This Week: Notre Dame College will travel to Frostburg State University for a four-game series on Saturday and Sunday Apr. 30-May 1. The two sides will play a doubleheader on both days beginning at 1:00 p.m.
 
Records: NDC begins the week at 20-22 (14-10 MEC) and seated in third place in the MEC North Division. FSU is currently 28-10 (18-6 MEC) and in first place in the MEC North Division. Note, the top three teams from each division advance into the MEC Tournament. The Falcons currently hold a two-game lead over fourth place Wheeling (12-12 MEC) for the final spot in the North Division.
 
Coaches Corner: Len Barker is in his 11^th season at the helm of the NDC baseball program for the 2022 season. Barker has a career record of 220-265. Anthony Williams is the head coach of Frostburg State in his third season with the team.
 
Rankings: None of these teams are ranked according to the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association (NCBWA) Poll.
 
Series History: Notre Dame is 3-1 all-time when facing Frostburg State, dating back to 2021.
 
Noting the Falcons: Notre Dame is coming off a week in which they went 2-3. The Falcons beat Malone 9-6 on Wednesday, before going 1-3 against Wheeling over the weekend. NDC fell in game one 15-5, then took game two 9-2, before dropping the final two contests 11-9 and 9-5. Hayden Parker enjoyed a career series by tallying three hits in back-to-back games and going 8-for-11 over the final three games of the week. Nick Farrell joined Parker in collecting five hits on Sunday, with his fifth hit marking No. 200 for his career. The redshirt senior is now the second player in program history to notched 200 hits in a career, joining Danny Beaver who slugged 212 from 2014-17.
 
Ben Ross leads Notre Dame on offense in every major offensive category except on base percentage where he ranks second. The shortstop posts a .369 batting average, 1.172 OPS, .745 slugging percentage, .427 on base percentage, 55 hits, 13 doubles, two triples, 13 home runs, 45 RBIs, 111 total bases and 41 runs scored. Amongst the Mountain East Conference, the redshirt sophomore is 13^th in batting average, sixth in OPS, fourth in slugging percentage, second in total hits, tied for fifth in doubles, tied for 11^th in triples, tied for second in home runs, second in RBIs and second in total bases.
 
N. Farrell has also contributed to the NDC offense in several different ways. He has hit safely in 18 straight games and flashes a .336 batting average (2^nd), .968 OPS (2^nd), .570 slugging (2^nd), 50 hits (2^nd), nine doubles (3^rd), eight home runs (2^nd), 28 RBIs (3^rd) and 85 total bases (2^nd).
 
Moreover, Kyle Espineli, Michael Zeuli and Alec Mendoza warrant solid production at the for NDC. Espineli is third in batting average (.325), OPS (.883), slugging percentage (.570) and second in doubles (12). Zeuli is fourth in batting average (.311), while leading the team in on base percentage (.444). Lastly, Mendoza clocks in fifth in batting average (.293), with the third most hits (43), fourth in doubles (7) and second in runs driven in (33).
 
On the bump, Austin Mora and Alex Dicke headline the Notre Dame pitching staff as the one-two starting combo. Mora has been tabbed as the Falcon ace, posting a 6.83 ERA over his team leading 11 starts this season. The redshirt senior has 57 strikeouts and is holding opponents to .243 opponent batting average. Dicke has enjoyed a fabulous freshman season with a 3.65 ERA and 32 strikeouts over his seven starts. He leads Notre Dame with a .199 opponent batting average in 44.1 innings pitched. Amongst qualified pitchers, Dicke is third in the MEC in ERA and tops in opponent batting average, as Mora is tied for third in innings pitched (59.1), while being fourth in opponent batting average.
 
Aaron Miller is the anchor in the Falcon bullpen, posting a team best 3.00 ERA over his 24 innings pitched this season. Miller has generated 24 strikeouts and ten walks this season while also totaling seven saves. The redshirt sophomore is currently tied for the NDC single season record with his team leading seven saves.
 
As a whole, Notre Dame is slashing .292/.371/.431 (BA/OBP/SLG), with 69 doubles, nine triples, 30 home runs and 247 runs scored. The NDC pitching staff has allowed a 7.21 ERA, .295 opponent batting average, while totaling 267 strikeouts and 207 walks allowed.
 
Noting the Bobcats: Last week, Frostburg State split their six games after going 1-1 against Wheeling and 2-2 against West Liberty. FSU defeated WU in game one 7-0 before falling 4-2 in the series finale. Moreover, the Bobcats took game one (7-5) and three against (12-5) the Hilltoppers, while losing games two (4-1) and four (11-6).
 
The Bobcats poise a potent offense that features seven players hitting north of .300, led by Bryce Jackson's .429 batting average. Jackson is the heart and soul to the Bobcats offense as he posts ranks amongst the MEC elite in several categories. Jackson shows a 1.474 OPS, .916 slugging percentage, .558 on base percentage, 51 hits, 11 doubles, 15 home runs, 41 RBIs and 109 total bases.
 
Trevor Jones, Danny Estrada and Ethan Kiple all have hit above .300 this season while also generating 20 or more runs driven in. Kiple is also a long ball threat with 12 home runs and 35 RBIs this season, both second on the team. Jack Lawrence is the lone Bobcat (amongst qualified players) who hit below .300 (.282) this year, but he produces his damage with 31 runs driven as FSU shows minimal hole throughout their lineup.
 
On the mound, Frostburg State has five pitchers with at least six starts this season with each pitcher posting an ERA under 5.00. Max Proctor leads the Bobcat starting pitching staff with a 3.66 ERA in 39.1 innings pitched. FSU features a strong duo out of the bullpen in Dean Wandell and Cael Huyer who have each pitched in ten contests this year. Wandell is the leader of the Bobcat hurlers with a 2.82 ERA and .183 opponent batting average, as Huyer flashes a 2.93 ERA and .278 opponent batting average.
 
As a team, Frostburg State is slashing .336/.442/.574 with 81 doubles, 15 triples, 56 home runs and 326 runs scored. The Bobcat pitchers have amassed a 4.06 ERA, .250 opponent batting average, with 269 strikeouts and 130 walks allowed.