Elmira College (6-13, 0-6 Empire 8) vs. Houghton College (12-14, 2-4 Empire 8)
Friday, April 15, 2016 | 6:00 P.M. | Dunn Field – Elmira, NY
Saturday, April 16, 2016 | 1:00 & 3:30 P.M. | Dunn Field – Elmira, NY
 
Elmira College (6-13, 0-6 Empire 8) vs. Stevens Institute of Technology (17-10, 9-2 Empire 8)
Sunday, April 17, 2016 | 1:00 P.M. | Dunn Field – Elmira, NY
 
Live Coverage | Twitter: @ECSoaringEagles
 
Elmira, NY -- The Elmira College baseball team jumps back into action this weekend with a busy slate against Empire 8 Conference foes. The Soaring Eagles open a three-game set against Houghton College on Friday, April 15^th, with a single nine-inning game at 6:00 p.m. EC and the Highlanders conclude the series with a doubleheader beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday. Elmira wraps up the busy weekend when it welcomes the Stevens Institute of Technology for the final game of the season series in a make-up contest at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday.
 
Last Time Out
Although the Soaring Eagles were unable to play their full series with the Stevens Institute of Technology last weekend, they did complete two games in a doubleheader last Friday. EC's Nick Sampogna '18 and Stevens' Jayson Yano locked in a pitchers' duel in the opening contest of the twin-bill. Both hurlers baffled the respective lineups of the opponents, but the Ducks were able to scratch across three runs, while Yano went the distance in a four-hit shutout. Elmira got off to a promising start in game two, taking leads of 2-1 and 3-2 in the contest. Unfortunately, the EC bullpen was its undoing, as Stevens pulled ahead with three runs in the fifth and broke things open with a seven-run eighth inning in a 12-3 final.
 
Streak Reaches 30
Conor Bawiec '18 continued to be a constant presence on the base paths for the Soaring Eagles during the abbreviated two-game weekend against Stevens. He went a combined 4-for-8 over the course of the twin-bill, in the process stretching his streak of reaching base successfully to 30 consecutive games.
 
Bawiec Blankets E8 Leaderboards
EC's every-day third baseman has been a fixture near the top of the Empire 8 Conference leaderboards in several offensive categories this season. He enters the weekend set against Houghton College with the top batting average in the conference, swinging the bat at a robust .433 clip through 19 games. His .479 on-base percentage is tied for third, while his seven successful stolen bases is tied for fourth in the league. Only Jayson Yano, the reigning E8 Player and Pitcher of the Year, joins Bawiec with Top-4 marks in each of those categories.
 
Sampogna Continues Strong Run
EC starter Nick Sampogna '18 continued to stamp his place as one of the top starters in the league in 2016. Although he came just one-third of an inning shy of notching his fourth consecutive quality start, he still turned in a fantastic outing against one of the conferences strongest lineups. Sampogna fired 5.2 innings of excellent work, allowing three earned runs and striking out five Duck hitters. He has not allowed more than three earned runs in any outing this season, while his 3.66 earned-run average ranks 11th in the Empire 8 among qualified starters.
 
Bellinger Bomb
While Elmira is not a team that thrives on the long-ball, it does have a thumper in the three-hole in first baseman Dylan Bellinger '17. The Elmira, NY, native bashed his second homerun of the season in the Soaring Eagles' last contest against Stevens. The long ball was a no-doubter over the left field fence and was the team's first round-tripper at home this season. It was Bellinger's fourth homer of his career; no other EC player has hit more than one since the start of the program last season.
 
Plante Getting On-Base
Although EC shortstop Bryce Plante '18 has not exactly knocked the cover off the ball this season, he has proved to be quite adept in finding alternative ways to get on base. He has drawn a team-leading 11 walks, while he has also been hit by a pitch a team-high three times. Plante's 11 free passes are tied for 11th-most in the conference this season. He sports a strong .388 on-base percentage for the year.
 
Year-to-Year Growth
The EC offense has shown considerable growth as we reach the halfway point of its second season as an NCAA program. Through 19 games, Elmira has tallied 121 runs, which is just 50 shy of the 171 the team scored in 38 games during its inaugural season in 2015. The team enters the weekend with a .303 batting average as a team, which is the top mark in the Empire 8 this season. That average is nearly 40 points higher than the .264 mark the team compiled last season. As impressive as the team has been offensively, the team has seen even more growth on the mound. The Soaring Eagles have allowed 137 runs through 19 games, which is 70 runs less than the team allowed at the same point last season.  
 
Smart Steals
Elmira has been fairly successful in taking the extra base by way of the steal so far this season. The team carries an 80-percent (24-for-30) success rate in swiping bags into the weekend. It will be a difficult task for the Soaring Eagles to activate their running game against one of the conference's top teams in terms of shutting down the base paths. The Highlanders have cut down 9-of-37 attempted base stealers, good for a 24.3-percent caught stealing rate that is good for second best in the Empire 8.
 
