ORONO, Maine - The Black Bears are in the middle of a May homestand, playing seven of their final eight regular season games at Mahaney Diamond. Most recently they hosted UMBC in a three-game series that only went two games due to weather, with both teams taking one in a double header. The Black Bears now welcome back the UMass Lowell River Hawks, after the two teams played an "away" series back in April at Mahaney Diamond due to field issues in Lowell.
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Last Time Out
Maine faced off with UMBC in a two-game conference series on Sunday, May 7th, where the Black Bears took game one by a final score of 10-7, coming back from down 7-4 in the seventh inning. The Black Bears made a similar comeback in game two, but UMBC's five-run sixth inning put the game out of reach for the Black Bears, winning 9-6.
A Look at Maine
The Black Bears are led by Junior Catcher Chris Bec, who has a team-high .351 batting average and 53 hits. Sophomore shortstop Jeremy Pena has been swinging the bat well as of late, he's second on the team in RBIs with 24, and batting average with .292. Senior right-fielder Tyler Schwanz has hit a team-high five home runs this season, he is batting .266 on the season. He now holds the team-high for RBI's with 28. Freshman first-baseman Hernen Saridinas has made his presence known in his first year in the America East, as he leads the team in conference batting average at .391 with eight doubles, two home runs and six RBIs.
Scouting the River Hawks
The River Hawks come into this matchup with an even 10-10 record in America East, but are on a five-game losing streak, dropping games against BC and Yale, and the conference series with Binghamton last weekend. Colby Maiola has been lighting it up for UMass Lowell, as he leads the team with a .342 batting average, and has the most hits (55) and RBIs (36) on the team. Chris Sharpe chips in with a .338 batting average and a team-high seven home runs.
Winter Rematch
The River Hawks are the only America East Team the Black Bears will see twice this regular season, with an earlier series with UMBC being cancelled due to snow on the field. The Black Bears and River Hawks faced off on the first weekend of April, with a double header on March 31st, a cancellation on April 1st, and a final game on April 2nd. The Black Bears dropped the double header games 3-4 and 0-3, but on Sunday the Black Bears answered back taking the final game 8-5, as the Black Bears scored seven runs in the top of the second inning, with the first three runs coming on bases-loaded walks and wild pitches.
-UMaine-
