BROOKLYN, N.Y. – The LIU Brooklyn baseball team will travel across the George Washington Bridge this weekend, to take on Northeast Conference foe Fairleigh Dickinson in Teaneck, N.J., in a weekend with huge conference implications. The Knights and the Blackbirds will face off in a weather-altered four-game series, Friday, May 12 and Sunday, May 14.
SCHEDULE OF EVENTS
The four-game series, originally slated to take place over three days, has been shortened to two, due to rain in Saturday's forecast. The two teams will now take part in a double header Friday at 12:30 p.m., featuring a nine inning contest and a seven inning game, followed by two more games Sunday at 12:30 p.m., a seven inning followed by the final nine inning game.
PLAYOFF PICTURE
The final eight games of LIU's conference schedule are eight of the most important games of the season. The Blackbirds (7-11 in the NEC) sit in sixth overall right now, just outside of the playoff picture. Just ahead of them? FDU, at 8-10, Wagner (8-9) and Sacred Heart (9-10), whom the Blackbirds play next week. All four teams will be battling to take the final two playoff spots for the NEC tournament Memorial Day weekend.
LEADING LIU
The Blackbirds have several members of the squad ranking in the top of the NEC across the board. As a team, LIU ranks third in team batting average (.274) and second in fielding (.965). Charles Misiano, Andrew Turner, Dom Paiotti and Joe Mercadante all rank in the top 20 in batting average, while Misiano also ranks in runs scored (4th – 38) and stolen bases (2nd – 18). Freshman Joe Curcio is tied for third in the NEC with four triples, while classmate Patrick Clyne has turned into one of the top young pitchers in the NEC. Clyne (3-1) ranks third in the conference with a 3.40 ERA.
LAST TIME OUT
LIU hasn't played a conference game in two weeks, and are coming off their bye week. The Blackbirds played Army and Fordham in four games last week, putting up strong offensive numbers but failing to get the wins. This weekend's series caps a long, 12-game road trip for the Blackbirds, who conclude the regular season with five straight home contests, including a four-game series with Sacred Heart.
SCOUTING THE KNIGHTS
Fairleigh Dickinson (12-26, 8-10 NEC) is just a half a game back from the final two playoff spots. Last weekend, the Knights took one of three games from their series with Wagner, beating the Seahawks 10-8, before falling 5-4 and 6-3. Last year, the two teams split their four game series in Brooklyn.
The Knights are one of the only teams in the NEC stronger at the plate than LIU, hitting .294 as a team to lead the conference. They have six players ranked in the top 20 in the league in batting average, led by senior short stop Matt McCann. McCann leads the Knights and the NEC, hitting .405 this year. He also leads the conference with 20 stolen bases on 26 attempts, just ahead of LIU's Charles Misiano (18-20), and has an NEC-best 60 hits, along with 29 RBI.
Senior outfielder Ryan Brennan is another tough hitter, averaging .338 (fourth in the NEC), and is second in the league with 40 RBI. Just behind him in that category is junior third baseman Bobby Romano, who has 39 RBI so far this season, along with a league-best nine home runs, hitting .298.
UP NEXT
After three weeks on the road, the Blackbirds return home to LIU for the final five games of the year at the Birdcage. LIU will host St. John's, Tuesday, May 16, before welcoming Sacred Heart for a four game series, Thursday, May 18 through Saturday, May 20.