Men's Baseball | 4/5/2024 11:35:00 AM

After a spring storm dumped wet snow on the North Country and much of the Northeast, the Clarkson University Baseball team has been forced to hit the road once again, as the Golden Knights will head downstate to take on University of Rochester in a three-game set.

The first two games will be played at University of Rochester on Saturday, while Sunday's game will be held at a neutral site, Monroe Community College, due to a conflict with Rochester's adjacent facility and its track meet that day.

Live Stats
Live Video

The Series: Rochester has won nine straight meetings against the Knights dating back to 2021. Clarkson won two of the first three games in that series before suffering a loss in the fourth contest. Included in the nine-game losing skid are two Liberty League Tournament contests.

Key Stats for Clarkson (7-9, 0-5 Liberty League): Junior Cole Riskin enjoyed the best start of his career against RIT last weekend when he went five innings and allowed five hits with five strikeouts. In his first season as a starter, Riskin has struck out 18 hitters in 20.2 innings. Clarkson might be getting some of its injured players back for the weekend, as Pat Elliott hasn't played since early in the Florida trip. He has seven extra-base hits in seven games, including a pair of home runs. After Tuesday's game against Plattsburgh, the Knights now have four regulars hitting .300 or better, including Kent Wilson (.382), Aidan Kuefner (.320), Joe Figliolino (.308), and James Mason (.300).

Key Stats for Rochester (9-11, 4-2 Liberty League): While the Yellowjackets' offense may not be quite as formidable the last few seasons, Rochester still packs plenty of punch at the plate. Alec Ellison has 23 runs batted in and 10 extra-base hits to go along with a slash line of .421/.443/.618, Jackson Reed has 10 doubles and scored 22 runs thanks to his .354/.458/.506 line, and Dylan Stezzi is hitting .333 and slugging .514, having driven in 16 runs and scoring 17 more. Josh Leadem has been limited to 13 games, but has a .484 on-base percentage and 15 stolen bases in 18 tries. Nolan Sparks continues to be hard on hitters, having struck out 31 hitters in 23 innings with a .181 opponents' batting average. Dillon Bevan also has 21 strikeouts in 22.1 innings with a 2.42 earned run average.