Tampa Baseball Set for 2019 Home Opener

TAMPA, Fla. – The University of Tampa baseball team will meet LIU Post in a three-game series, marking the first home series of the season for the Spartans.

The Matchup: No. 2 University of Tampa Spartans vs. LIU Post Pioneers

Date/Time: Friday at 6 p.m., Saturday at 2 p.m., Sunday at 1 p.m.

Location: University of Tampa Baseball Field | Tampa, Fla.

About the Spartans: Ranked No. 2 in the preseason rankings, UT stumbled in a pair of games to open the season. After defeating No. 1 North Greenville, UT continued to click in a four-game road sweep over No. 6 Georgia College. In that series, UT outscored the Bobcats by a combined score of 42-12. Seven Spartans are now hitting over .300, with the power coming from Alec Aleywine and Danny Maynard, who both have two home runs. Danny Sirven and Stephen Smith have each drove in seven runs while sophomore Drew Ehrhard has a team-leading 10 hits to go with his .333 batting average. Nick DeTringo has posted a .405 on-base percentage with a team-high five stolen bases as the leadoff hitter. The Spartan pitching staff is led by senior ace Keven Pimentel, who is now 1-1 with a 1.50 ERA. In 12.0 innings of work, the righy has struck out 11 while walking just one. The other Spartan starters, Tanner Foster and Mason Duke, have thrown a combined 24.0 innings without an earned run in 2019.

About the Pioneers: This marks the season opener for LIU Post, who had a 29-20 record and went 16-8 in East Coast Conference play in 2018, advancing to the semifinals of the ECC Tournament. Pitcher James Varela, along with being a consensus All-American, broke program single-season records in strikeouts (116) and victories (11) during the Pioneers 13-4 victory over Molloy. Varela, the 2018 ECC Pitcher of the Year and ECC All-Conference First Team honoree was among six Pioneers to earn postseason honors. Junior Dave Brehm garnered NCBWA All-East Region second-team accolades and fellow junior Anthony Vaglica and senior Ramger Iglesias earned honorable mention recognition.

Series History: This marks the first meeting between the NCAA Division II opponents. 

Tickets: Tickets for are $5 for adults, senior citizens, and coaches. Children under 12 will be admitted free. UT students, faculty and staff will be admitted free with a valid student ID.

Game Coverage: Fans may watch live at TampaSpartans.tv. Live stats are also available through TampaStats.com.

Follow UT Athletics: @TampaSpartans on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat and YouTube.

Text Alerts: UT also offers a free text messaging service that sends text alerts following all Spartan events. To sign up, please register at www.tampaspartans.com.

Front Row: Download the official app of UT Athletics on the Apple or Android store. Look for Tampa Spartans Front Row app to receive notifications from your favorite Spartan teams. The app is completely free.