HARRISONBURG, Va. (March 5, 2026) – After playing the first three weekends of the season at home, the ETSU baseball team will head out for their first road series of the 2026 season this weekend when it visits James Madison. The three-game series, which will run Friday through Sunday, is scheduled to get underway at 4 p.m. on Friday. All three games are scheduled to air on ESPN+.
Probable Pitching Matchups
LHP Taden Bell (ETSU) vs. LHP Max Kuhle (JMU) – Friday @ 4 p.m. | Live Stats | ESPN+
RHP Michael Harpster (ETSU) vs. RHP Luke Alexander (JMU) – Saturday @ 2 p.m. | Live Stats | ESPN+
RHP Cooper Jones (ETSU) vs. LHP Tyler Lutz (JMU) – Sunday @ 1 p.m. | Live Stats | ESPN+
Last Time Out – ETSU dropped a midweek game at No. 19 Tennessee on Tuesday by a score of 7-1. Tuesday's loss moved the Bucs' record to 9-3 this season.
Buc on the Brooks Wallace Award Watch List – ETSU shortstop
Henry Ferguson was named to the Brooks Wallace Award Watch List on Wednesday. Ferguson has been ETSU's leading hitter through the first three weeks of the 2026 season. The Knoxville native is hitting .455 with one home run and 13 RBI. Ferguson has also worked a team-high 11 walks and paces the Bucs with six stolen bases. The award honors the nation's top shortstop and will be presented by the College Baseball Foundation later this year.
One-Two Punch in the Rotation – The duo of
Tadan Bell and
Michael Harpster are slated to start on the mound for the Bucs on Friday and Saturday, respectively. Bell and Harpster have been stellar so far in 2026 combining for a 3-0 record with a 3.00 ERA in 30 innings pitched. The tandem has also struck out 32 hitters in those 30 frames and is holding opposing lineups to a .204 batting average. Additionally, the Bucs are a perfect 6-0 when either Bell or Harpster starts a game this season.
It's not over until it's over – ETSU has made opposing pitching staffs work this season. As a team, the Bucs not only have a team batting average of .317 (26
th nationally) but they have also worked 74 walks compared to 92 strikeouts. As an offense, ETSU has also totaled 40 RBI with two outs in 2026. With 102 RBI overall, 39.2 percent of ETSU's runs batted in have been with two outs in an inning.
About James Madison – James Madison has a record of 5-6 through its first 11 games of the 2026. The Dukes, who have won two of their last three games, is a team that loves to run as they have stolen 43 bases in 11 games so far this spring. JMU's 43 steals are the sixth-most among Division I teams this season. Furthermore, the Dukes are second nationally in sacrifice bunts with 16.
Series Rewind against the Dukes – JMU has won five of the eight all-time games against the Bucs. The two teams matched up for a three-game series in Johnson City in 2024 where the Dukes won two of the three games. This weekend will mark ETSU's first trip to Harrisonburg since February 18, 1995 (11,339 days ago).
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