TEANECK, N.J. – As they attempt to fight their way into NEC postseason contention, the Fairleigh Dickinson baseball team hosts Mount St. Mary's for a crucial three-game series this weekend at the Naimoli Family Baseball Complex.
 
Fairleigh Dickinson (4-23-1, 2-7 NEC) vs. Mount St. Mary's (11-20, 5-4 NEC)
 
Live Coverage
NEC Front Row (Friday and Saturday)
Live Stats (all three games)

Friday, April 12
2:30 PM
Pitching Matchup:
Emmanuel Corporan – RHP (0-4, 7.11 ERA) vs. Trey McGough - LHP (3-3, 4.61 ERA)


Saturday, April 13
1:00 PM
Pitching Matchup:
Aaron Cohn - RHP (1-1, 7.23 ERA) vs. Michael Kuypers - RHP (2-2, 2.86 ERA)
 
Sunday, April 14
1:00 PM
Pitching Matchup:
TBA vs. Jordan Geber - RHP (1-1, 7.39 ERA)

The Series
All-Time Series: The Mount leads 51-46
Last five: 1-4
Last meeting: The Mount 15, FDU 7 (3/24/19 at Mount)
Freshman right fielder Tom Ruscitti launched his fourth home run of the season but the Mount took the series finale earlier this season in Emmitsburg.
 
Ruscitti opened the scoring with a three-run blast in the first inning and would finished four RBIs in the game as part of a 3-for-5 effort at the dish. Fellow freshman George Rosales went 3-for-3 and classmate Nate Brodsky added two hits in the loss.
 
The Knights totaled 13 hits as a team but were unable to slow the Mountaineers, who scored six runs in the third and seven in the fifth to take control. The home team also took advantage of five defensive miscues by the Burgundy and Blue.
 
Scouting Mount St. Mary's
The Mountaineers enter the weekend locked in a tie for third place in the NEC standings with Wagner at 5-4. The team has fared better away from home this season as they feature a 2-11 mark in Emmitsburg compared to 9-9 at road and neutral sites. In their lone game this week, the team dropped a non-conference tilt to 8-4 to Navy. Last weekend in NEC play, the Mountaineers took two of three from LIU Brooklyn including a 9-5 win in the series finale. The Mount ranks second in the NEC with a .282 batting average as a team and features the conference's top hitter in sophomore Myles Nicholson, who is batting .388 with a .492 on-base percentage. Nicholson has also been a nuisance on the basepaths as he leads the NEC with 29 stolen bases on 32 tries. In addition, The Mount's lineup features the NEC's home-run leader Patrick Causa -- who is tied with FDU's Salvatore Monticciolo with seven long balls this season -- and the conference's doubles leader, Alex Kriss who has 12 two-baggers this year.
 
The Mount pitching staff carries an overall ERA of 6.30 with redshirt junior Michael Kuypers enjoying the most success. Kuypers has pitched to a 2.86 ERA across seven appearances and four starts.  Sophomore Jordan Geber has made seven starts for the Mountaineers and boasts a 10.23 strikeouts per nine innings rate though 31.2 innings on the mound.
 
The Burgundy and Blue Report
The Knights will look to end their seven-game skid and claw their way back into the NEC Tournament race against the Mountaineers this weekend. The team is coming off of an 8-3 loss at Lehigh on Wednesday where they were limited to five hits.
 
Despite the cold-hitting against the Mountain Hawks, the Knights feature the NEC's third-highest batting average at .251 on the season. Redshirt freshman Adam Frank, who carries a five-game hitting streak into the weekend, is at the forefront of the effort with a .326 average this season. Frank's batting average is eighth-best in the conference. As previously mentioned, the freshman first baseman, Sal Monticciolo has been the Knights' premier power source this season, slugging an NEC-high seven home runs to go along with a team-high 24 RBI.
 
On the mound, the Knights have struggled this season and have an 8.88 team ERA. Freshman Joey Kosowsky has three saves on the campaign, while classmate Brendan Medoro is responsible for three of the Knights' four victories. Medoro has also logged a team-high 36.2 innings on the bump.
 
Next Up
Following the three-game series with the Mountaineers, the Knights travel to St. John's on Wednesday for a mid-week, non-conference tilt before hosting LIU Brooklyn next weekend at the Naimoli Family Baseball Complex.