LEXINGTON, Va. – Following another series win, the VMI Baseball team will host Norfolk State Tuesday for a matinee matchup at Lamore Field.
 
Game Details:
-First Pitch: 3 p.m. EST
-Location: Lamore Field at Gray-Minor Stadium in Lexington, Va.
-Probables: Andrew Jones (0-2, 4.50 ERA) vs. Noah Wiggins (0-0, 24.30 ERA)
-Links: Live Stats | Broadcast (ESPN+)
 
Last Time Out:
-VMI (8-9) won two-of-three from Binghamton over the weekend, including a 5-3 win in the rubber match on Sunday
-VMI's pitching staff allowed nine earned runs across the three games to post a 3.00 weekend ERA
-VMI's staff struck out 27 batters and walked just nine
-Keydet pitching threw just shy of 70% strikes for the weekend (69.95%)
-Holden Wilkerson had a career outing in the finale; he struck out 10 batters in six innings of one-run ball to earn the win
-Marcus Van Alstine collected saves in both Keydet victories
-Homers from Cole Jenkins and Cole Garrett propelled VMI to victory in game two; long balls from Grayson Fitzwater and Justin Starke helped the Keydets take game three
 
Tracking the Keydets:
-VMI has now won back-to-back series against America East opponents (NJIT, Binghamton)
-Keydet pitching has a 3.02 strikeout-to-walk ratio (154 K / 51 BB), which ranks 21^st in the country
-VMI is 15^th in the country in walks allowed per nine innings (3.12)
-Individually, Trey Morgan is tied for 1^st in the country in both K/BB ratio and walks per nine (13 K / 0 BB in 24 IP)
-VMI has stolen 44 bases, which ranks 6^th in the country
-But, VMI has been caught 19 times, which leads the country
-VMI's opponents have stolen only nine bases in 16 attempts against the Keydets
-Owen Prince and Jenkins have reached base safely in 16 of their 17 starts
-Starke, the 2024 SoCon Preseason Player of the Year, leads the team with five home runs and a .643 slugging percentage
-Brett Cook is 10-for-21 since being inserted into the starting lineup vs. NJIT
-VMI has committed 36 errors in 17 games
 
Scouting the Spartans:
-Norfolk St. (4-10) lost their opening NEC series this past weekend by dropping two-of-three to Central Connecticut State
-Nolan Manzer (0.54 ERA in 16.1 IP) and Ethan Blakeney (0.00 ERA in 10.0 IP) have led the Spartan pitching staff
-Offensively, Jalan Jones leads NSU with a .333 batting average and a 1.033 OPS
-Noah Wiggins, the probable starting pitcher, has conceded nine earned runs in four appearances out of the bullpen this season
 
Series History:
-VMI has a 22-1 record against the Spartans dating back to the first matchup in 2001.
-VMI defeated NSU in Norfolk on Feb. 20 by an 11-9 final in the first of three matchups this season
-In the win, Nathan Hawley pitched five scoreless innings, and both Ty Swaim and Cole Raile homered
-The two teams met five times last year with VMI taking four of the five games