NCCU Sports Network Broadcast Link (Game Central)


DURHAM, N.C. (www.NCCUEaglePride.com) – This weekend, the North Carolina Central University baseball team will embark on some unfamiliar territory since bringing the program back in 2007, as the Eagles prepare to take on arch-rival North Carolina A&T with second place in the Southern Division of the MEAC (Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference) on the line.  The series is set for doubleheader action beginning at 1:00 p.m. on Saturday, April 14 and ending Sunday, April 15 all taking place at the historic Durham Athletic Park.  Admission is free.
 
Back on March 10 and 11, NCCU beat A&T in its first MEAC series at the NCAA Division I level two games to one, earning the first-ever wins over the Aggies in the modern era of the program.  A&T currently leads the series 4-to-2.
 
NCCU (10-25 overall, 6-6 MEAC) enters the weekend on a three-game skid after dropping a tough mid-week contest to Campbell who is 28-7 on the year, and the last two affairs in the non-conference series against Longwood.
 
A&T (12-21 overall, 6-6 MEAC) has also lost its last three contests that includes an 8-7 defeat at the hands of Radford on the road.  The Aggies as a team are ranked second in the MEAC in hitting with a batting average of .275 while NCCU is hitting .252 collectively this season to sit fifth in the league.
 
NC A&T is led by All-MEAC performer Marquis Riley who tops the team batting .362 on the year with eight doubles and 29 RBI.  Riley is third in the conference in batting average.  His teammate, Dairio Little, is second in the MEAC in doubles with 11.
 
NCCU is led by junior Luis Diaz (Geneva, N.Y.) who is batting .359 on the year with six doubles, four triples, four home runs and 19 RBI.  Sophomore Carter Williamson (Roanoke, Va.) still tops the team and is now tied for fourth in the MEAC in 25 RBI on the season.
 
The pitching matchups for this weekend should make for some great contests as first-year head coach Joel Sanchez will send senior Esterlin Paulino to the hill in game one on Saturday.  Paulino (4-3, 3.83 ERA) looks to continue his excellence against the Eagles as the lefty earned the win on March 10 by going seven innings, allowing no runs while scattering six hits and striking out six batters in the Aggies 6-2 win. 
 
Senior righty Sam Fulmer (Raleigh, N.C.) makes his seventh start of the year and is coming off a season-high eight strikeout performance against Longwood last Saturday.  Fulmer (3-2, 3.44 ERA) took the loss back in March for the Eagles surrendering 11 hits and six earned runs.
 
Game two of Saturday’s twinbill is scheduled for seven innings, and head coach Jim Koerner will send right handed junior Glenn Frye (Lillington, N.C.) to the mound.  Frye pitched another solid contest for the Eagles last week with a season-high eight strikeouts as NCCU unfortunately lost game two to Longwood 5-3.  Frye (1-5, 5.77 ERA) earned his first win of the year against the Aggies to finish the March 10 twinbill with a split going seven innings with four runs allowed and two strikeouts. 
 
The Aggies will send out sophomore lefty Tyler Boone (3-4, 3.55 ERA) who took the loss in the last meeting between these two teams but allowed one earned run as A&T committed three crucial errors in the contest.  Boone mowed down eight Eagle batters in the last meeting as weel.
 
NCCU has not named a starter for game three, but NC A&T’s Brent Moore (3-3, 4.50 ERA) will toe the rubber.  Moore started game three on March 11 and took the loss after going six complete innings and gave up seven runs despite only two being earned.
 
The NCCU Sports Network will be there for the entire series as the Aggies and the Eagles will go toe-to-toe with second place on the line.  Tune in at 12:45 p.m. this Saturday, April 14 for Eagle Gameday built by Dayeco Construction Co. as Chris Hooks will have wall-to-wall coverage of the huge weekend series.  Fans can follow the action on twitter by following @NCCUAthletics and by using the hashtag #NCCUbaseball.
 
Stay up-to-date with North Carolina Central University Athletics by flying over to www.NCCUEaglePride.com, the official website of NCCU Athletics.