Baseball Heads to West Virginia for Three-Game Series

Friday, March 24

Morgantown, WV

1:00 PM

Xavier University

West Virginia

Baseball Heads to West Virginia for Three-Game Series

03.23.23 | Baseball

Watch Live (ESPN+)Live Stats

Musketeers and Mountaineers open series on Friday at 1 PM

By: Hayley Schletker, Xavier Athletic Communications

CINCINNATI – Xavier baseball heads to Morgantown, W.Va., to face No. 24 West Virginia for a three-game series, set to begin Friday, March 24 at 1:00 p.m. at Wagener Field at Monongalia County Ballpark, moved up from the original start time of 6:30 p.m. Game two of the series is scheduled for a 4:00 p.m. start on Saturday, with the series set to wrap up on Sunday at 1:00 p.m. All three games will be available for live stream on ESPN+.

The Musketeers are 10-10 on the season after falling to Cincinnati at home on Wednesday. On the season, the Musketeers have three-game sweep of Wofford in South Carolina last weekend and a three-game series sweep at Western Carolina, as well as wins over NKU, UC Santa Barbara, Cal Poly and Saint Mary's.

OPPONENT NOTABLES

The Mountaineers are 16-5 overall after splitting a pair of midweek games with Hofstra, having won nine straight before falling to the Pride on Tuesday.
West Virginia finished 2022 at 33-22 overall with a 14-10 record in Big 12 play.
WVU earned the No. 6 seed at the Big 12 Championship, falling to Oklahoma and Kansas State to wrap up the season.
Xavier has a 1-0 record all-time against the Mountaineers taking a 4-2 win over the Mountaineers in Florida on March 10, 1995.

THE LINEUP

Andrew Walker has made all 20 starts at left field, batting first in the lineup in the last eight outings. He leads the team with 29 hits, batting .337, and has a team-high 17 RBI and has scored 14 runs. Among his hits are a team-high six doubles and a home run.
Catcher Matthew DePrey has batted second in the last eight games, with a .286 (24-84) average at the plate on the season. Among his 24 hits are three doubles and eight home runs, a number that leads the BIG EAST and ranks 25th in NCAA DI. He's driven in 12 RBI and scored a team-high 16 runs. His seven-game hitting streak is currently the best among the Musketeers.
Shortstop Jack Housinger has batted third in each outing, with 15 hits on the season with nine of those going for extra bases, and has a team-high 12 walks. Housinger has 14 RBI and 13 runs scored on the season.
Matt McCormick has made 19 starts at first base, with a .300 average at the plate. Among his 21 hits are nine for extra bases, including five doubles and four home runs.
Third baseman Grant Stephenson is batting .225 on the season, has eight RBI and six runs scored.
Garrett Schultz has started in 19 games in center field, with a .236 average at the plate with 10 walks for the season driving in 12 RBI and scoring 10 runs. He's reached safely in all 19 games he's appeared in.
Second baseman Jared Cushing has a .247 average at the plate, with three doubles and four home runs on the season, 12 RBI and 10 runs scored.
Carter Hendrickson has made 16 starts, 15 of those in right, with a .296 average at the plate. Among his 16 hits are six for extra bases, including three home runs. Carter has nine RBI and 12 runs scored on the season and has reached safely in all 16 games he appeared in.
Hayden Christiansen has started at DH in nine games, and is batting .447, highest among Xavier players that have appeared regularly. Among his 17 hits are two doubles and two home runs for a .658 slugging percentage.
Tyler DeMartino made his first appearance of the season against Michigan after returning from injury and has starting at DH in the last five games. He batted .278 over the the last five games (5-18) and has four RBI and three runs scored.

