WILKES-BARRE, PA (April 10, 2019) – The King's College baseball team will look to take a big step towards qualifying for the program's fourth consecutive postseason with an important three-game set with crosstown rival Wilkes University. King's is currently tied for third in the conference standings and is two games ahead of Wilkes for the fourth and final qualifying spot with nine games remaining.
 
Event Details
Opponent: vs Wilkes University (11-14, 5-7 MAC Freedom)
Date: Thursday April 11, 2019
Time: 3:30 p.m.
Location: Wilkes-Barre, PA – Lipo Field (Directions)
Live Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)
 
Opponent: at Wilkes University (11-14, 5-7 MAC Freedom)
Date: Saturday April 13, 2019
Time: 1:00 p.m. / 3:30 p.m.
Location: Kingston, PA – Artillery Park (Directions)
Live Coverage: (Live Stats) (Live Video)
 
Last Time Out: The Monarchs pounded out 25 hits in a 23-4 victory over Clarks Summit on Tuesday. Matt Dobeck had five of the hits out of the leadoff spot in the order while Tyler Reynolds and Mike Armstrong hit home runs to left field. King's scored in every inning but the fifth and batted around twice in the fourth and seventh innings. Wilkes rebounded from a 33-8 loss to Manhattanville on Sunday with a non-conference 19-7 victory over Immaculata on Tuesday. The Colonels opened up a 5-0 lead in the first two innings before scoring three in the fifth, six in the sixth, and five in the seventh.
 
The Book On The Monarchs (11-13, 7-5 MAC Freedom):

• King's is 8-1 at Lipo Field this year including a 6-1 mark in conference game but are just 1-6 in road games. KC is fifth in Division III and second in the MAC Freedom with a .346 team batting average. The Monarchs are hitting an impressive .371 as a team on their home field and have outscored teams 75-30 in those games.
• The Monarchs are receiving significant contributions from all nine spots in the order starting with Matt Dobeck in the leadoff spot. The left fielder went 5-for-6 against CSU on Tuesday and is hitting .347 this year with a .431 on-base percentage. The sophomore has scored a team-high 28 runs and walked 10 times while being hit by a pitch four times.
• Christian Pack has been a hit machine his whole career and the senior had another three-hit game on Tuesday to move into a tie for third on the modern era school career hit list with 175. The shortstop is hitting .395 with 34 hits in 23 games. Dan Hartson has also been seeing the ball very well this year with a .402 average. The senior leads the team with 39 hits this season including 10 doubles. The senior is the probable starter for Saturday's second game. Hartson is 2-0 in four starts this year with a 2.57 ERA and is coming off a five-hit shutout over Delaware Valley last Saturday.
• Matt Mellinger has taken full advantage of his teammates getting on base ahead of him with 28 RBI this year including 15 at Lipo Field. The sophomore has hit the ball well all year and seems to come up with a big hit every time the Monarchs need one. He is batting .370 with six doubles overall and a team-leading .529 at Lipo Field. Mellinger could also see action on the mound this weekend where he has made four quality starts for the Monarchs.
• The lineup doesn't get any easier for opposing pitchers as Kyle Friebolin has a .328 average with 11 RBI and eight runs scored. The junior has been even better on the mound in relief recording a 3.37 ERA in 18.2 innings over eight appearances. He has struck out 12 while getting the Monarchs out of a lot of late inning jams.
• Tyler Reynolds and Sean McKee are batting under .300 at the bottom of the lineup but neither one is an easy out. Reynolds is hitting .275 but is slugging .608 with two doubles and five home runs. The second baseman has driven in 12 runs this year while scoring nine. McKee is batting just .253 on the year but has hit the ball very well in conference play recording a .342 average in those 12 games. 11 of his 15 RBI have come in conference play.
• The Monarchs have used Seth Laky and Mike Armstrong at third base this year and both have hit the ball extremely well. Laky is hitting .333 in 19 games while Armstrong has seen increased playing time lately and has taken full advantage with a .471 average in nine games. Noah Adams has stepped into the catching position after a few injuries for the Monarchs and is hitting .317 in 15 games. King's has also gotten significant contributions from Andrew Steidle with a .378 average in 18 games and Jonathan Hoyt with a .364 average in 13 games.
• The Monarchs have a staff ERA of 7.08 this year but have been dominant at Lipo Field with an ERA of 2.96 in nine home games.
• Colby Toth is the probable starter for one of the games this weekend. The freshman is 3-0 in six appearances this year with a 2.79 ERA in 29 innings. He has pitched really well the past two weekends earning wins over FDU-Florham and Delaware Valley. On Saturday, he allowed just one run on three hits in King's first complete game of the year by a pitcher. He has struck out four in his past two starts and has 19 on the season.
• Jacob Lupas is 0-3 this year in eight appearances with a 5.75 ERA. The sophomore has pitched well all year and is expected to see innings against the Colonels. Cooper Johnson could also see innings this weekend. The junior is 2-0 with a 7.16 ERA but has been dominant at Lipo Field holding opponents to a .277 batting average with a 1.88 ERA in 14.1 innings.

