Weekend Schedule (EST)
3/3: Butler vs. Hartford – 2:00 PM
3/4: Butler vs. Bucknell – 1:00 PM
3/5: Butler at Davidson – 1:30 PM

Spring Break Schedule (EST)
3/7: Butler at Presbyterian – 3:00 PM
3/8: Butler at Furman – 2:00 PM

Projected Starters
Friday: LHP Jeff Schank vs. RHP Billy Devito
Saturday: RHP Ryan Pepiot vs. LHP Mike Castellani
Sunday: LHP Connor Mitchell vs.
Tuesday: RHP Quentin Miller vs.
Wednesday: TBD

INDIANAPOLIS – The Bulldogs will head to Davidson, North Carolina this weekend to play three games against three different opponents. Butler will face Hartford on Friday at 2 PM, Bucknell Saturday at 1 PM, and Davidson on Sunday at 1:30 PM. BU will also play two games in South Carolina over Spring Break week by playing at Presbyterian and at Furman.

BIG EAST Standings
1) St. John's 7-0
2) Butler 5-3
3) Xavier 4-4
4) Seton Hall 3-4
5) Georgetown 2-5
6) Creighton 1-5
7) Villanova 0-7

Schank Named BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week
Senior left-handed pitcher Jeff Schank was named BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week on Monday after an announcement from the conference office. Schank picked up his first win of the season at Alcorn State.
 
Schank limited the Braves to just one hit and struck out 12 batters in his second start of the year to help BU record a 3-2 victory. The left-hander didn't allow any extra base hits over his seven innings of action and was eventually removed from the mound after reaching 100 pitches.
 
On the Mound
Butler heads into the weekend with a 3.63 team ERA. Jeff Schank has 20 strikeouts over 12 innings pitched. The BU ace is 1-0 on the year with a 0.75 ERA. Connor Mitchell also shined on the mound last week to earn a win. The junior left-hander tossed seven full innings during his last outing, striking out 10. It was the second game of a scheduled doubleheader and ended after seven innings giving Mitchell a complete game. He only allowed one hit while lowering his season ERA to 1.50. Ryan Pepiot, Ottavio Dattolo and Josh Goldberg join Schank and Mitchell as pitchers with a 1-0 overall record. The team's save leader is Chris Myjak with two.
 
Hitting Streaks
Jordan Lucio holds the longest hitting streak of the season at six, however the longest current streak belongs to Gehrig Parker. Parker's streak is at three heading into the showdown with Hartford. Three Bulldogs share the top reached base streak on the team. Lucio, Parker and Michael Hartnagel have all reached safely in eight-straight games.
 
Off and Running
The Bulldogs lead the conference in stolen bases after the first two weeks of the regular season. Tyler Houston leads the way with seven steals and Chris Maranto ranks second with three. Rounding out the total is Garrett Christman and Cole Malloy with one each.
 
By Any Means
Butler holds a .272 team batting average, but post a .375 on-base percentage. The Bulldogs have earned a base on balls 35 times. Inside pitches have also helped the cause. Butler has had six players get hit by a pitch this year. Parker, Lucio and Maranto have all been hit twice.
 
BIG EAST Home Run Leader
The Bulldogs are the long ball kings of the BIG EAST after two weeks of the regular season. BU has seven total round trippers on the year, one more than St. John's to lead the conference. Chris Maranto leads the team with three homers on the year. Gehrig Parker, Michael DiViesti, Tyler Houston and Duncan Hewitt all have one.
 
Scouting Hartford
The Hawks are 0-3 on the year after facing Mercer last weekend. Erik Ostberg and Ashton Bardzell are the top two bats in the order. Ostberg is batting .455 on the year with two doubles and a home run. Bardzell is hitting .438 from the dish and leads the team with two home runs. Nick Campana and Chris Sullivan share the team RBI lead with five each.
 
RHP Billy Devito is scheduled to get the start against Butler on Friday. He tossed five innings in his debut, striking out five batters. Devito only allowed one hit during his first outing, but was charged with two earned runs after walking three batters. He enters the weekend with a 3.60 ERA.
 
Scouting Bucknell
The Bison are 2-4 overall with wins against Marist and VMI. Danny Rafferty leads the team with a .368 BA that includes three doubles. He shares the team RBI lead with Keifer Rawlings. Each player has five. Bucknell is batting .196 as a team and is still searching for their first home run of the season. They have 10 doubles, but just 22 runs scored. Compare that to Butler's 22 extra base hits and 41 runs scored.
 
Rafferty has also spent time on the mound for Bucknell this season. He has the only save of the year. The weekend rotation includes Jeff Gottesman, Connor Van Hoose and Mike Castellani. Gottesman is 1-0 on the year with a 0.75 ERA. Van Hoose is the strikeout leader with 14, but holds onto a 0-2 overall record. Castellani has 10 strikeouts in 8.2 innings of work, but has one of the worst ERAs on the team at 10.38.
 
Scouting Davidson
The Wildcats are 5-3 on the year after taking a 13-5 loss at Wake Forest on Tuesday night. The loss broke a three-game winning streak as Davidson picked up wins over UMass Lowell, Lehigh and Fairleigh Dickinson. The early stages of the regular season featured Davidson taking two of three games against Georgetown, but taking a tough 12-11 loss at home to High Point.
 
Weekend arms include Allen Barry, Josh Smutzer and Durin O'Linger. Barry is 2-0 this season with a 1.64 ERA. He has 12 strikeouts over 11 innings of work, allowing six hits and two earned runs. Smutzer is also 2-0 on the year with a 2.53 ERA. The strikeout king is O'Linger who has 14 K's in 12 innings on the mound. He is 0-0 over two starts and holds a 4.50 ERA. The bullpen has four saves on the year. Westin Whitmire has two while Connor Gordon and Casey Sutherland each have one.
 
Scouting Presbyterian
The Blue Hose are 4-5 this year with wins over Alabama, Wofford and Stony Brook. They will play at North Carolina A&T tonight before participating in the First Pitch Invitational this weekend. Presbyterian will play UT Martin, Michigan State and Furman in the tournament. Their game vs. Butler is lined up for March 7.
 
AJ Priaulx and Nick Guimbarda have the two highest batting averages on the team. Both players have nine hits over eight games and have recorded four RBI. Other players to keep an eye on include home run leader Tyler Weyenberg and RBI leader Cletis Avery.
 
Hayden Deal has the best numbers of any pitcher on the staff. The senior left-hander will most likely throw over the weekend, looking to improve on his 1-0 record and team-high 11 strikeouts. Eric Miles is a strong possibility to throw the midweek game vs. BU. Miles is 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA.
 
Scouting Furman
The Paladins are off to a 6-2 start to the regular season with wins over Dayton, Presbyterian, Monmouth and USC Upstate. They will join Presbyterian in the First Pitch Invitational this weekend with games vs. Michigan State and UT-Martin.
 
Brandon Elmy and Sky Overton are the top two threats in the Furman batting order. Elmy is hitting .394 on the year with four doubles and three home runs for eight RBI. Overton holds a .379 average with two doubles and four RBI. Overton can run once on base. He leads the team with four stolen bases and Carter Grote is the team leader in runs scored (10).
 
The pitching staff posts a 4.12 team ERA. Five different pitchers have combined to help Furman win six games. Next week's starter is undetermined, but the bullpen is highlighted by Jake Crawford. The team's closer has two saves on the year and a 0.00 ERA over five appearances.