ORONO, Maine - The Black Bears who had an away series at Mahaney Diamond last weekend, going 1-2 against UMass Lowell, will have their first official home series against the Hartford Hawks this weekend with a double header Saturday, and a game three on Sunday. The Black Bears have enjoyed a week off since their series with UML, while Hartford is in a stint of five straight games this week, going 3-2 in those games.
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Last Time Out
The Black Bears are coming off a 1-2 series with UMass Lowell, where the River Hawks took the double header on Friday, winning game one 4-3 and game two 3-0. With a snowy day on Saturday, game three would be moved to Sunday, where Maine would capitalize on pitching errors in the top of the second inning to score seven runs, and would eventually take the victory 8-5.
Cody Laweryson picked up his first win of the season bringing his record to 1-1, he went 2.1 innings, allowing only one hit and one walk, striking out four.
Maine So Far
The Black Bears come into this matchup breaking their nine game losing streak with the win against UMass Lowell, bringing their record to 7-15 on the season, 1-2 in conference so far. They are led by Chris Bec, who has seen action in all 22 of Maine's games this season, mainly as the starting catcher; he leads the team with 29 hits, nine RBIs (including one home run), and a .367 batting average.
Danny Casals continues his impressive career at Maine after a stellar freshman year performance in 2016, as he follows behind Bec with 22 starts, primarily at third base, a .267 batting average and five RBIs, along with a home run. Senior
Tyler Schwanz leads the team with two home runs, they make up two of his nine RBIs, as he touts a .259 batting average.
On the mound the Black Bears plan to see starters
Justin Courtney, who has a 2-3 record on six starts, with a team-high 33 strike outs, followed by
Jonah Normandeau in game two with a 0-3 record, and a team-low 4.65 ERA.
John Arel will get his first start in game three, he's so far seen action in one game, going 1.1 innings and allowing two hits, striking out three.
Scouting the Hawks
The Hartford Hawks have played five games already this week, a double header on Sunday, and single games Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday. Their Wednesday matchup at UConn saw a 6-4 victory over the Huskies, as Hartford overcame two UConn leads, the second of which came on a five-run top of the sixth inning to put the game away. The Hawks are led by catcher Erik Ostberg, who leads the team with 39 hits, 21 RBIs, six home runs, and leads the nation with a .506 batting average. The Hawks will look to pitchers Brian Stepniak (0-2, 5.50 ERA) and Connor Lewis (2-1, .571 ERA) in the double header, with their game three starter depending on workload given the seven-game week.
-UMaine-
