Baseball | February 15, 2018
PHILADELPHIA – With new leadership and a new attitude, the La Salle University baseball team will open its 2018 campaign on Friday, when the Explorers begin a four-game series at Presbyterian College in Clinton, S.C.
HOW TO FOLLOW
La Salle (0-0) at Presbyterian (0-0)
Game 1 | Friday – 2 p.m. |
Live Stats
Game 2 | Saturday – 12 p.m. |
Live Stats
Game 3 | Saturday – 3 p.m. |
Live Stats
Game 4 | Sunday – 11 a.m. |
Live Stats
Twitter:
@LaSalleBase #LaSalleBASE
NEW LEADERSHIP
David Miller was hired as the tenth head coach in program history in June and will guide the Explorers for the first time in 2018.
Miller came to La Salle after a successful run as head varsity coach at William Penn Charter School. His Penn Charter teams posted a .757 winning percentage during his four years at the helm, and prior to that, Miller was an assistant coach at Villanova. He was a consensus All-American at Clemson during his playing days and played eight seasons professionally after being chosen as the 23rd overall selection in the 1995 MLB Draft by the Cleveland Indians.
LOOKING BACK AT 2017
La Salle went 10-41 overall last season and 4-20 in the Atlantic 10. An 11-game losing skid to open the season haunted the Explorers from the start. However, later in the season, La Salle defeated Lehigh, Delaware and Pennsylvania en route to the Liberty Bell Classic title. It was the first Liberty Bell Classic championship for the Explorers since 2006 and just the second in program history since the championship was established in 1992.
CORE RETURNERS
The Explorers bring back most of their roster from a season ago, with 23 players returning for 2018. The team also added nine freshmen to the group in addition to one transfer.
La Salle's top four hitters are back this year, including senior
Austin Constantini, who led the team with a .304 batting average a season ago. Junior first baseman
Ben Faso is also back after hitting .290 and leading the squad with six home runs and 26 RBI in 2017, and classmate
Kevin McGowan, who led the Explorers with 26 runs scored and hit .283, returns at second base.
On the mound, La Salle returns Big 5 Rookie of the Year
Matt Holt. The sophomore right-hander was second on the team with 56 strikeouts last year and went 2-3 with a 3.97 ERA, landing on the A-10 All-Rookie Team. Constantini also served as the closer and appeared in 12 games on the mound, posting a team-best 2.16 ERA with five saves.
SCOUTING THE BLUE HOSE
Presbyterian is coming off a historic season after going 32-29 overall and finishing third in the Big South Conference standings. The Blue Hose return seven starters from their 2017 squad, including T.J. Richardson, who was a first team all-conference selection. Presbyterian also returns Big South All-Tournament members Nick Guimbarda and Nick Wise.
