SPARTANBURG, S.C. – Back at Cleveland S. Harley Park ahead of Easter weekend for the fourth straight season, USC Upstate baseball faces its second Big South Conference "bye" week, welcoming UNCG for a three-game set beginning Thursday. The "Battle of the Spartans" closes an 11-game slate against SoCon opponents in 2025.
 
Weekend Series
April 17-19, 2025 | 6:00 p.m. / 6:00 p.m. / 2:00 p.m. ET
USC Upstate (19-18; 8-4 Big South) vs. UNCG (17-19; 7-2 SoCon)
Cleveland S. Harley Park | Spartanburg, S.C.
 
TV: ESPN+ | Via WatchESPN.com or the ESPN app
 
How They Stack Up
Records: USC Upstate (19-18; 8-4 Big South); UNCG (17-19; 7-2 SoCon)
Series: UNCG leads 2-1
Last Five Meetings: May 18, 2024 (UPST 7; UNCG 0); May 17, 2024 (UNCG 9; UPST 1); May 16, 2024 (UNCG 14; UPST 8)
 
Probable Starting Pitchers
USC Upstate | UNCG
Game One: RHP Darin Kuskie (2-1; 4.55 ERA) | RHP Rob Ready (1-4; 5.93 ERA)
Game Two: RHP Amp Phillips (3-1; 4.50 ERA) | RHP Sam Murchison (5-3; 4.84 ERA)
Game Three: LHP Chris Torres (4-4; 4.23 ERA) | RHP Jay Miller (2-3; 3.49 ERA)
 
Players to Watch
USC Upstate
Pitcher: Securing his second consecutive quality start, redshirt sophomore right-handed pitcher Amp Phillips limited Winthrop to three hits and one run over 6.0 innings of work last Saturday versus Winthrop. For his efforts, he garnered a Big South Starting Pitcher of the Week nod, his second in as many weeks. He enters the Spartans' latest series sporting a 3-1 record and 4.50 ERA.
Position Player: The leading run producer for the Spartans in their weekend series versus Winthrop, junior first baseman Wylie Waters drove home 13 of the team's 46 runs in the three-game set. He finished the weekend slashing .636/.714/1.363 against the Eagles, ending his weekend with his first career multi-homer game and five RBI. Across the three games, he drove home four or more runs in each contest, upping his season total to 38, the second most on the ball club.
 
UNCG
Pitcher: Posting a 3.49 ERA through eight starts this season, junior right-hander Jay Miller leads the Spartans and ranks fourth in the SoCon in the category. The Spartans' game three starter heads the SoCon's top pitching staff regarding team strikeouts, leading the team with 58 over 49.0 innings.
 
Position Player: The lone Spartan hitting north of .300 on the year, junior infielder Jeremy Wolf leads UNCG with a .338 batting average. He leads the team with 44 hits and 11 doubles with 14 of his total hits going for extra bases. Wolf also paces the Spartans on the base paths, stealing 11 bases in 15 attempts.
 
Up Next for the Spartans
Coming off its final non-conference weekend series of the season, USC Upstate continues non-conference play, travelling to the Volunteer State for a pair of midweek contests. The Spartans head to Tennessee Tech for games Tuesday and Wednesday at 7 p.m. and 4 p.m. ET, respectively.
 
Connect with the Spartans 
Facebook.com/UpstateAthletics 
Twitter | @UpstateBSB | @UpstateSpartans 
Instagram | @UpstateBSB | @UpstateSpartans 
YouTube.com/UpstateSpartans
 
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SAVE THE DATE FOR SPARTY'S BALL – MAY 17th – Support USC Upstate Athletics at Sparty's Ball, the largest fundraising event of the year for the Upstate Athletic Fund (UAF), to be held Saturday, May 17, 2025 at the Milliken Club at Fifth Third Park. For tickets, sponsorship and auction information, click here!