The Panthers roll into Huntington to open up conference play against division foe Marshall. These two teams have met only a handful of times, and the series is tied at five games apiece. Marshall has taken the last three games against Georgia State, when the series was last in Atlanta last season.
Georgia State is coming into this matchup on a two-game skid, dropping their last two games by a combined 18 runs. Marshall isn’t too far behind the Panthers in production, losing their last two games by a combined 21 runs despite scoring 13 runs over those games.
In the Panthers’ last game against Mercer, the team showed they can hang in there after going down in the early frames, but the pitching staff so far has not been able to sustain that productivity.
After going down four runs in the top of the 1st inning, they came back and threw three scoreless innings, which allowed the offense to take the lead 5-4 in the bottom of the 4th inning. The pitching collapsed over the next two innings, with Mercer putting up 12 runs off 13 hits and run-ruling the Panthers in their own stadium.
Marshall’s pitching did not fare much better in their last game against Louisville, allowing 17 runs in the first four innings, their offense unable to keep up that pace. The Thundering Heard pitching staff is posting a 6.58 ERA in the first half of the season, putting them at 194th in all of Division I baseball and the second worst in the Sun Belt.
In a series where both teams are struggling on the mound, the offense is poised to have a big weekend on both sides. Georgia State hitters are batting .265 on the season with nine home runs and 106 RBIs.
Leading the way offensively for the Panthers is sophomore outfielder John Beverly, who is batting .397 on the season and is 7-15 over his last four games. Georgia State clocks in at 140th in all of Division I. baseball for batting average so far this season.
For Marshall, they’re the second-best batting team in the Sun Belt and 49th in all of Div I. baseball with a .307 batting average as a team.
Topping the offensive charts for the Thundering Herd is junior outfielder Even Bottone with a .418 batting average and five home runs on the season.
Georgia State at Marshall
First Pitch: Friday, March. 13th at 6:00 p.m. EST
TV: ESPN+
Click here for information on tickets. Georgia State fans can also contact the ticket office at (404)-413-4020 or email the ticket office at tickets@gsu.edu
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