Weekend Preview: ASUN Opener at Austin Peay

JACKSONVILLE, Fla. - It's a trio of firsts for UNF baseball this weekend as the Ospreys go to Clarksville, Tenn., to take on Austin Peay in the first ASUN games of the 2023 season. It's also UNF's first games outside the Sunshine State and North Florida's first games against Austin Peay as league foes.

GAME DETAILS
Date: Friday, March 17-Sunday, March 19
Time: 5 p.m. | 2 p.m. | 1 p.m. (all eastern)
Location: Clarksville, Tenn.
Opponent: Austin Peay
Watch: ESPN+
Live Stats: statbroadcast.com

Weekend Starting Pitchers
Friday
UNF | LHP Peter Holden
APSU | RHP Lyle Miller-Green

Saturday
UNF | LHP Trent Becker
APSU | LHP Campbell Holt

Sunday
UNF | RHP Clayton Boroski
APSU | RHP Jacob Kush

All-Time Series: APSU leads, 4-1

UNF and Austin Peay are meeting for the first time since March of 2006
The two teams have never met in Tennessee, or anyone outside of Harmon Stadium
UNF's lone win against the Governors came in the first-ever meeting March 10,1995

Last Time Out
GAINESVILLE, Fla. - Righty Clayton Boroski held the nation's leader in home runs without a baserunner for four innings, but the No. 5/4 Gators were able to get some timely hits down the stretch as UNF's early lead wasn't enough in a 7-2 loss at Florida (16-3) Tuesday, March 14.

Notables

UNF begins its 18th season of ASUN Conference play
The Ospreys are opening conference play on the road for the first time since March 2021 when UNF swept JU on the road
UNF is only five home runs short of its mark from last year. The Ospreys are on pace for 105 home runs, which would be good for a program record.
North Florida ranks second in the league in batting average, home runs, home runs per game, runs per game and slugging percentage
Alex Lodise scored five runs in a win against Fairfield last weekend, the most runs by a UNF freshman in a single game in at least the DI era
UNF won every non-conference regular season weekend series for the first time in the DI era.

National Noise

UNF has exploded out to 189 hits through 18 games, good for second in the league and 21st nationally. North Florida's 34 home runs is good for second in the league and 15th nationally.
Freshman Alex Lodise is tied for the league lead in home runs with seven, just three shy of setting the UNF single season freshman home run record.
Austin Brinling's hot start to 2023 has him first in the league with seven doubles, good for 47th nationally.

Run Up the Roundtrippers

UNF has homered 34 times this season, already only 5 shy of the team total from all 55 games played last season.
UNF hit 18 home runs through the first eight games, setting a North Florida record for at least the DI-era.
North Florida has posted eight multi-home run games, including two five-home run games, good for tied for the UNF DI-era record. The Ospreys have had 11 different players homer at least once this season.

Freshman Phenom
Freshman phenom Alex Lodise has dazzled non-conference foes through the first 18 games of his collegiate career. The Bartram Trail HS product paces the team in runs (22), hits (23), home runs (7), total bases (50) and is second on the squad in stolen bags with four. The dynamic shortstop scored five times Saturday, becoming the first Osprey to score five times in a single game since Donnie Dewees did so April of 2015.

Weekend Streak
UNF has won the first four weekend series of the season, taking two of three from Murray State, Villanova and Fairfield, while sweeping a four-game set with Fordham.

Set it Up, Shut it Down

Stephen Halstead and Lance Bolton have combined for four saves over 11 appearances this season, providing a dominant presence in the back half of UNF's bullpen
Halstead ranks first in the league in saves and fourth nationally, while ranking tied for tenth all-time in UNF history with nine saves
Bolton has been nearly untouchable in his first seven games as an Osprey, spinning a 3.00 ERA while fanning 16 in 12 frames

In-State Stretch
Stint in the Sunshine State UNF is playing its first games outside the Sunshine State on the season this weekend.

SCOUTING AUSTIN PEAY

Austin Peay plays its first-ever ASUN game
It's the Governors' first home game since Feb. 21 after a road trip became extended to 13 games after winds damaged the fencing around Joe Maynard Field at Raymond C. Hand Park
APSU is coached by first year head coach Roland Fanning, a 2005 graduate of Southeastern Oklahoma
This year's team is nearly brand new from last year's squad, featuring 27 transfers
APSU will send out two righty starters and another lefty this weekend. Friday night starter Lyle Miller-Green spun 5.2 innings at Oklahoma State
Austin Peay was tabbed to finish 11th in the ASUN per the preseason coaches poll
The center field wall was moved up 12 feet to just 380 after offseason adjustments to the playing grounds
APSU has won 11 OVC titles and sent nine players to the MLB
APSU is hitting .269 as a team, 32 points lower than the Ospreys
Austin Peay pitchers have fanned 10.9 batters per nine innings.

MORE UNF NOTES

You Look Familiar

Jakob Runnels homered twice against his former team, UCF, Tuesday in Orlando
Runnels second home run of the evening came against former Osprey, Zach Chappell, as the Ospreys faced three former ASUN hurlers on the evening.
Former Hatter, Dominic Stagliano, started the game while former FGCU Eagle Najer Victor came on in relief

Newcomer Contributions
13 different Ospreys made their UNF debuts, with nine making their first-career starts this season.

First Game Magic
Eric Fouraker came in as defensive substitution Feb. 22 against USC Upstate and proceeded to single in his first at-bat. He went on to launch a two-run home run to left field in his next trip up, making him the second Osprey in five games to homer in their UNF debut, joining Alex Lodise.

Walk-it Off Ospreys

UNF has blown some games open this year, but the Ospreys have also dug deep in one-run games, going 3-1 in one-run games this year
Two of those games have been won via a walk-off, with UNF doing so in a 3-2 win against Murray State and a 7-6 win against Fordham Saturday
Both of those wins have come in extra innings
Jakob Runnels ripped a walk-off pinch hit RBI single in the season opener, while Drew Leinenbach put down a walk-off squeeze bunt Saturday against Fordham

UNF Roots

Blake Pound has homered twice this season, both of which came against Fairfield this past weekend. He joins his father, Joe, as the only father-son duo in UNF history to have homered at UNF. Joe was a member of the UNF baseball team in the 90s.
Austin Brinling attended the University of Florida out of high school, but his UNF connection ran deep before that. Austin's uncle, Tim, is a UNF alum and received a resolution from the UNF senate wishing Austin a happy, healthy and successful life when Austin was born in 2000.

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Players Mentioned

Trent Becker

Lance Bolton

Clayton Boroski

Austin Brinling

Zach Chappell

Eric Fouraker

Stephen Halstead

Peter Holden

Drew Leinenbach

Alex Lodise

Blake Pound

Jakob Runnels

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