ON THE MOUND

Ethan Bosacker has made five starts, with a 2.17 ERA through 29.0 IP. Bosacker has a .226 opposing batting average, allowing seven earned runs on 24 hits. He has team high matching 33 strikeouts to eight walks, with a WHIP of 1.10 and is 2-1 on the season.
Brant Alazaus has made five starts, with a 5.33 ERA in 27.0 innings pitched. He's 2-2 on the season and has allowed 16 earned runs on 23 hits and has 33 strikeouts after matching his career-high with 11 against Wofford.
Nick Boyle has made three starts, with a 10.12 ERA in 7.0 innings pitched, allowing eight runs on eight hits with seven strikeouts to nine walks.
Luke Hoskins has made eight appearances, including four starts, and has a 8.34 ERA through 22.2 innings pitched. He's allowed 21 earned runs on 26 hits, with 20 Ks to seven walks.
Justin Loer has made 10 appearances, including one start, posting a 1.89 ERA through 13.1 innings, allowing four earned runs on 10 hits, with 13 Ks to five walks. He's 1-1 on the season.
Connor Bailey has made seven appearances after making his first start of the season Bearcats. Bailey has a 6.48 ERA through 8.1 inning pitched through six appearances, allowing six earned runs on nine hits, with four strikeouts to three walk.
Jonathan Kelly has a 5.12 ERA in 19.1 innings pitched, making a team-high 12 appearances out of the bullpen. Kelly has 16 strikeouts to just three walks.
Clay Schwaner has made seven appearances out of the bullpen, with a 3.37 ERA through 10.2 innings pitched, and has three saves on the season.
Luke Bell has made six appearances, including one start, 7.23 ERA in 18.2 innings pitched, with 15 Ks to six walks. He went career-long 5.2 innings in relief during game three against UC Santa Barbara, not allowing a run.
Nick Kolze has made four appearances with a 1.69 ERA through 5.1 innings. He's allowed just one earned run on two hits, with four strikeouts to seven walks and has a record of 1-0.
Creighton Hansen has a 2.25 ERA through 4.0 IP in five appearances. He's allowed just one hit, and has four strikeouts to six walks.
Jake Zicka (2.0 IP) has an ERA of 0.00 after making his second appearance of the season against Cincinnati. He's not allowed a hit and has two strikeouts to two walks.
Ryan Rumsey made his first appearance of the season against UC, alloing three earned runs on four hits and a walk in 1.0 IP.

WEEKLY AWARDS

After helping Xavier to an extra innings win in a three-game sweep of Wofford over the weekend, graduate student Brant Alazaus was named the BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week on Monday. Catcher Matthew DePrey also earned a spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll.
Alazaus, a lefty from Alliance, Ohio, went a season-long 7.0 innings in the start in game two of the doubleheader at Saturday, allowing just one earned run on four hits with 11 strikeouts to one walk, helping Xavier to the 5-2 win in 14 innings.
His 11 strikeouts match his career high, set while at Walsh against Lake Erie on May 7, 2022. and were the most by a Musketeer in single game since Nick Zwack had 11 at Creighton on May 20, 2021. Alazaus has a team-high matching 33 strikeouts for the season in 27.0 innings of work.
DePrey also earned recognition from the league, earning a spot on the Weekly Honor Roll after leading the Musketeers' everyday starters at the plate last week, batting .381 (8-21), including two home runs, bringing his team-high total to eight, which leads the BIG EAST and ranks 25th in NCAA DI. DePrey, a junior from Sun Prairie, Wis., drove in four RBI and came around to score four runs, helping Xavier to a 3-1 week.

DEPREY ON POSEY WATCH LIST

Xavier junior catcher Matthew DePrey was named to the Watch List for the 2023 Buster Posey National Collegiate Catcher of the Year award, released by the Wichita Sports Commission on Friday.
Sixty-five catchers were nominated for the award by their schools. Because the award is given annually to the top division one collegiate catcher, the list will be updated to include other candidates until May 8, 2023. The watch list will be narrowed down to the semifinalists, announced on May 22, 2023.
DePrey is one of three from the BIG EAST. Ballots will be sent to the national voting committee at the end of May for a vote to determine the three finalists. The finalists will be announced June 6, 2023.
A final vote among the national committee will occur during the College World Series. All finalists will be brought to Wichita and the winner will be announced on June 29, 2023.

VS. CANCER PLEDGE IT CAMPAIGN

Xavier Baseball is once again joining forces with Vs. Cancer to raise money in support of the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation, taking part in a "Pledge It" campaign though seven games during the 2023 season.
Donors can pledge a donation per hit or per strikeout the team collects during the series against Butler (April 6-8), Xavier's weekday game as part of the Joe Nuxhall Classic set for April 11, and the series against UConn (April 14-16). Those interested can visit GoXavier.com/PledgeIt.
The team will conclude the campaign with a head-shaving event after the game on April 16, to show support of kids across the country battling cancer.
Fans wishing to support the fundraising efforts can make a donation per hit or per strikeout, pledging that amount for the team's total of either hits or strikeouts through those eight games. Sponsors can also choose to make outright gift of any amount. The Musketeers last took part in a "Pledge It" campaign to support Vs. Cancer in 2021, raising over $22,000.
Xavier Baseball has worked with Vs. Cancer since 2014 to help support children battling cancer, raising over $60,000 for the cause in that time.
Those funds were, in part, used to help the Vs. Cancer organization make a $100,000 gift to Cincinnati Children's Hospital. With the donation, Cincinnati Children's Hospital was assisted in being able to establish its Proton Therapy Center, one of only two such centers in the world owned by a children's hospital.

