VCU baseball to play in weekend ‘shootout’

Zachary Holden
Staff Writer

Hoping to build on their perfect 5-0 start, the VCU baseball team travels to Charleston, S.C. to partake in the Charleston Crab House Shootout hosted by The Citadel. The tournament will be held over three days, beginning on Friday, March 1.

The Rams will face UNC Asheville (3-4) on Friday at noon, The Citadel (4-4) on Saturday at 4 p.m., and conclude the weekend against Pittsburgh (5-1) on Sunday at 11 a.m.

VCU’s first foe, UNC Asheville, most recently blew out Canisius 14-2, but this came after they were defeated by Canisius earlier that day 6-4 in 11 innings.

The Bulldogs have three players with at least six starts hitting over .400. This includes Kyle Towles who is hitting an impressive .500 while adding in eight runs and six RBI.

Saturday’s opponent and tournament host The Citadel have had a number of close games this season. Six of their eight games have been decided by two runs or less.

The Citadel’s two players to watch are Tyler Griffin and Joe Jackson, who are hitting .429 and .378 respectively. Combined, the two have 29 hits, 24 RBI, nine runs, and five home runs in eight games played.

Wrapping up the shootout with Pittsburgh will likely be VCU’s most difficult game. The Panthers have the second-best record in the shootout, behind VCU, and have outscored their opponents in five wins by a margin of 50-26, most recently blowing out Wofford 19-8. Pittsburgh has three batters who have started all six games and are hitting above .450, while racking up a combined 37 hits, 21 runs scored, 22 RBI and three home runs.

A weekend sweep would extend VCU’s record to 8-0, just three shy of the 11-0 start by the 1989 team. The continuation of a perfect start could get the Rams serious consideration for the NCAA top-25.