Beginning another road trip and this time a five-game journey, Appalachian State University baseball heads down the mountain to face former SoCon rival Davidson for the first time in two years.

First pitch is set for 6 p.m. on Tuesday, April 11 as the Mountaineers look to snap a four-game skid. Listen live on appstatesports.com.

NOTING THIS WEEK'S GAME

• Appalachian State baseball (12-20, 3-9 Sun Belt) goes back on the road for five games looking to snap a four-game skid against Davidson (16-13, 7-5 Atlantic 10).

 

• The all-time series has the Mountaineers with a 63-38-1 advantage over the Wildcats, with the majority of the games coming when the two programs were in the Southern Conference. Now both teams have moved on with App State in the Sun Belt and Davidson in the A-10.

 

• Appalachian was swept in its last series by UT Arlington. It's just the second time in conference this season and third time all year (Missouri, Texas State, UTA) that the team has been swept.

 

• App State is 1-1 in midweek games following a weekend sweep. They downed NC Central 9-5 after Missouri and fell in a hard-fought walkoff to then-No. 24 Wake Forest 5-4 at home.

 

• Appalachian showed grit in its series against Little Rock, winning back-to-back one-run ballgames to win the series including a 7-6 come-from-behind victory in Game Three (See “Close Calls” and “Cardiac Apps” below).

 

• During the Little Rock series, Appalachian won a game despite allowing 17 runs. Nationally, only 12 teams have won a game allowing more.

 

• Matt Vernon and Tyler Stroup have continued to lead the way offensively for App State when hot bats have been hard to come by at times.

 

• Vernon currently leads the team with a .303 batting average, having a .470 slugging percentage. Stroup has bat .278 with a .509 slugging percentage and leads the team with six home runs and 19 RBI.

 

• Adding to his four homers in the past 13 games (leading the team with six overall), Stroup also became the second Appalachian player to hit for the cycle in 14 years on March 21 (See “Stroup Emerges as Power Hitter” below).

 

• Appalachian has been in almost every game this season no matter the opponent with nine of its 20 losses this season have come by two runs or less.

 

• Entering last weekend, the Black and Gold led the conference in team fielding, at 98.3 percent. App State was third in putouts (241), tied-second in chances (346) and had a league-low six errors.

 

• The team slipped to eighth after nine errors last weekend against UTA.

 

• Continuing his good eye at the plate, Calev Grubbs has 24 overall this season (good for fourth overall in the conference and 53rd in the nation).

 

• Pitching has continued to be a staple this season for the Black and Gold, currently seventh overall as a team in the Sun Belt with a 4.37 ERA after being third before last weekend with a 4.03 ERA. Appalachian is also second in the league in pickoffs with eight.

 

• LHP/DH Colin Schmid has continued to be the Mountaineers' two-way player this season again and with a team-best season ERA of 2.91 (good for 10th in SBC), he continues to be one of the best two-way players in the Sun Belt Conference despite a slow start at the plate (see “Schmid Continues To Be One of Sun Belt's Two-Way Studs” below).

 

• Another two-way player for Appalachian has been Matt Brill. The Apps' ace closer, Brill hit .462 (6-13) in the past four games with two doubles, a home run and two RBI to finish with a .846 slugging percentage. He also was able to cross the plate twice himself.

 

• At 12 wins, Appalachian State is seven wins away having it's most victories since 2014 (21).

 

• Entering the weekday contest on the mound is the usual starter, Bobby Hampton. Hampton is second among starters with a 4.15 ERA and a 2-1 record. His .264 opposing batting average tops all throwers.

 

• Entering the weekend, starting catcher Chandler Seagle and is third in the Sun Belt Conference by catching 11 would-be base stealers. DH/LHP Schmid is also fourth in SBC at a career-high nine numbers (from the mound) while Seagle's have come from behind the dish. Hampton, Watts and Brad Davis are next highest on the team with two.

 

• Since 2003, Schmid has the lowest stolen-base-against percentage for Appalachian baseball, allowing just 40 percent through two years (8-20).

 

• Seagle has caught 40.7 percent of would-be base thieves this season (11-27), leading the conference (see “Sharp-Shooters Behind the Dish” below).

 

SERIES HISTORY

 

• The all-time series has the Mountaineers with a 63-38-1 advantage over the Wildcats, with the majority of the games coming when the two programs were in the Southern Conference.

 

• Now both teams have moved on with App State in the Sun Belt and Davidson in the A-10.

 

• The last four meetings have come in Davidson or at L.P. Frans Stadium (Hickory, N.C.)

APPALACHIAN STATE BASEBALL at Davidson
Date	Opponent	Time (ET)	App State Probable Starting Pitcher	Opponent's Probable Starting Pitcher
Tuesday, April 11	Davidson	6 p.m.	So. LHP Bobby Hampton	TBA