with seniors Baylor Sundahl and Brent Teller. Sundahl has punched out a team-high 25 batters this season and features the best ERA in the group at 4.95.
 
The Burgundy and Blue Report
Following a 1-2 weekend against NEC foe Mount St. Mary's, the Knights returned home and dropped a pair of non-conference tilts to Iona and Seton Hall on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.

Freshman Salvatore Monticciolo has been the story as of late for the Knights. Monticciolo garnered NEC Rookie of the Week honors after amassing 14 RBIs over a five-game stretch last week. The Holmdel, New Jersey native continued his power surge this week by launching a solo blast in Tuesday's loss to Iona and now leads the team with five home runs and 20 RBIs on the campaign. Monticciolo's five home runs is tied for first in the NEC, while his RBI total ranks second in the conference.

Five Knights are batting over .300 on the season, including redshirt freshman Adam Frank. Frank, who also earned an NEC Rookie of the Week nod this season, is batting .308 and leads the NEC with seven doubles on the campaign. Senior Evan McDonald also is in the .300 group at .304 and has a team-high 21 hits on the season.
 
This season, the Knights have relied on a pitching staff which features two sophomores and two freshmen. First-year Knight Brendan Medoro leads the team with 28 innings pitched and has two of the team's three wins. Medoro has registered a 6.75 ERA to go along with 14 strikeouts and a 1.68 WHIP in his first season. Sophomore Chris Quijano is still searching for his first win of the season but has racked up a team-high 20 strikeouts across his six appearances, while first-year reliever Joey Kosowsky has nailed down a pair of saves. Kosowsky has struck out 10 batters in eight innings on the mound this season. 
 
Next Up
The Knights close out their season series with Seton Hall on Tuesday, April 5 before returning to NEC action next weekend with a three-game trip to Bryant.