By: Tobey Schulman
Preview: FAU vs. USF
FAU travels up to Tampa to take on USF in an AAC conference series after dropping a midweek matchup to Miami. The Owls after dropping three straight, look to bounce back and cover some ground in the AAC standings. With both of these teams being 7-8 in AAC conference play so far, this is a crucial series for both teams to pick up wins coming down the final stretch of the regular season.
After a historic start last week against Tulane, C.J. Williams will get the start looking to replicate something similar to his complete game shutout to pick up the Owls only win in the series. Game two Tyler Murphy will get back on the mound looking to pick up his fourth win, and Trey Beard will get the ball for the finale on Sunday.
The Owls offense continues to be highlighted by a core three recently: John Schroeder, Christian Adams, and Jalen DeBose. All three have been arguably the Owls most reliable hitters this season. Schroeder has an on base streak of 10+ games currently, Adams possesses a .308 batting average, and DeBose has been getting on base this season at a near 45% rate.
USF also finds themselves starting to struggle slightly. They’ve lost four in a row and look to use their home field advantage this weekend to pick up a series win over their new conference rivals. Right hander Hunter Mink will get the start in game one for the Bulls. Mink has a 5.04 ERA for the Bulls this season, and a 3-4 record. For the Owls offense expect a power threat from Emilio Gonzalez and Andrew McKenna given he’s in the lineup.
Both squads are two games over .500 in their record heading into this series. With both teams looking to get back in the win column, expect a solid performance on the mound from C.J. Williams and productive at bats from the Owls offense. Through the final stretch of these away games, every game is crucial to take.