JOHNSON CITY, Tenn. (March 25, 2025) – After opening SoCon play over the weekend, the ETSU baseball team will return to non-conference action on Wednesday when it welcomes Old Dominion to Johnson City. First pitch between the Buccaneers and Monarchs is set for 3 p.m. from Thomas Stadium.  
 
Probable Pitching Matchup
LHP Derek McCarley (ETSU) vs. RHP Jayce Park (ODU) – Wednesday @ 3 p.m. | Live Stats | ESPN+
 
Last Time Out – ETSU won two of three games in a three-game series against Samford last weekend. The Bucs won the first two games by scores of 6-1 and 10-3 but the Bulldogs bounced back to win Sunday's series finale, 13-7. With the results last weekend, the Bucs are now 18-5 overall and 2-1 in SoCon play. The 18-5 start for ETSU matches the program's best 23-game start since 2019 when they began with the same record.
 
Torres on a Tear – Senior Cooper Torres has been one of ETSU's top hitters this season. Torres is currently hitting .344 with 10 home runs and 26 RBI. Torres is also tied for the team-lead with nine multi-hit games, and he will bring a 13-game hitting streak into Wednesday's game with ODU. Torres is hitting a team-best .389 during his hitting streak, while also leading ETSU in both home runs (8) and RBI (20).  
 
Plenty of Power for the Bucs – The home run ball has been a major part of ETSU's offense in 2025. The Bucs enter this week's action fourth nationally with 54 home runs ranking behind only Georgia (70), Tennessee (59), and Arkansas (56). 34.1 percent of ETSU's runs this season have come via a long ball. For added perspective, ETSU is just 19 homers shy of tying the 1999 team's season total of 73 that ranks as the fifth-most in program history with 31 games to go in the regular season.
 
Proud of the Buccaneer Pitchers – As powerful as ETSU's offense has been, its pitching staff has been just as effective. Entering Wednesday's game, the Bucs are 15^th nationally in team ERA (3.57). Those 14 programs ahead of ETSU on that list have a combined record of 256-68 (.790 winning percentage) and half of them are ranked in this week's D1Baseball.com Top 25 Poll.
 
Terrific at the Thom, especially during the week – Playing at Thomas Stadium has been good to the Bucs over the last few years. Since the beginning of the 2022 season, the Bucs are 79-25 at home (.759 winning percentage), including a 17-3 record this spring. ETSU has been especially good at the Thom during midweek games played on either Tuesday or Wednesday during that time frame. During that period, the Bucs are 13-1 in home midweeks with the lone loss coming last season to Appalachian State, 9-6.
 
About Old Dominion – Old Dominion enters Wednesday's game with the Bucs with a 7-14 overall record this season. Despite the sub-.500 record, the Monarchs coming off a series win over Georgia State and has knocked off No. 11 Auburn in a game earlier this season by a score of 11-9. A player to watch for ODU is Kyle Edwards. Edwards has started all 21 games for the Monarchs and is hitting .316 with two home runs and 12 RBI. Edwards has also been a threat on the bases with 12 stolen bases in 12 attempts, which accounts for nearly half of the team's stolen base total this spring (26).

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