The Book On The Colonels (11-14, 5-7 MAC Freedom):

• Wilkes enters the series needing a couple of wins to stay alive in the race for one of the four postseason spots. The Colonels have lost three of the four conference series they have played so far. However, after the Monarchs they finish up the conference slate with the two teams that are currently seventh and eighth in the standings.
• WU swept King's last year in the regular season taking three close games from the Monarchs. The Colonels walked off with a 7-6 victory in Kingston before earning a 12-inning victory and a 3-1 victory in two games as Lipo Field. KC defeated Wilkes 6-3 later in the year to eliminate the Colonels from the conference tournament.
• First-year head coach Kevin Gryboski has used a lot of different lineups this year and has played different players in a lot of different positions. The Colonels have scored 10+ runs seven times this season but have also given up 10+ in six games.
• Brendon Reno is near the top of the conference with a .420 average. The junior has spread the ball around the field with seven doubles, two triples, and three home runs. He has knocked in a team-leading 27 runs while scoring 16.
• Jack Fischer is hitting .376 with nine doubles, 25 RBI, and 17 runs scored. Jonah Harder has seen a lot of action lately and is hitting .367 with a home run in 10 games.
• Nicholas Capozzi is hitting .341 with five doubles, two home runs, and 17 RBI while scoring 20 runs. Nick Pronti is batting .333 and Bryan Nifenecker adds a .320 average in 19 games mostly off the bench. Jack Hines and Alex Halladay have given WU good production off the bench. Hines is hitting .455 in 11 at-bats while Halladay is batting .353 in 17 at-bats.
• Noah Durnin, JT Hibschman, and Gage Coudriet have started nearly every single conference game for the Colonels and are the three probable pitchers the Monarchs will face this weekend. As a staff Wilkes has a 7.03 ERA but that number is 8.08 in conference games.
• Durnin is 2-2 on the season in five starts with a 3.91 ERA. In three conference starts he is 2-1 with a 3.06 ERA. Hibschman is 2-1 with a 4.67 ERA overall and has pitched a little better against conference opponents with a 4.43 ERA in four starts. He leads the team in innings pitched with 27 and 19 strikeouts. Coudriet is 2-2 with a 5.49 ERA in six games but has struggled in three conference starts with a 1-1 record and a 7.82 ERA.
• Zack Metz has been strong out of the pen recording a 2.38 ERA in 11.1 innings over eight appearances. Andrew Indzonka will be called upon to close for the Colonels. The sophomore has four saves this year and is 0-2 in nine appearances with a 7.56 ERA.

Up Next: King's will take on Penn State Hazleton in a non-conference game on Monday afternoon at 4 pm from Lipo Field in Wilkes-Barre.