GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNC Greensboro (UNCG) baseball team embarks on an eight-game stretch of road contests, beginning with the Virginia Military Institue (VMI) Keydets for a three-game weekend series to begin The Southern Conference (SoCon) schedule.

The Spartans will take on the Keydets on Friday at 6:00 p.m., Saturday at 2:00 p.m. and Sunday at 1:00 p.m. at Lamore Field at Gray-Minor Stadium.
 

LAST TIME OUT FOR THE SPARTANS

• After being on a four-game winning streak, the Spartans are now on a five-game skid after falling in back-to-back midweeks against New Mexico State, 6-4 and 9-6, and being swept at home by UConn over the weekend, 3-1, 5-2 and 6-4.
• Junior infielder Jeremy Wolf led the team in terms of batting average while playing in four of the five games against New Mexico State and UConn. He batted .444 (8-for-18) and totaled 10 bases, which was second on the team.
• Graduate catcher Case Kermode saw action in all five games and was a force at the plate, batting .353 (6-for-17) and leading the team with two home runs, five RBI and 13 total bases.
• Kermode has now homered in back-to-back games heading into the series at VMI. His home run on Sunday never left the yard, marking the Spartans' first inside-the-park home run of the season.
• On the hill, senior right-handed pitched Sam Murchison threw six innings with seven strikeouts while only allowing four hits and two runs (one earned).
• Junior right-hander Jay Miller led the Spartans in strikeouts after recording eight on Saturday vs. UConn.
• Sophomore right-handed pitcher Mayson Dear pitched a total 4.1 innings in relief and surrended just one run while striking out seven.

SCOUTING THE SPARTANS

• The Spartans own an overall record of 10-14 heading into their first SoCon series at VMI this weekend.
• UNCG faced four consecutive Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) opponents, amounting to eight straight games from Feb. 18-March 4. The Spartans went 3-5 during the stretch.
• The Spartans opened the eight straight games against ACC foes with an upset over then-No. 13 Wake Forest at home, 4-0, on Feb. 18.
• UNCG stands at 13th in the country with three shutouts this season, 15th in walks allowed per nine innings (3.29) and 23rd in strikeout-to-walk-ratio (2.89).
• Miller leads the Spartans in total strikeouts with 46, which ranks 26th nationally.
• Murchison is second on the team with 37 punchouts while Noah Chapman is third on the Spartans with 33 strikeouts.
• Right-handed reliever Danny Thompson Jr. ranks 64th in the nation with three saves this season.
• Murchison leads UNCG in wins with a 3-1 record, which, based on victories, stands tied for 106th in NCAA Division I.
• The Spartans set a new season-high for runs (13) on March 2 vs. Pitt at home.
• Wolf leads the Spartans with a .341 (28-for-82) batting average and seven doubles this season.
• Luke Holland leads UNCG with four home runs and 15 RBI.
• Freshman Parker Wight is tied for the team lead with Wolf at 37 total bases. He is the only Spartan to play in all 24 games this season. He has started in all 24 games.
• The Spartans were voted to finish first in the 2025 SoCon Preseason Coaches' Poll.
• Senior right-handed pitcher Rob Ready was named one of two SoCon Preseason Pitchers of the Year by the league. The other was Michael Harpster of ETSU.
• In addition, a total of six Spartans were recognized on Preseason All-SoCon Teams. They were Ready (SP), Trey Truitt (DH), Holland (OF) and Grant Aycock (RP), who were named to the first team, while Hunter Shuey (SP) and Thompson Jr. (RP) rounded out the list on the second team.
• Chapman is also back after being named to the SoCon All-Freshman Team in 2024.
• The Spartans are coming off a historic season where they posted an overall record of 33-21, marking their 19th 30-win campaign in the program's 34-season history.
• UNCG captured its third Southern Conference (SoCon) Regular Season Championship behind a conference record of 15-6 in 2024.
• Entering the SoCon Tournament as the top seed for the first time since 2018, UNCG ended the 2024 campaign with losses to Wofford, 5-2, and ETSU, 10-7, at Fluor Field in Greenville, South Carolina.
• UNCG led the SoCon a season ago in ERA (5.19), fewest runs allowed (297) and lowest opponent batting average (.267).
• The Spartans' baseball roster is made up of 38 student-athletes, including 23 returners, eight newcomers and seven transfers.
• Head Coach Cody Ellis is in his second year at the helm of the UNCG baseball program after leading the Spartans last season, who were projected to finish sixth in the conference, to a regular season championship.
• He was named the 2024 SoCon Coach of the Year and had an interim tag removed following the season on May 28.
• Ellis has been at UNCG since he was first hired as assistant coach in the fall of 2022, leading the charge in recruiting and as the outfield coach before being promoted to interim head coach in January 2024 and head coach in May 2024.

SCOUTING THE KEYDETS

• VMI owns an overall record of 16-9 and is off to a 2-1 start in SoCon play after besting Western Carolina two games to one in Cullowhee, North Carolina, last weekend, 3-7, 5-4 and 11-7.
• The Keydets were last in action hosting George Washington on Wednesday night in Lexington, where they lost 10-8.
• VMI leads the country with 210 walks and a .480 on-base percentage.
• The Keydets lead the nation in scoring at an 11.0 clip while also pacing NCAA Division I in stolen bases (139) and stolen bases per game (5.56).
• Bradley Garner owns the best batting average for the Keydets at .400 (32-for-80). He is tied for the team lead with 32 hits this season.
• Batting .349 (30-for-86), Cole Raile leads the Keydets with nine home runs and a .721 slugging percentage this season.
• Boston Torres and Grayson Fitzwater are tied for VMI's team lead with 38 RBI each.
• Senior right-handed pitcher Caden Plummer has been the Keydets' go-to arm on the mound with six appearances and starts with 39 innings pitched. He owns a 3.00 ERA with a 4-2 record and 38 strikeouts.
• The Keydets were voted to finish last (8th) in the 2025 SoCon Baseball Preseason Poll.
• Fitzwater was voted onto the SoCon Preseason First Team as a first baseman while Owen Prince earned a spot on the Second Team in the outfield.
• VMI finished the 2024 campaign with an overall record of 27-29 and a 7-14 record in the SoCon. They finished sixth in the league before falling out of the SoCon Tournament with a 19-14 lost to Mercer.
• Sam Roberts is in his third season as the head coach of VMI's baseball program after previously serving as an assistant since 2017.
• Roberts played one season at VMI before playing minor league baseball in the Oakland A's system from 2011-15.

SERIES HISTORY VS. VMI
In 58 all-time meetings between UNCG and VMI, the Spartans have the upperhand with a series record of 37-21 over the Keydets.

The Spartans swept last season's series with 7-2, 8-7 and 10-4 victories from April 26-28 in Greensboro.

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UP NEXT
The Spartans will travel to Raleigh, North Carolina, to take on the NC State Wolfpack on Tuesday at 6:00 p.m. at Doak Field at Dail Park.