Delaware (26-26) at UMBC (27-23) | May 16, 6pm | Baltimore, MD (Alumni Field) | Watch | Live Stats

UMBC Locks Up Second-Seed in Upcoming America East Championships
The Retrievers secured the No. 2 seed in the 2023 America East Championships with a doubleheader sweep of the UAlbany Great Danes, on Sunday afternoon at Alumni Field. The Retrievers took the seven-inning opener by a score of 11-7 and won the nightcap by a 7-2 margin. In the opener, UMBC senior center fielder Justin Taylor went 4-for-4, homered and drove in a career-high five runs to support sophomore starter Jayden Shertel, who recorded his fifth victory of the season on the mound.  Graduate student left fielder Christian Easley went 3-for-4 and scored three runs while freshman first baseman Leewood Molessa finished 3-for-4 and scored twice. Junior Joe Pucek (3-3) turned in a terrific performance in the nightcap to earn the victory. The left-hander allowed just one run and scattered six hits over 6.2 innings while fanning five batters. The hosts totaled 13 hits, including six that went for extra-bases. Easley paced the Retrievers with three hits and Molessa, senior designated hitter Michael Cilio and sophomore third baseman Matt Ryan each contributed two hits.
 
Retriever Bites
-  Junior RHP Luke Johnson is second in the league in wins (6) and strikeouts (77) and leads the circuit in ERA (2.97)
- Senior RHP Connor Kelly has recorded a conference-high eight saves.
- Senior catcher Tony Krueger is 4th in the AE in batting (.361) while senior center fielder Justin Taylor is 8^th (.337). Senior designated hitter Luke Trythall is 14^th (.317).
- Freshman first baseman Leewood Molessa is second on the circuit with 62 RBI and homers (16). Molessa needs just 2 RBI to break UMBC's all-time single-season record of 63 set by Shawn Shugars in 1992. He also needs one homer to equal the Retrievers' single-season home run mark. Molessa was named the America East Rookie of the Week for the sixth time on Monday after slashing .421/.842/1.318 in five games.
- Graduate student right fielder Ian Diaz is 5^th in the league with a .455 on base percentage while Krueger is 8^th (.444). Diaz is also third in runs scored (51).
- Graduate student left fielder Christian Easley is 4^th in the conference in stolen bases (25) and is 7^th with 13 doubles. Easley has moved into second on UMBC's charts with 71 career thefts.
- UMBC has smacked 51 homers this season, tied for the sixth-most in program history. The 1992 squad belted 63 round-trippers en route to the NCAA Regionals.
 
About the Blue Hens
- Delaware, who defeated UMBC by a score of 22-11 way back on February 21 in Newark, took two out of three contests against Colonial rival Towson this past weekend to improve to 15-12 in the league.
- Infielder Joey Loynd is having a sensational season as the first baseman is hitting .380 with 21 doubles, 12 homers and 72 RBI.
- JJ Freeman has also swung a powerful bat as the infielder comes in with a .342 batting average along with 13 doubles, 11 homers and 50 RBI.
- Joey Silan has been the squads most effective pitcher as he is 3-1 with a 3.95 ERA over a team-high 66.0 innings.
- Owen Margolis and Eli Atiya have both recorded five victories.
 
Up Next
- UMBC will host VMI for three games this Thursday (7pm) and Friday evening (5pm, 2 seven-inning contests).