FOR THE RECORD

After helping Xavier rewrite several records last season, BIG EAST Preseason Player of the Year, shortstop Jack Housinger is positioned to make moves in the Xavier career records.
Housinger moved into Xavier's top five for career doubles, with 49 for his time as a Musketeer, tied for third most in program history and just 13 shy of matching the school record of 62.
After setting the single season school record of 68 runs scored last season, Housinger now has a career total of 154, seventh most in program history, with the current school record standing at 211.
He also had 47 walks on the season for 2022, the sixth most in a single season in program history, with his current total standing at 144, third most career walks for a Musketeer. The current school record is 188.

ROAD WARRIORS

Xavier opens the season on the road, playing 18 away games before opening the home portion of the schedule on Wednesday, March 15 against Michigan.
Overall, Xavier will play 36 games on the road, facing opponents from 12 different conferences, including the ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC.
Among Xavier's 24 scheduled opponents are six teams that competed in last season's NCAA Tournament.

UPCOMING SCHEDULE

Xavier plays a pair of midweek games on the road next week, starting with a trip to Ohio State on Tuesday, March 28, set for a 6:00 p.m. start.
Ohio State went 20-30 overall in 2022 and 8-14 in Big Ten play.
Xavier is 9-16 all-time against the Buckeyes.

XAVIER BULLPEN - 2022

The Musketeers return a strong core from last season's bullpen which posted a new school record of 482 strikeouts.
RHP Ethan Bosacker made the start in the season opener last Friday, returning to the rotation after sitting out last season due to injury. Prior to Friday, Bosacker was last in action in 2021, making 12 appearance, including 10 starts, with an ERA of 3.34 through 62.0 innings pitched and 53 strikeouts.
Lefty Brant Alazaus started game one of the Saturday doubleheader, his first appearance for the Musketeers after transferring from Walsh University. Alazaus started in 12 games last season at Walsh, pitching a total of 78.1 innings in 15 appearances. He finished had 2.88 ERA, had 100 strikeouts and only seven walks, and finished with a 6-1 record.
Justin Loer (LHP) made start in game two of Saturday's doubleheader. Last season he made 15 appearances, including three starts, finishing with an ERA of 3.55 through 25.1 innings pitched and a record of 2-0, with 18 strikeouts.
RHP Nick Boyle made the start for the Musketeers in the series finale on Sunday, his first career appearance for Xavier.
Among the returners, Preseason All-BIG EAST selection Luke Bell's 59 strikeouts from last season leads the way. Bell made 25 appearances for the Musketeers, including a team-high 10 starts, posting a 4-0 record. He had a 4.31 ERA through 56.1 innings pitched.
Bryce Barnett (40), Jared Gadd (38) and Jonathan Kelly (32), key contributors to last season's strikeout record, also return for Xavier.
Xavier also returns contributors from last season Conner Bailey and Luke Hoskins, as well as letterwinners Ryan Rumsey and Jake Zicka.
Off the transfer portal, Xavier added righties Clay Schwaner (Wofford), Creighton Hansen (Wichita State) and Nathan Stahl (Indiana).
The Musketeers also added freshmen Nick Kolze (RHP) Jack Niedringhaus (LHP) to the bullpen.

