Erie, Pa. - Mercyhurst baseball prepares for another week and the new moth of April with five games on the docket. After going 3-2 a week ago, they hope to take another step forward this time around with Lake Erie coming to town on Tuesday April 2nd, before returning to conference play on the 5th and 6th with Clarion.
Where They Stand
After two weeks of conference play, the Lakers find themselves with a record of 4-4 against PSAC opponents which is good enough to be tied for third in the PSAC West alongside Seton Hill, a team they previously split with. At the top of the division is Cal (Pa.) and IUP with marks of 6-2 while Slippery Rock currently sits at 5-3. In the East, East Stroudsburg comes out on top as they have yet to lose a PSAC game yet while Millersville has one loss to their line, coming in right ahead of Shippensburg.
Coming in Hot
Mercyhurst saw some strong performances this past week to end the month of March with none standing out quite as much as Luke Jackson's. The senior ended up going 6-16 (.375) at the plate over the course of five games with two of those hits going for extra bases, including a home run against the Falcons. He followed that up with a double in game two of the series against SRU while coming up with his third three-hit game of the season in the front end of day two's doubleheader, matching his season-high that he set against both Concord and D'Youville in the early portion of the year. The Erie native is now hitting .319 on the season for the second-best mark on the team to go along with his .407 on-base percentage and .478 slugging percentage. He has collected 22 hit to this point int he season with seven going for extra bases with a team-high five doubles, adding 16 RBIs to his line to come in only two behind the team leader, Zachary Kourous.
Scouting the Storm
Lake Erie is 13-12 to this point in the season with a 5-5 mark in the GMAC. They are no strangers to playing on the road this year with only two home games on their schedule to this point, making their trip away from their friendly confines a familiar one. Graham Solak has been the team's top hitter to this point with a average of .322 and an OPS just under 1.100 with his five doubles coming in second on the team while leading the way in home runs with five. On the mound, Dominic Poltrone has been a workhorse for the Storm with 48.1 innings in eight starts to far with an ERA 3.35.
Scouting Clarion
The Golden Eagles are 5-19 in 2024 as of right now and have struggled of late with seven losses in their last nine games. Those two wins came in their most recent series against IUP in which Clarion won the second and third games, scoring a season-high 13 runs in their 13-4 win in the frontend of Friday's doubleheader. The team has a potent duo in their lineup in Scotty McManamon and Kasey Shughart with the pairing both owning OPSs over .900. McManamon has led the way in long balls with three to his ledger with his most recent helping him tie Clarion's program record of 23.
Next Game
After this week, the Lakers see Ashland next with Mercyhurst going on the road for that matchup on Tuesday, April 9th. They then return to PSAC play with their cross town rivals, Gannon, for a four-game set on the 12th and 13th. The Lakers make the short trip to see the Golden Knights on day one of the series with Gannon making their way to the Mercyhurst Baseball Field the following day with first pitch set for 1:00 p.m.
