STORRS, Conn. (May 1, 2026) – The ETSU baseball team began the month of May with a 14-7 road victory at UConn on Friday afternoon. Friday's victory improves ETSU's overall record to 28-15 on the 2026 season.
All 11 Buccaneers who had a plate appearance on Friday reached base at least once; 10 scored at least one run, and six registered at least one RBI. Connecticut native
Jamie Palmese collected four of ETSU's 12 total hits in the win.
Nate Conner,
Henry Ferguson, and
Mason Ault each hit a home run. Conner and
Luke Matlock drove in three runs each. Meanwhile, Ault, Ferguson, and
Tristan Curless each had two RBI, which contributed to the Bucs' fourth-highest single-game run total this season.
Five different Bucs saw time on the mound against the Huskies.
Michael Harpster started the game and had another stellar outing, allowing one run on four hits and striking out six hitters in four innings of work. After Harpster exited,
Stratton Scott took over, tossing 3.2 shutout innings out of the Buccaneer bullpen. Scott allowed one walk, gave up no hits, and struck out four. For his efforts, he earned his third win of the season, boosting his record to 3-4.
Ferguson gave ETSU a jolt of early momentum at the top of the first with a solo home run. After Ferguson's second home run of the season, both starting pitchers settled into a rhythm until the fourth. In that inning, ETSU sent nine hitters to the plate, and six of them scored. Matlock (three-run double) and Conner (three-run home run) delivered in key spots to give the Bucs a 7-0 lead heading to the bottom of the fourth.
Despite ETSU's commanding lead, UConn chipped away over the next two innings, scoring four runs and narrowing the deficit to three, 7-4. Still, Scott got the Bucs out of a fifth-inning jam and kept the Huskies off the scoreboard in the next three innings.
The Bucs added insurance runs in the eighth and ninth innings. After a pair of bases loaded walks and a UConn error in the eighth, Curless delivered a two-run single, increasing the Bucs' lead to 12-4 in the eighth. In the ninth, Ault hit a two-run home run, making it 14-4 headed into the bottom of the inning. UConn scored three runs in their half of the ninth, but the Bucs' late offense provided more than enough cushion for a 14-7 victory.
The Bucs and Huskies will resume their series on Saturday. First pitch for that matchup is set for 2 p.m.
For more information on Buccaneer baseball, visit ETSUBucs.com and click on the baseball tab.
