Underpreview Delaware vs. Hofstra

Time: Friday-Sunday

Location: Bob Hannah Stadium

About the teams:

About Delaware: Delaware’s baseball team goes into this matchup with a 20-18 record (11-7 in CAA competition). Top pitcher is senior right hander Corey Crispell, who has a 6-2 record and a 4.40 ERA. Next up is senior righty Eric Young who has a 5-4 record in addition to an ERA of 4.03. Top batter for the Hens is junior outfielder Nick Ferdinand, who has an eight-game hitting streak going on. Ferdinand also has 21 RBI’s at the moment. Team leader in RBI’s is sophomore first baseman Jimmy Yezzo, who has 23.

About Hofstra: Hofstra is 20-15 (10-5 in CAA competition). Top pitcher is class hand David Jesch, who has a 4-0 record and an ERA of 3.49. Second on the team is class hand John Tiedemann who has a 4-3 record and an ERA of 5.60.  Top hitter is class position Jared Hammer, who has 45 RBI’s. The team leader in home runs is class position Danny Poma, with seven.

Why the Hens can win:

Delaware has won their past two games by an average of 3 runs per game. They have a .526 winning record.  Crispell keeps adding to his wins column, as does Young. Top reliever is still senior left-hander Devon Pearson, and next best is junior righty Stephen Richter. Plus, Hofstra has been inconsistent lately, winning only three of their last eight games.

Why the Hens could lose:

Even though Hofstra is inconsistent, the Hens are having problems of their own, winning a few, then losing a couple. Also, Crispell and Young have both added losses to their record. It is up to head coach Jim Sherman to keep the consistency of the past two games going.

The numbers:

58-17:     Delaware’s all-time win-loss record against Hofstra.

23-6:  The worst loss Hofstra has had against Delaware, in 1987.

7-2: The score of the last time these two teams played.

The prediction:

I believe that Delaware can win the series with consistent hitting.

—Jack Cobourn

Assistant Sports Editor