Contact: John Hartrick (hartrick@binghamton.edu)

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VESTAL, N.Y. - With a four-game win streak in hand but some work to do to secure a playoff spot, Binghamton baseball hosts UMBC in a pivotal America East series this weekend at the Bearcats Sports Complex. The teams will begin the three-game set with a doubleheader on Saturday starting at noon.

The two-time reigning champion Bearcats (16-16-1, 6-8) and Retrievers (22-16, 7-8 AE) are in a group of five teams (behind frontrunner Stony Brook) who are battling for the final three postseason spots. UMBC currently occupies the No. 2 playoff spot and Binghamton is in the No. 4 position. But all five teams are separated by no more than 1.5 games in the standings, with three regular season series' remaining. Looming ahead for BU is a tough road series nine hours away at Maine and then a final home series against first-place Stony Brook.   

Binghamton enters this series on a high after two dramatic extra-inning, walk-off wins over St. Bonaventure on Tuesday. Binghamton has now won four in a row and is 8-3-1 in its last 12 games. Against the Bonnies, BU won the opener 4-3 in nine innings and also took the nightcap 4-3 - this time in eight innings. It marked the first time in BU's 58-year history that it recorded back-to-back extra-inning walk-off wins. Junior third baseman David Schanz had the game-winning hit in the opener and senior catcher Nick Pancerella ended the nightcap with an RBI single.

Senior center fielder Zach Blanden leads the America East in hitting, slugging (.559) and on-base percentage (.483). He is also second in runs scored. Senior right fielder Jake Thomas is second in on-base percentage (.467) and third in both hitting and slugging (.527). Thomas has 196 career hits and will soon join Blanden (202) on that short list. Sophomore infielder Brendan Skidmore is fourth in slugging (.505) and sixth in RBI.

Senior Greg Ostner (1-5, 4.47 ERA) and junior Mike Bunal (4-3, 4.11 ERA) will start Games 1 and 2 respectively today. The opener is nine innings, followed by a seven-inning contest. The teams will finish with a 1 p.m. game tomorrow.

UMBC has put itself in the playoff mix, thanks to the program's highest-win total in 13 years (8-3 in last 11 games). Five weeks ago, the Retrievers swept BU in a three-game set in Baltimore. Binghamton, however, still holds a 40-9 cushion in the all-time series.

UMBC also took two of three against Maine to pad its win total. They lead the America East in both hitting (.279) and pitching (3.54 ERA).

Junior outfielder Nick Naumann is hitting .350 with 25 RBI. Senior infielder Vince Corbi is hitting .312 with 28 RBI. Second-year outfielder Andrew Casali is hitting .308 with a team-high 29 RBI. On the hill, UMBC will start freshman righty Matt Chanin (3-1, 2.45 ERA) and junior righty Conrad Wozniak (2-1, 1.28 ERA) on Saturday.