LEXINGTON, Va. – VMI Baseball (20-19, 4-5 SoCon) returns to Gray-Minor Stadium for a dual against James Madison University (21-14, 7-8 Sun Belt) Wednesday at 6 p.m. to start a four-game homestand.
 
The Keydets closed out an eight-game road stint over the weekend, combining for 55 runs over the four victories. VMI looks to snap a six-game skid against James Madison and rebound from the loss to the Dukes earlier this season.

Game Information
Location: Lamore Field at Gray Minor Stadium
Live Stats: VMI vs. JMU
Broadcast: ESPN+

Game Schedule and Probables
VMI vs. JMU | Wednesday at 6 p.m.
- RHP Marcus Van Alstine (1-3, 6.53 ERA) vs. RHP Sean Culkin (1-0, 14.29 ERA)

Last Time Out
- VMI picked up the series victory over Mercer, the top-rated pitching squad in the conference, by winning 11-8 and 11-5 on back-to-back days
- This marks the first series win over the Bears since 2021 and the second ever in Macon, Georgia
- Keydets have won back-to-back SoCon series and are sixth in the standings with four conference victories
- Will Riley tossed a gem on Sunday to get his fifth win on the mound, going eight innings while striking out seven and allowing just one run
- Brett Cook dominated at the plate against the Bears, batting .462 with six hits, four RBI, four runs, two doubles, and a homer
 
Keys to the Keydets
- For the fourth consecutive week, the Keydets rank number one in the nation in stolen bases (128) and are now second in stolen bases per game (3.28)
- Kazuya Jordan ranks 11th in stolen bases per game (0.69) and 12th in total stolen bases (22) in the nation
- Along with leading the nation in a pair of categories, VMI ranks in the top 25 in sacrifice flies (25), sacrifice bunts (29), walks (223), hits (375), on-base percentage (.428), BB/9 (3.49), and runs (301)
- Trey Morgan has been a dual threat, standing fifth in BB/9 (0.91) and 15th in K/BB ratio (6.60) while being 10th in sacrifice flies (6) in NCAA DI
- Justin Starke and Ty Swaim lead the Keydets with 54 hits apiece, good enough for top 50 in the country
- Morgan has reached base in 25 consecutive games, the most by any Keydet this season and just one game shy of his all-time high
- Cook is riding a nine-game hitting streak
- VMI is 14-0 this season when scoring 10 or more runs
- Keydets are 6-0 when holding opponents to three runs or less
- Keep an eye on the record book as Starke is just three runs away from breaking the all-time runs record set by current VMI Baseball Head Coach, Sam Roberts

Scouting the Dukes
- James Madison holds a 21-14 overall record, going 7-8 in the Sun Belt
- Dukes are coming off a series loss to Old Dominion
- JMU has won against a pair of ranked opponents including #3 Arkansas in February and #16 Coastal Carolina in March
- Dukes have lost 11 road games this season
-JMU plays solid defense with runners on, turning the 11th most double plays (34) and 15th most double plays per game (0.97) in the nation
- Dukes tend to sacrifice at the plate, ranking fifth in sacrifice bunts (36)
- Fenwick Trimble has had success for JMU, slashing .343/.514/.429 with a team-leading 48 hits and 33 RBI
- In the previous meeting, Mason Dunaway went 2-for-3 with three RBI
- JMU's head coach, Marlin Ikenberry '95, is a former VMI Baseball player of four years and head coach of 11 seasons (2004-14) where he accumulated 282 overall wins and over 100 conference victories at the helm, both being the most all-time in program history
- Ikenberry also was the head coach of Roberts and 14 other MLB draftees
- JMU Associate Head Coach, Michael Roberts, is also a former VMI Baseball alum where he played three seasons under Ikenberry and one season with his brother and VMI head coach, Sam

Series History
- James Madison leads the all-time series, 60-16
- First matchup was in March 1972 when VMI won, 2-1
- Last game was in March 2024 when the Dukes defeated the Keydets, 8-4, in Harrisonburg
- This rivalry averages nearly 10 runs per game with 750 combined runs in the 50-year span
- 11 of the Keydets' 16 wins against the Dukes have been at home