Gardner-Webb (9-3, 0-0 Big South) at
Duke (11-3, 0-0 ACC)
SINGLE GAME SET
Tuesday, March 3, 4 p.m. – RHP Matt Manley vs RHP Jordan Regulski
Durham, N.C. – Winners of six in a row, Gardner-Webb baseball heads up Interstate 85 for a midweek showdown with the Blue Devils of Duke on Tuesday, March 3.
Hot Start to the Season: The Runnin' Bulldogs are off to a 9-3 start following a three-game sweep of Appalachian State over the weekend. This marks the best beginning to a season since the 2019 squad went 7-2 over its first nine games.
Against the Mountaineers: If you like dramatics, the series against App State was one for the ages as Gardner-Webb tallied all three wins in its final at-bat, including a pair of walkoff hits from Drew Ripepi in games one and two followed by a game-winner off the bat of Kelvin Agosto in the finale.
In total, the Dawgs put up 26 runs over three games with App State while batting a combined .312 as a team at the dish. Gardner-Webb posted a season-high 15 hits in the opening game of the series and collected double digit hits in all three, including eight doubles and two homeruns.
Ripepi led the Runnin' Bulldogs at the plate with a .500 batting average while Agosto and Ryan Kennell hit .429 and .400, respectively. Kennell also notched six RBIs. Allan Camarillo added four runs batted inOut of the leadoff spot, Merik Carter scored a team-high four runs while drawing six walks.
Oliver Ellison and Reid Bertram both tossed 6.0 innings during their respective starts while Colby Putnam anchored the bullpen with 3.1 innings of scoreless baseball to go along with five strikeouts.
Series with the Blue Devils: Tuesday's game marks the 12th in the series between Gardner-Webb and Duke. The Blue Devils hold a commanding 10-1 advantage in the series with Gardner-Webb's lone win coming by way of a 9-5 score in 2023.
Scouting the Blue Devils: Duke is off to an 11-3 start after taking three-of-four from Princeton. However, the Blue Devils dropped the series finale, 8-7. Duke has also played App State this season, defeating the Mountaineers 10-5 in a midweek clash.
Cider Canon leads the Blue Devils in average (.452), hits (19), and RBIs (21). Canon has also belted a team-leading six homeruns. Jake Lambdin has collected seven doubles while hitting .298. RJ Hamilton and Tyler Albright have added 15 and 11 RBIs each, respectively.
On the mound, Aidan Weaver is a perfect 3-0 with a 3.18 earned run average. He has tossed a team-high 17 innings to go along with 22 strikeouts. Opponents are batting .180 against Weaver. Ben Dean sits at 2-0 with a team-best 25 strikeouts. Aiden O'Connell has added three saves for the Blue Devils. Duke will be throwing right-handed pitcher Jordan Regulski. Regulski has started two games, but only has 3.0 innings logged on the season while carrying a 12.00 ERA.
