Midweek Series
February 21-22, 2023 | 6:00 p.m. / 3:00 p.m.
USC Upstate (3-0; 0-0 Big South) at North Florida (2-1; 0-0 ASUN)
Dusty Rhodes Field at Harmon Stadium | Jacksonville, Fla.
 
TV: SWOOPLife Live | Links available on the Baseball schedule page
 
Probable Starting Pitchers
USC Upstate | North Florida
Game One: LHP Al Holguin (0-0; 0.00 ERA) | RHP Dominick Madonna (1-0; 0-0 ERA)
Game Two: RHP Mathieu Curtis (0-0; 0.00 ERA) | To Be Announced
 
Series History
Playing 25 times as members of the ASUN before Upstate's transition to the Big South ahead of the 2019 season, USC Upstate and North Florida are meeting for the first time as non-conference opponents with their two-game midweek series. The Osprey lead the series 18-7 after sweeping a three-game series in 2018 with the Spartans' last wins in the series coming in a 2-1 series victory in 2017. Head coach Mike McGuire's teams have never faced North Florida.
 
Last Times Out
USC Upstate: vs. Towson (W, 7-1; W, 9-2; W, 10-2)
North Florida: vs. Murray State (W, 3-2 [10]; L, 11-3; W, 17-7)
 
Players to Watch
USC Upstate
Pitcher: Taking the ball in the two-game set for the Spartans, sophomore left-hander Al Holguin and freshman Mathieu Curtis are each making their first career starts. Holguin appeared in 18 games last season, pitching to a 4-0 record with one save and a 3.26 ERA. In 2023, he's appeared in one game, striking out the lone batter he faced on Feb. 17. Curtis will be the sixth Spartan pitcher to make his debut, debuting after leading Fort Mill High School to a 2022 SCHSL 5A Upper State Championship.
 
Position Player: Recording three multi-RBI games last weekend, redshirt senior centerfielder Adam Grob drove home eight of the Spartans' 26 runs last weekend as he enters the week leading the Big South and ranked 19^th in the NCAA in RBI. He drove home four runs in game two against Towson, hitting a three-run home run in a six-run sixth inning to propel the Spartans to the win. He also drove in a pair of runs using sacrifice flies with his two sac flies tying for second in the country.
 
North Florida
Pitcher: Earning the win in the Ospreys' season-opening 10-inning victory over Murray State last Friday, right-hander Dominick Madonna tossed the final 3.0 innings for North Florida. He earned the win after allowing one hit while striking out three, holding opponents to a .100 batting average. The win marked the fourth of his career and Tuesday's game makes his seventh career start.
 
Position Player: Marking his return from injury, outfielder Cade Reich collected a team-high six hits and three extra-base hits in North Florida's three-game series against Murray State, hitting .545 for the weekend. He picked up a pair of multi-hit games on the weekend, closing the weekend with a three-RBI and four-run game, going 3-for-4 on the afternoon.
 
Up Next for the Spartans
Following its first midweek series of the season, Upstate returns home to Cleveland S. Harley Park to serve as a host in the OneSpartanburg, Inc. Baseball Classic, serving with Presbyterian and Gardner-Webb. The Spartans host Michigan State Friday, Toledo Saturday, and Northwestern Sunday in the event.
 
Connect with the Spartans 
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics 
Twitter | @UpstateBSB | @UpstateSpartans 
Instagram | @UpstateBSB | @UpstateSpartans 
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans 
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