KUTZTOWN, Pa. – Currently holding a winning mindset and beginning to receive some national recognition, the Kutztown University baseball team will take on Millersville University in a pair of Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Eastern Division doubleheaders this weekend.
 
The Golden Bears (18-6 overall, 6-2 PSAC East) host the Marauders (14-12, 2-6) on Friday, Mar. 30 at North Campus Field with first pitch set for 1 p.m.  Live stats for the home contest can be found by clicking here.  Saturday's doubleheader at Marauder Park will also begin at 1 p.m. and Millersville will be providing live video, audio, and stats.
 
KU sits atop the division, having taken three of four from both Shippensburg and Bloomsburg.  It has won 11 of its last 14 games and is currently ranked 18th in the Collegiate Baseball Magazine national poll.  It is also rated fourth in the latest National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Atlantic Region poll.
 
Millersville took three of four games from KU last season on its way to an NCAA Atlantic Region Championship and an appearance in the NCAA Division II College World Series.  However, the preseason favorites to win the division have had some early setbacks this season.  The Marauders were swept by Shippensburg last weekend and split their games with Bloom the weekend before.
 
With a productive day, KU senior third baseman Shayne Houck (Boyertown, PA/Boyertown) (Boyertown, Pa./Boyertown) will surpass yet another Kutztown career hitting record.  He is two hits shy of tying Al Fitch's career record of 231.  Houck also holds the all-time record for runs scored (195), doubles (59), home runs (39), total bases (411), and batting average (.404).  This season, Houck is batting .366 and leads the team with 30 hits and 24 RBI's.  He is also one of three Golden Bears with six multiple RBI games in 2012.
 
Fellow senior Corey Buletza (St. Clair, PA/Pottsville) (St. Clair, Pa./Pottsville) is second on the team with 19 RBI's.  The designated hitter is batting .311 this season and is currently riding a ten-game hitting streak.
 
Cody Montz (Schuylkill Haven, PA/Schuylkill Haven) (Schuylkill Haven, Pa./Schuylkill Haven) has 25 hits and is batting .321.  He is second on the team with 19 runs scored and is a perfect 9-for-9 in stolen base attempts. 
 
Junior catcher Matt Albaugh (Hatfield, PA/North Penn) (Hatfield, Pa./North Penn) holds a team-best .375 average at the plate and has 15 RBI's in his 48 at-bats.  Other starters currently batting over .300 are Sean McCormick (West Chester, PA/Henderson) (.367), Todd Rubendall (Collegeville, PA/Methacton) (.327), and Brad Stoudt (Topton, PA/Brandywine Heights) (.302).  Stoudt homered and doubled in Wednesday's setback to Wilmington University.
 
On the mound, senior right-hander Dominick Ruscitti (Washingtonville, NY/Washingtonville-Newbaugh/Dominican College) (Washingtonville, NY/Washington-Newbaugh is coming off a complete game shutout last Friday at Bloomsburg.  He has a 4-1 record and holds a 2.03 ERA in his five appearances.  He has a team-leading 20 strikeouts in his 26.2 innings pitched and is holding batters to a .226 average.
 
Also expected to start this weekend is Damon Valloreo (Vincentown, N.J./Burlington CCC) (Vincentown, NJ/Senaca), J.R. Seader (Piscataway, NJ/Piscataway/ Maryland-Baltimore County) (Piscataway, NJ/Piscataway), and Trent Mertz (Kutztown, PA/Kutztown) (Kutztown, Pa./Kutztown).  Valloreo has been able to go deep into games for KU and is third on the team in innings pitched (20.1).  Seader has 11 strikeouts in his 19 innings on the mound.  Mertz picked up his third win of the season with six innings of work in the final game against Bloomsburg.  He struck out seven batters and didn't allow a walk.  For the season, Mertz has struck out 19 batters in 22.1 innings while holding a 3.63 ERA.
 
Entering the week, the KU pitching staff led the PSAC and was 15th in Division II with a 2.84 ERA.
 
Millersville is coming off a pair of lopsided shutout victories over Lincoln (Pa.) on Tuesday in which Mark Royer threw a no-hitter for the Marauders.  MU's top hurler this season has been Brooks Rothschild with five victories and a 2.23 ERA with 30 strikeouts. 
 
Zach Stone has accounted for a majority of the production for the Marauders.  He has a team-leading 26 RBI's with four homers.  Evan King leads the team in batting average at .348 with 31 hits and 16 RBI's.
 
Following this weekend's pivotal conference matchup, Kutztown will have the following week off.  Millersville will get back to action on Sunday against Philadelphia, and will play Mansfield next weekend in conference play.