Furman vs. CofC Game Notes (PDF)
GREENVILLE, S.C. -- Winners of its last two weekend series, Furman's baseball team will try to make it three straight beginning with tonight's 6:00 p.m. series opener against 20th-ranked and former Southern Conference foe College of Charleston at Patriots Point.
The Paladins (19-21) and Cougars (29-9) are scheduled to play at 3:00 p.m. Saturday and 1:00 p.m. Sunday.
All three Furman-College of Charleston contests will audio live streamed via FurmanPaladins.com with "The Voice of the Paladins" Dan Scott on the play-by-play call. In addition, the College of Charleston will video live stream tonight's opener and Sunday's series finale, with links accessible through FurmanPaladins.com. StatBroadcast live stats will also be available to fans, as will updates through twitter @FurmanBaseball
The College of Charleston, which ranks sixth in the country with a .316 batting average, has won 15 of its last 17 games to climb to No. 20 in both Baseball America and NCBWA Polls. The Cougars downed Coastal Carolina, 8-5, on Wednesday in their latest outing.
Furman, a winner of six of its last nine games, took down South Carolina, 2-1, on Tuesday at Fluor Field but dropped a 16-11 slugfest at Charleston Southern on Wednesday in the makeup of an early season rainout. The Paladins are in the midst of playing six games in a span of eight days and 11 road games in a 13-game stretch, which will conclude Tuesday at Winthrop.
The CofC series marks the renewal of a former SoCon rivalry that ran from 1999 until 2013 when the Cougars departed the league to join the CAA. The College of Charleston own a 41-33-1 lead in the all-time series, but Furman won the last series contested between the two programs, taking two of three from the Cougars at Patriots Point in 2013.
Furman is expected to throw senior right-hander Matt Solter (2-3, 4.60 ERA) in tonight's opener, followed by a pair of freshman — left-hander Grant Schuermann (3-1, 4.97 ERA) and right-hander Will Gaddis (3-3, 5.96 ERA). Solter has won two of his last three starts while Schuermann has been solid of late, throwing seven shutout innings in a 10-0 blanking of UNCG on Apr. 11. Gaddis, meanwhile, bounced back from a rough stretch to toss a complete game in Furman's 8-3 series winning effort last Saturday at Western Carolina.
Freshman Blake Chisolm (.381, 1 HR, 25 RBI) continues to lead the Paladins at the plate and is coming off a three-hit performance versus Charleston Southern. Jordan Simpson (.340, 10 HR, 35 RBI) and senior All-SoCon third baseman Chris Ohmstede (.329, 8 HR, 41 RBI) have combined to account for almost half of Furman's 40 home runs this year.
A major catalyst in Furman's recent offensive surge that has seen the Paladins hit .318 and score 105 runs over the last 12 games has been sophomore outfielder Carter Grote (.308, 1 HR, 10 RBI), who has hit .375 (15x40), posted a .552 on base percentage, and scored 17 runs over the last 12 games since moving into the starting lineup and leadoff role.
Hunter Reid, Furman Sports Information
