GAME DAY INFORMATION DATE: March 11, 2022 LOCATION: Friday: Frank Vieira Field, West Haven, Conn.   GAME DAY LINKS WATCH LIVE STATS

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THE LEAD
The University of New Haven baseball team enjoyed a nice weekend trip in Cary, N.C. where they went 3-1 with their only loss coming in game two of their double-header with West Virginia State. They enter this weekend with a 5-3 record on the young season as they return home to take on Mercy . The squad will host the Mavericks for a double-header on Friday. First pitch for the double-dip is scheduled for 1:00 PM at Frank Vieira Field.

SERIES HISTORY VS MERCY
History has favored the Chargers when these two programs collide as New Haven holds a record of 15-7 in the series.
When hosting the Mavericks, the Chargers lead 6-2 while going 8-5 when traveling to Mercy. The Mavericks are currently on a three-game win streak over New Haven with their latest coming in a double-header on March 17, 2019. This series dates back to 2006 where the Chargers took the first game 9-2 on April 26. Click here for a deeper dive into the series history!

SCOUTING THE CHARGERS: 
The Charger's offense continues to heat up to start the year as they're coming off a 3-1 weekend in Cary, N.C. The weekend also included a 9-8 walkoff win over Saint Thomas Aquinas in extra innings.

Andrew Bianco (Kings Park, N.Y./Kings Park) continues to rake for the Chargers as he hammered two solo shots over the weekend. The junior first baseman leads the team in homeruns (3) while tying for second in the NE10. Bianco ranks second on the team with seven RBIs while holding a .515 slugging percentage. Cole Maucere (West Babylon, N.Y./West Babylon) has driven in runs in six consecutive games as he leads the team with nine, tied for tenth in the conference. The freshman outfielder has totaled eight singles and three extra base hits, two of which were triples, on .379 hitting. Also with three extra base hits is Robert Taylor (Wolcott, Conn./The Gunnery), who ranks second on the team with ten total hits. Taylor has also reached home ten times, which leads the team. Noah Budzik (Cromwell, Conn./Cromwell) was the hero of Sunday's game, driving in a run in the bottom of the tenth. Budzik has gone 9-31 (.290) on the season while walking five times and driving five runs in.

Thomas Eletto (Locust Valley, N.Y./Locust Valley) continues to dominate on the mound, racking up 0.75 ERA and a 0.92 WHIP through 12 innings. The senior righty has only allowed one earned run while striking out 12 batters to start the season. Bryan Pazulski (Media, Pa./Cardinal O'Hara) picked up his first win of the season over West Virginia State. He's allowed 11 hits through 10 innings while striking out nine. The junior has only given up one extra base hit despite allowing five earned runs.

Drew Silverman (Commack, N.Y./Commack) has tallied two saves in the closing role while striking out ten batters. The junior closer has allowed one earned run through 5.1 innings as he owns a 1.69 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP.

Head Coach Chris Celano broke a major milestone while in North Carolina as he crossed the 400 career wins mark. Celano has now amassed a record of 216-150-2 as the skipper of the Chargers while racking up a 401-288-2 record in his collegiate coaching career.

SCOUTING THE MAVERICKS: 
The Mavericks are 13 games into the 2022 season, holding a record of 3-10 going into weekend play. Mercy is currently on a four game losing streak with their most recent coming on Tuesday to the Adelphi Panthers in a 2-9 loss. Tuesday's loss was the only away game, not on a neutral site, the Mavericks have played this season as they hold a 1-3 record at home with their lone win being a 12-8 victory over the Bloomfield Bears. 

Jaden Caballero has been the Mavericks power threat to start the year, racking up two homeruns, two doubles and a triple on .333 hitting while driving in nine runs. Caballero leads the ECC with 17 hits while Nolan Giblin, the team leader in batting average (.341%) follows close behind with 15. The pair has also stolen eight bases on the campaign, four steals each. Graduate outfielder Robert Wootten has driven in a team leading 10 runs, as he is currently tied for fourth in the ECC. Nikko Liguori and James Mattutat have each racked up five RBIs with the former tallying 11 hits, as well.

On the mound, Kevin Seckler has been responsible for two of the Mavericks's three wins. The junior holds a 9.16 ERA and a 1.88 WHIP while racking up 13 strikeouts across 18.2 innings. Senior Jonathan Diforio leads all starters with a 5.19 ERA and a 1.56 WHIP. Diforio has struck out eight batters through 17.1 innings pitched. Anthony Burgio has started three of four appearances, racking up a 8.04 ERA and a 1.79 WHIP while tying Seckler with 13 strikeouts. Burgio has been the toughest pitcher to hit as he has allowed a .214 batting average to opponents. The junior has also recorded a save in the team's win over Bloomfield.
 

UP NEXT
New Haven won't travel far as they head to Bridgeport for an in-state battle. First pitch is scheduled for 3:00 PM on Wednesday, March 16 at Seaside Park.