Heggie Stays Hot
One of the biggest surprises this season has been Cameron Heggie '18. In his first season with the program he has quickly established himself as the team's every-day left fielder. While his range made him a natural defensive fit for covering the expansive outfield at Dunn Field, it has been his bat that has turned heads this season. Heggie has been one of Elmira's most consistent hitters, doing an excellent job of turning over the lineup from his primary spot in the nine-hole of the batting order. He ranks fourth on the team and ninth in the Empire 8 with a .364 batting average, while he is tied for second on the team with 13 runs scored.
 
Stevens Shuts Down Running Game
One of the things that Head Coach Corey Paluga stressed during the preseason was the team's ability to put pressure on opponents with its base running. Although EC has witnessed some ebbs and flows this season in the stolen bases department, EC entered last weekend's set with the Ducks coming off some serious base thievery in its prior three contests. The Soaring Eagles went 11-for-12 in the stolen bases against Hilbert College and Utica College, but did not attempt a single steal in the doubleheader against Stevens last Friday. EC will look to get this part of its game going, as the team is 6-4 when successfully swiping a base and 0-9 when failing to do so.
 
Making Contact
It comes as no surprise that one area that Stevens thrived in the doubleheader last Friday was its ability to miss bats. The Ducks' pitching staff entered the contest as the Empire 8 leaders in strikeouts and continued to show its penchant for the punch out against an aggressive Elmira lineup. Jayson Yano racked up nine strikeouts in the opening game of the doubleheader, while the staff fanned 10 EC batters in the second game. The Purple and Gold have done a good job as a team in limiting the swing-and-miss this season. The Soaring Eagles have whiffed 115 times to-date, which is just one more than Ithaca College and Utica who are tied for the least amount of Ks in the league.
 
Hanner Chips In
Nate Hanner '18 has been in and out of Elmira's starting lineup this season, but has been a streaky player when he has cracked the starting lineup. Of his six hits this season, three have gone for doubles. He laced an RBI-double to give EC an early 3-2 lead over the Ducks in game two. It was his second two-bagger over his last three starts.
 
Strong Work Out of the Pen
First-year player Joe Marigliano '17 has established himself as a solid option out of the Elmira bullpen this season. He lowered his earned-run average to a team-best 2.70 with a scoreless inning of relief in game two against Stevens last Friday. The crafty right-hander has allowed two earned runs in 6.2 innings of work this season. 
 
All-Time Series
Elmira went 1-2 against Houghton during its inaugural season in 2015. The Highlanders took the opening game of the series, a single nine-inning game at Houghton, by a 15-5 final. The teams continued the series with a doubleheader at Dunn Field the following day. The Highlanders took the opening game of the day by an identical 15-5 score, while EC scored a 9-5 win in game two. Jack Thistle '18 led the way for Elmira offensively, going 2-for-5 with three runs scored and two RBIs. The win was Elmira's first in program history.
 
Scouting Houghton
Houghton enters the weekend set with a record of 12-14, which includes a 1-4 mark in Empire 8 play. The Highlanders snapped a four-game losing streak in their last contest, a 4-3 victory over Alfred State in game two of the team's doubleheader last Wednesday. Michael Knapp has been an excellent table-setter for Houghton, leading the team with a .349 batting average, 26 runs scored, and 14 stolen bases. Tage Johnson has provided some gap-to-gap thump in the middle of the order, entering the weekend with 12 doubles and 18 RBIs. Houghton boasts a strong starting rotation, headlined by third-year arm Edward Monthie. The Albany, NY, native has started seven games for the Highlanders, posting a solid 3.57 earned-run average. Garrett Alread has also been a strong performer for Houghton, entering the weekend with a 4.22 ERA, while holding opponents to a .178 batting average. Robert Schmidt fronts the bullpen with a 1.96 ERA, spanning nine appearances and 18.1 innings of work.
 
Scouting Stevens
Jayson Yano powered Stevens in its doubleheader sweep over Elmira last Friday. He fired a complete-game four-hit shutout in the opener, a 3-0 Ducks win. He was also stellar with the bat, going a combined 6-for-10, which included a double, four runs scored, two RBIs, and a pair of stolen bases. As impressive as Yano is, the lineup goes far deeper than just the senior standout. Three other Duck hitters carry batting averages above .300 heading into the weekend. Overall, the team ranks in  a tie for second in the league in batting average (.289), while it leads the conference in both homeruns (19) and stolen bases (69). In addition to Yano, a couple other Stevens bats gave Elmira fits last week. Junior Zeph Walters had a highly productive doubleheader against the EC arms last week, going a combined 6-for-9 with a pair of doubles and four RBIs. Senior Nick Sieber provided a strong one-two punch with Walters in the middle of the Stevens order, finishing a combined 4-for-8 with a double, an RBI, and two runs scored. Containing the Ducks offense will certainly be a challenge for an EC pitching staff that will be playing its fourth game in less than 72 hours.
 
Looking Ahead
Elmira continues its season-long homestand next week when it welcomes Alfred State for a single nine-inning contest at historic Dunn Field on Tuesday, April 19th. First pitch for the non-conference tilt is slated for 6:00 p.m.