NEWS

Will Schomberg will be on the mound as the starter in Friday night’s game vs. Fordham.

Atlantic 10 Conference play commences this weekend, as the Davidson baseball team will host Fordham in a three-game series at Wilson Field.

The series will open Friday at 8 p.m., with afternoon games set for Saturday and Sunday.

It’s the first of eight series in a 24-game league schedule. In the 12-team A-10, the Wildcats will also host Dayton, VCU and Saint Louis and visit UMass, Rhode Island, George Washington and Richmond.

The 2023 A-10 Tournament, including the league’s top seven teams, is set for May 23-27 in Richmond, hosted by VCU at The Diamond.

LATEST ON THE ‘CATS
Now 13-10, Davidson has won its last five games and seven of its previous eight.

The Wildcats are coming off their first series sweep of the season last weekend, when they won three home games against Tennessee Tech. That included two dramatic victories, when Hunter Anderson (grand slam) and Anthony Torreso (single) had walk-off hits Saturday on Sunday, respectively.

The Wildcats are seeking their fourth series victory of the season, having taken two of three games against Lafayette and Marist.

HIT OR BE HIT
Wildcat junior outfielder Ryan Wilson is the A-10’s top batter thus far, leading the league in numerous offensive categories.

Wilson is atop the A-10 with a 1.328 OPS, 11 home runs, a .505 on-base percentage and an .823 slugging percentage and has been hit by more pitches than anyone else (16, 3rd nationally). He’s also second in the A-10 with 30 runs scored and 65 total bases, while hitting .342 with five doubles and 25 RBIs and a team-best six steals.

Wilson entered the season tied for the program record with 34 hit-by-pitches and has taken his career total to 50.

EASY AS 1-2-3
Wilson’s not the only Wildcat among the A-10 offensive leaders. In fact, the Wildcats have the top three players in on-base percentage and OPS.

In OPS, second baseman Jack Cotrone is second (1.254) and first baseman Michael O’Shaughnessy (1.136) is third, while O’Shaughnessy ranks second with a .494 on-base percentage and Cotrone is third (.478). Cotrone is second in the A-10 with nine home runs and his team-leading .368 average is sixth.

In walks, Nick Calero (22) and Jacob Friend (21) rank second and third, respectively.  

SCHOMBERG SETTING THE TABLE
Senior right-hander and Friday starter Will Schomberg has been setting the tone for the Wildcats thus far.

He’s 3-1 with a 2.37 ERA in 30.1 innings of work and leads the league with a .160 opponents’ batting average and 5.04 hits allowed per nine innings. His ERA is second in the A-10, along with his 1.02 WHIP, and he’s third with 37 strikeouts.

Schomberg will again take the bump to start this weekend’s series, with left-hander Ryan Feczko set to start Saturday and the Wildcats’ Sunday starter to-be-determined.

Fordham will counter with right-handers Declan Lavelle and Gabe Karslo and left-hander Austin Sachen.

SCOUTING THE RAMS
Like Davidson, Fordham has won its last five games, and the Rams enter the weekend 11-14 overall, having won eight of their previous 10. Most recently, they defeated Hartford 5-3 on Tuesday and swept last weekend’s series with Seton Hall.

Infielder Will Findlay is the Rams’ top hitter, averaging .371 (6th in the A-10) and slugging .677 (4th) with a 1.150 OPS (6th). Infielder Zach Selinger hits .313 and leads the Rams with five home runs and 20 RBIs, while Daniel Bucciero hits .310. Outfielder Ryan Thiesse has stolen a team-best 10 bases for the league’s second-best base-stealing team (32).

Rams closer Ben Kovel leads the A-10 with three saves.

SERIES HISTORY
The Wildcats and Rams have not met since 2018, the longest absence of any league foe on the Davidson schedule. The Wildcats were to visit Fordham in May of the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

The Wildcats are 3-6 all-time against the Rams, having won the series opener each time (2015, 2016, 2018).