Live Stats | Live Video (at Millersville) | Tickets (at Millersville)

KUTZTOWN, Pa. – In the midst of a two-game skid, the Kutztown University baseball team will take on the Millersville University Marauders in a four-game Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) series at KU's North Campus Field and MU's Cooper Park, beginning at 1 p.m. on March 30-31, respectively.

The Golden Bears (6-6, 0-2 PSAC) had been riding high after winning 4-of-5 on their spring break trip to North Carolina and then dismantling the University of the Sciences in their home opener, 20-3. KU was scheduled for a four-game series with Bloomsburg last weekend to open conference play, but snow adjusted that schedule significantly. Due to the inclement weather, Kutztown had to reschedule its home doubleheader, scheduled for March 23, with the Huskies for a later date and was only able to play two games on the weekend, at Bloomsburg on Sunday, March 25.

Headed into Sunday's matchup, the Huskies had been a thorn in Kutztown's side already this season, having defeated KU twice at the Builder Invitational in Newport News, Va. on Feb. 23-24. This time was no different as KU's offense, which has been a strength for the Golden Bears this season, couldn't get much going against Bloomsburg's pitching staff in two games on Sunday, scoring just two runs in 14.0 innings.

The Huskies, on the other hand, looked very comfortable in their opening day of conference play, plating a combined 17 runs which included two and three-run innings in the first game and a five-run inning in the second. BU pitching racked up 20 strikeouts in two games and KU mustered just nine combined hits.

Ryan Cox (Aliquippa, Pa./Hopewell (St. Bonaventure)) and Mitch Pinder (Gilbertsville, Pa./Boyertown Area) each tallied one RBI in games one and two, respectively. Cox extended his on-base streak to 12 straight games with two hits in game one and a walk in game two.

Catcher Nick Lafferty (Croydon, Pa./Archbishop Wood) leads the Golden Bears with a .432 batting average and 16 hits in 11 games played, slugging at a .568 clip. Cox has a team-high 14 RBI with five doubles and just four strikeouts in 43 at-bats, batting .349. Michael Hunter (Mertztown, Pa./Brandywine Heights (Marist)) has been KU's most effective arm so far with a 2-0 record and 2.08 ERA in four appearances and three starts, striking out 11 in 13.0 innings pitched.

Entering this weekend's tilts with the Marauders (12-7, 1-0 PSAC), Kutztown will have to bounce back quickly from its series with Bloomsburg and put its energy towards defeating a strong Millersville side. In the most recent National Collegiate Baseball Writer's Association (NCBWA) Atlantic region poll, MU is ranked fourth in the region, one of seven PSAC teams inside the top-10. Most recently, the Marauders defeated Shippensburg 2-1 on the road in their PSAC opener on Wednesday, March 28.

Outfielder Cole Friese leads the team with a .377 batting average and also has team-highs in runs scored (23) and hits (29). Ben Snyder provides 'pop' in the middle of the Marauder order with eight doubles and three home runs on the season and a team-leading 24 RBI, second in the PSAC.

On the bump, expected game one starter Eli Nabholz holds a 2.76 ERA with 31 strikeouts in 32.2 innings, limiting his opponents to a .256 batting average. Cordell Shannon has also developed into a reliable option for Millersville as a starter with a 2-1 record and 3.82 ERA in six games started. Out of the bullpen, Liam Grande has been one of the PSAC's best in the early season with a 3-0 record and 1.04 ERA in eight appearances.

KU had success against Millersville last season, taking two of four games from the sixth-ranked Marauders on March 24-25, 2017. In a 4-3 win in the second game of the series, Bo Rottet (Tamaqua, Pa./Tamaqua) went 2-for-3 with a run scored and Nick Lafferty (Croydon, Pa./Archbishop Wood) and Collin Bishop (Laurel Springs, N.J./Highland Regional) each recorded one hit a piece. KU then won a 2-1 pitcher's duel in game three with Gavilan Fogarty-Harnish (Ephrata, Pa./Ephrata) picking up the victory in relief, throwing three innings of shutout baseball. Anthony DeVito (Philadelphia, Pa./Central (Mercer County C.C.)) earned the save, pitching a perfect seventh inning to secure back-to-back PSAC wins for Kutztown. Rottet scored one of two runs for the Maroon and Gold with Pinder and Bishop collecting one hit each.

Two themes held true for the Maroon and Gold in the series split, of which was one of the high points of last season, solid pitching and timely hitting. That will need to be the recipe for success this weekend against Millersville, pitching that is able to avoid giving up that 'big inning', aided by sound defense, and manufacturing runs with timely hitting and 'small ball'. While KU has shown its offensive prowess during the non-conference season, it knows it must do the 'little things' well to continue to win in a highly-competitive PSAC.

Tickets are available for the games at Millersville, which can purchased via the link above or on the Baseball schedule page of www.kubears.com. Prices are $5 for adults and $3 for seniors/students.

Live stats and video for the doubleheader at Millersville will be available via the link above, which can also be accessed on www.kubears.com.