JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (Feb. 24, 2025) – Coming off a series win over Miami (OH) last weekend, the ETSU baseball team will host Appalachian State on Tuesday. First pitch between the Buccaneers and Mountaineers is scheduled for 3 p.m. from Thomas Stadium.
Probable Pitching Matchup
RHP Cody Little (App State) vs. LHP Tristan Curless (ETSU) – Tuesday @ 3 p.m. | Live Stats
Plenty of power for the Bucs – ETSU has shown plenty of power through seven games of the season. As a team, the Bucs have totaled 15 home runs, and eight different players have hit at least one long ball. ETSU's home run total ranks sixth in Division I baseball sitting behind only Tennessee (20), High Point (17), Oregon (17), Southeastern Louisiana (17), and Wake Forest (16). Furthermore, the Bucs also lead all SoCon teams with a team slugging percentage of .571, which ranks 14
th in the country. Individually,
Grant Gallagher paces all Buccaneer hitters with four home runs in only 18 at-bats.
Top two in the order setting the table – The top two hitters in ETSU's batting order for most of the season has been the duo of
Jamie Palmese and
Cody Miller. Both Palmese and Miller, who were named Preseason All-SoCon before the year began, have reached base successfully and recorded a hit in all seven games so far in 2025 and each player enters Tuesday's game with an OPS over 1.000 (Palmese – 1.072, Miller – 1.031) with seven stolen bases.
Fine First Innings – Thanks in large part to its 10-run first inning in Sunday's win over Miami (OH), the Bucs are now outscoring opponents 14-0 in first innings this season. Those 14 runs account for 25 percent of ETSU's run total so far this spring (56 runs).
Coach Pennucci closing in a milestone – After the Bucs won two of three this weekend against Miami (OH), ETSU Head Coach
Joe Pennucci needs just five more victories to become just the third coach in program history to reach 200 wins with the program. The only other coaches to reach this milestone are Tony Skole (471 wins) and Ken Campbell (223 wins). Additionally, when Pennucci gets to 200 wins, he'll be the 28
th head coach in SoCon history to do so.
About the Mountaineers – The Mountaineers make the short trip across the state line with a 4-3 record so far this spring. App State is coming off a sweep of UMass Lowell last weekend. Like ETSU, the Mountaineers have shown great power potential this spring with 12 home runs in seven games. A player that the Buccaneer pitching staff will have to pay special attention to is Juan Correa. Correa, a transfer from Charlotte, is hitting .375 with four home runs and 10 RBI in his first season with App State.
Series History vs. App State – App State currently leads the all-time series against ETSU, 82-60-1. The Mountaineers, who ETSU has played more than any other opponent (143 times), have won the last three games between these two programs, including both matchups last season. The Mountaineers defeated the Bucs by a 9-6 final score last February in Johnson City and then followed that with a 12-11 victory in April in Boone.
For more information on Buccaneer baseball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the baseball tab.
