WILKES-BARRE, PA (March 19, 2019) – The King's College baseball team will welcome a pair of non-conference opponents to Lipo Field this week as the Monarchs host Clarks Summit University on Wednesday and then Marywood University on Thursday.  
 
Event Details
Opponent: vs Clarks Summit University (0-6, 0-0 CSAC)
Date: Wednesday March 20, 2019
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Location: Wilkes-Barre, PA – Lipo Field (Directions)
Live Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)
 
Opponent: vs Marywood University (3-7, 0-0 Atlantic East)
Date: Thursday March 21, 2019
Time: 4:00 p.m.
Location: Wilkes-Barre, PA – Lipo Field (Directions)
Live Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)
 
Last Time Out: King's swept a doubleheader from DeSales for the first time since 2011 on Saturday. The Monarchs won the opener 6-4 before the bats really came alive in a 11-3 victory in game two. Dan Hartson was 5-for-7 with three runs and an RBI at the plate. The senior also threw four strong innings in game two. Sean McKee had three hits in five at-bats with six RBI. The Monarchs will finish their season series with the Bulldogs this afternoon in Center Valley. Clarks Summit had their ninth-inning rally fall just short in a 9-6 loss to Wells last Thursday down in Myrtle Beach. The Defenders scored three runs in the final inning and had runners on the corners when the final out was made. Marywood split a doubleheader with Geneva College to wrap up their spring break trip to Fort Pierce, Florida on Friday. The Pacers won the opener 10-0 before the Golden Tornadoes took the nightcap 7-0. MU will also be in action this afternoon as they take on Muhlenberg.
 
The Book On The Monarchs (4-6, 2-0 MAC Freedom):

• Senior Dan Hartson celebrated his birthday in a big way on Saturday as he led the Monarchs to a doubleheader sweep of perennial conference power DeSales. He now leads the team with a .421 batting average with 16 hits in 38 at-bats. In the field he has made 15 putouts and four assists playing right field.
• Christian Pack has recorded at least one hit in nine of 10 games to begin the season and is batting .400 with three doubles, a triple, and a team-leading 10 runs scored.
• Sean McKee had a big weekend against the Bulldogs knocking in six runs on three hits in seven plate appearances. The senior now leads the team with 9 RBI.
• Matt Dobeck has been very good in the leadoff spot as the sophomore has a .429 on-base percentage and a .351 average with 13 hits, four walks, and a hit-by-pitch. He had two hits in both games against the Leopards and against Beloit on Saturday. Dobeck could see some time on the mound this week after throwing three strong innings against Beloit in Florida.
• Freshman Andrew Steidle is third on the team in hitting with a .381 average out of the nine-hole. The freshman second baseman has combined with Pack for six double plays this year including three on Saturday in game two against the Bulldogs.
• Matt Mellinger has raised his average to .313 after going 3-for-7 this weekend against DeSales. He has hit the ball hard nearly every time he comes to the plate and second on the team with seven RBI. The sophomore also has recorded two quality outings on the mound this season recording a 4.32 ERA in 8.1 innings pitched.
• The Monarchs bats have been hot lately and they have the conference's highest team batting average at .341 which is 25th in Division III. They have spread the ball all around the field recording 22 doubles, three triples, and one home run. Their .443 slugging percentage also leads the conference and is 62nd in the nation.
• KC has a deep pitching staff this season with 16 pitchers already seeing action in 10 games. Colby Toth and Shane Beyer picked up two wins out of the pen against Wentworth in Florida. Kyle Friebolin shut the door on a late Bulldogs rally with 2.2 innings on Saturday to record his first collegiate pitching victory. Dan Hartson threw four strong innings in game two while Jacob Lupas picked up a three inning save.
• Toth has eight strikeouts in 11.1 innings over three appearances while giving up four runs on 11 hits. The Monarchs have also been helped by great defense with 26 double plays turned.

The Book On The Defenders (0-6, 0-0 CSAC):

• The Defenders are looking for their first win of the year after being outscored 79-27 in their first six games. Clarks Summit is playing their first game in Pennsylvania after two in Washington, DC and four in Myrtle Beach last week.
• King's is 11-0 against the Defenders dating back to 2010. The Monarchs are 9-0 at Lipo Field and 2-0 in Berwick during that time frame. KC outscored CSU 31-3 in two games last year.
• CSU has a lot of two-way players that will pitch and hit. Freshman Spencer Propst has four hits in eight at-bats to lead the team with a .500 average. He has also thrown a team-high 8.1 innings on the mound recording a 16.20 ERA.
• Ryan Clark is second on the team with a .389 batting average recording seven hits and knocking in five runs. The catcher went 2-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored against Wells last week.
• Joshua Knight and Andreas Bailey have each recorded a .318 batting average for the Defenders. Knight has two doubles, a triple, two RBI, and scored three runs while Bailey leads the team in six runs scored.
• Noah Barnhart leads the team with a 7.71 ERA in 4.2 innings over two appearances. The freshman held the Express to just one run on one hit in 2.2 innings as the Defenders attempted to come back from a 8-1 deficit last Thursday.
• CSU has struggled in the field so far this year making 15 errors on 189 chances for a .921 fielding percentage.

The Book On The Pacers (3-7, 0-0 Atlantic East):

• The Pacers are 3-7 entering Tuesday's non-conference game against Muhlenberg. MU lost their first six games of the year before winning three of their final four games in Fort Pierce, FL last week.
• King's is 2-1 against the Pacers over the last two years. The Monarchs won by scores of 11-1 and 15-9 while MU came away with a 12-8 victory late in the 2017 season at Lipo Field.
• D3Baseball.com First Team Preseason All-American and 2018 ABCA/Rawlings First Team All-American Jake Schuster has gotten off to a slow start at first base for the Pacers. The junior has six hits in 29 at-bats for a .207 average while drawing six walks and a hit-by-pitch. He has knocked in five runs and scored four times.
• Joseph Bruno leads the team with a .533 average in eight games. The freshman shortstop has eight hits including a triple. He had two hits in both games of a sweep of Norwich last Thursday.
• Morgan Theobald leads the team with 12 hits for a .387 batting average. The sophomore outfielder went five-for-eight in the sweep over Norwich and scored four of his six runs.
• Bubba Klein is hitting .357 with 10 hits and leads the team with four stolen bases on six attempts.
• As a team Marywood is hitting .284 and have stolen 16 bases on 22 attempts. They have drawn 35 walks while hitting 10 doubles and one triple.
• The Pacers have used 14 pitchers in 10 games and have a staff ERA of 4.57.
• Salvatore Monello pitched 5.2 scoreless innings last week against Norwich. The senior allowed just four hits and walked two with two strikeouts to pick up the victory.
• Joey Castellani leads the team in innings pitched with 16 in three appearances. The sophomore has a 1-1 record in three starts with a 3.38 ERA and a team-leading 20 strikeouts. His strikeout-to-walk ratio of 10.00 is 28th in the nation.

Up Next: King's will return to conference play this weekend with their last series with Manhattanville College as conference rivals. The Monarchs will travel to Purchase for Saturday's doubleheader beginning at 1 pm on the campus of Manhattanville. They will then host the Valiants at Lipo Field on Sunday for a single nine inning game beginning at 1 pm.