SPARTANBURG, S.C. – USC Upstate baseball is set to host Jackson State University in a two-game midweek series at Cleveland S. Harley Park. First pitch on Tuesday, March 10 is set for 4:00 p.m. followed by a 2:00 p.m. start time on Wednesday.
Kyle Schmitt is expected to get the start on the mound on Tuesday with Sawyer Worrell getting the nod on Wednesday. In his last outing on March 3 against The Citadel, Schmitt went 5.1 innings with five strikeouts and allowed just two earned runs and two walks. The senior is 2-0 this year in four appearances with 15.0 innings pitched and a 3.60 ERA. Worrell started against Michigan State on March 4 and threw 3.2 innings giving up just five hits, one run and two walks. The freshman fanned four MSU batters in his day of work. He is 0-1 on the season in five appearances for 10.1 total innings pitched with a 6.10 ERA.
The Spartans (11-5) are coming off a 1-2 weekend with a win over Big 10 opponent Northwestern University. Julian Rip had six hits on the weekend and led the Spartans at the plate on Friday against Western Carolina and Sunday against Northwestern. On Sunday, he went 3-for-4 and was a double short of the cycle. He launched a solo homer over the scoreboard and crossed the plate four times to help the Spartans to their second win over a Big 10 team on the week. Matthew Dinkel made his collegiate debut in the game and settled down to throw 3.2 innings with three strikeouts before Will Wheeler entered to toss 3.0 innings and get the win.
Upstate holds the Big South's third-best team batting average (.278) and four Spartans are currently batting .300 or better. Rip leads the team right now with a .333 average, and he is joined by Devin Buckner (.328) and Mason Stewart (.309) in the league's top-15 batters. Jack Gallagher is batting .300. The Spartans lead the Big South in total hits (145), runs (114), and on base percentage (.397).
The Spartans rank second in the league with 29 stolen bases, and Jack Hennessy is 15th in the nation with nine, which also leads the Big South.
Upstate's pitching staff is still sitting toward the top of the Big South with the league's second-best team ERA. Kevin Davis leads the team with a 1.06 ERA, second-best individually in the conference, and Jordan Marks boasts a 1.75 ERA which is third-best in the conference. Marks also leads the Big South in strikeout-to-walk ratio.
Jackson State is coming off a weekend sweep over Florida A&M to improve to 9-5 overall on the season.
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UP Next for the Spartans
The Spartans open Big South Conference play with a weekend series at High Point. First pitch on Friday is set for 4:00 p.m. followed by a 2:00 p.m. start on Saturday and 1:00 p.m. start on Sunday.
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