THE MUSKETEERS - 2022

The Musketeers bring back seven every-day position players and eight contributors from last season's school-record breaking offensive lineup. Xavier is coming off a season where they drove in a school record 425 RBI, score a program-best 450 runs, and had 100 home run season, crushing the previous school record of 68.
Among the returners, Preseason BIG EAST Player of the Year and the league's Preseason All-BIG EAST selection at shortstop, Jack Housinger, led the way with 16 home runs last season. The mark tied the previous school record and trails only Luke Franzoni's 29 home run season in 2022 in Xavier's single season records. last season, Housinger started at shortstop in all 60 games, batting .311 for the season, with 30 of his 71 hits going for extra bases for a .588 slugging percentage.
Garrett Schultz joined Housinger on the Preseason All-BIG EAST squad. Last season he played in 58 games, starting in 56, primarily in center field, batting .322, with 66 hits, including 14 for extra bases, and took 23 walks. Schultz drove in 33 RBI and came around to score 28 times.
Andrew Walker played in 57 games in 2022, starting in 56, all in left field. Walker batted .309 for the season, with hits 23 going for extra bases for a .505 slugging percentage. Among the extra base hits, he had 15 doubles and five home runs. He took 35 bases on balls, and finished with a career-best .437 on-base percentage.
Tyler DeMartino appeared in 57 games last season, making 55 starts, including 44 at center field and 11 at DH. DeMartino batted .309 for the season, driving in 47 RBI and scoring 40 runs on 63 hits. He had a .564 slugging percentage, collecting 27 hits for extra bases, including 14 doubles and 12 home runs.
Jared Cushing appeared in 58 games, starting in 54, making 34 starts at third base and 20 starts at second base. He Batted .290 for the season knocking in 31 RBI and scoring 33 runs on 60 hits. Of those hits, 20 went for extra bases including 10 home runs.
Matthew DePrey appeared in 42 games, starting in 26 last season, making 20 starts at catcher and six at DH. DePrey batted .266 with 29 hits, scoring 20 runs and driving in 16 RBI.
Alex Helmin appeared in 39 games in 2022, making 16 starts, primarily in right and center field. He finished with a .253 average at the plate, with 19 hits, including three doubles, and seven walks.
Grant Stephenson appeared in 27 games last season, starting in 26, all at third base, batting .310 for the season, with 27 hits, driving in 19 RBI and coming around to score 14 runs.

BIG (EAST) SUCCESS

The Musketeers have made the four-team BIG EAST Tournaments six times since joining the conference for the 2013-14 season.
Xavier has advanced to the conference championship series in each of it's six trips to the league tournament, claiming the tournament championship three times (2014, 2016, 2017), as well as winning the regular season title in 2016.
The Musketeers have advanced to the championship series and finished runners-up in each of the last three tournaments held (2019, 2021, 2022).

X IN THE PROS

A pair of Musketeers were selected in the 2022 MLB First-Year Player Draft, with junior Jack Lynch going to the St. Louis Cardinals in the 18th round, and senior Luke Franzoni selected in the 19th round by the Los Angeles Angels.
The two selections in 2022 makes it 20 total Musketeers selected in the MLB Draft since 2005.
At least one Xavier player has been selected in seven of the last nine years, and the 2022 draft marked the fourth time in that period that multiple Musketeers were picked.

PRESEASON PICKS

Ahead of the 2023 season, Xavier was picked the finish third in BIG EAST by the league coaches
Graduate student Jack Housinger was named the Preseason Player of the Year, and was the coaches' preseason All-League pick at shortstop.
Senior outfielder Garrett Schultz and Senior RHP Luke Bell were also selected to the Preseason All-Conference Team.

2023 Preseason Baseball All-BIG EAST Team and Awards
Preseason Player of the Year
Jack Housinger, Gr., SS, Xavier

Preseason Pitcher of the Year
Ian Cooke, So., RHP, UConn

Preseason All-BIG EAST Team*
C – Owen Carapellotti, So.., Georgetown
1B – Ben Huber, Gr., UConn
2B – Andrew Meggs, Sr., Creighton
3B – Kevin Michaels, RJr., St. John's
SS – Jack Housinger, Gr., Xavier
DH – Jack Grace, Sr., Creighton
OF – Korey Morton, Jr., UConn
OF – David Glancy, RJr., St. John's
OF – Will Gale, RJr., Seton Hall
OF – Garrett Schultz, Sr., Xavier
SP – Ian Cooke, So., UConn ^
SP – Cade Lommel, Jr., Creighton
SP – Dominic Cancellieri, Jr., Creighton
SP – Luke Bell, Sr., Xavier
RP – Tommy Steier, Gr., Creighton

^ - denotes unanimous selection
* due to a tie in voting, there is an extra member on the preseason all-conference team.

Preseason Coaches' Poll
First place votes in ( )
1. UConn (7) – 49
2. Creighton (1) – 43
3. Xavier – 36
4. Georgetown – 30
5. Seton Hall – 23
6. St. John's – 21
7. Villanova – 15
8. Butler – 7

XU TO HOST LEAGUE TOURNEY

The 2023 BIG EAST Baseball Championship presented by Jeep will be co-hosted by Xavier baseball at Prasco Park in Mason, Ohio, during Memorial Day Weekend.
The BIG EAST Tournament will open on Wednesday, May 24 and is scheduled to run through Saturday, May 27. The opening day of the tournament has been moved up a day from previous years.
The BIG EAST announced in 2019 that Prasco Park would extend the partnership, which began in 2018, with Xavier remaining the co-host of the annual postseason tournament.