The Huskies heat up against San Diego State
UConn baseball won three games last weekend ahead of the home opener this week
UConn baseball is stringing together good weekends at just the right time. One week after winning three out of four games against Hawai’i, the Huskies turned around and finished off their spring break west coast swing with another four-game series win over San Diego State.
The Storrs nine put together another impressive series on offense and through pitching, outscoring San Diego State 34-15 over the course of the weekend. UConn bats went for a .303 average against Aztec pitching, while the Husky arms held them to just a .250 average.
UConn baseball started the weekend with a 10-2 win on Friday, in a game where Friday starter Ian Cooke got his season going in earnest. The Huskies’ new ace put together his best performance of the year, going a season-high 6 2/3 innings and striking out six batters, allowing just two walks.
After dropping the second game of the series 4-2 in an anemic offensive effort, UConn baseball stormed back with a 12-6 win in an offensive shootout involving 28 hits, five of which were for extra bases.
Dominic Freeberger, Jake Studley and Ben Huber combined to go 9-for-12 with six runs, six RBI and two doubles. Their combined offensive output bolstered starting pitcher Stephen Quigley, who pitched five innings and allowed just one run in the win.
The Huskies continued their hot hitting in the series winner on Sunday, beating San Diego State 10-2. The UConn lineup brought out the big sticks in the final game of the series, with home runs from Freeberger, Studley, and two from David Smith — one leadoff homer and one grand slam.
News and Notes
Huber in particular had a white-hot weekend, leading UConn with six RBI and five runs scored, hitting 6-for-15 with two doubles and a homer, earning a spot on the Big East Honor Roll.
Ryan Daniels and Paul Tammaro continued to rotate at middle infield to fill the gap in the lineup caused by TC Simmons’ hand injury as David Smith shifted to the outfield. At least at the plate, Daniels had the more impressive weekend, going 2-for-6 with three walks in the two games he started at second base against San Diego State.
UConn has started to enter early polls, checking in at No. 26 in the March 20 version of the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper poll. Of note, UConn’s March 28 and April 19 midweek opponent Boston College is ranked No. 17 by Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and No. 16 by D1baseball.
You can now purchase home and away jerseys for each UConn baseball player, thanks to the university’s deal with Athlete’s Thread. Personally, I’m a huge fan of the road grays.
Coming Up
Finally done with their spring break road trip, UConn is set to begin a nine-game homestand at Elliot Ballpark starting on Wednesday at 3:05 p.m. against UMass.
Right-hander Thomas Ellisen could be in line to start, having filled in for an injured Jack Sullivan in the Hawai’i series. It will be the first game streamed on the school’s new UConn+ platform, with Joe D’Ambrosio and Randy Brochu on the call.
After facing off against UMass at midweek, the Huskies will next host Rutgers for a three-game series.
Picked to finish second in the Big Ten in 2023, the Scarlet Knights are 11-8 on the year and riding a hot streak over the past two weeks, with just one loss in their last nine games. Over that stretch, they’ve swept Georgia Southern, outscoring them 31-8 in the three-game series, scored a midweek victory over Kennesaw State, and won a three-game series against Mercer.
Game 1 of that series is set for 3:05 p.m. on Friday.