The Dirty Terps are coming back home.

After a successful road trip to Newark to take on Delaware, the Terps have extended their winning streak to five games. They’ll be looking to extend it even further this weekend, as they welcome the Albany Great Danes from the American East Conference. The two squads will face off at 4 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday, and 1 p.m. Sunday. 

Late game heroics came in clutch for the Terps on Wednesday afternoon, as they defeated the Blue Hens in a 13-11 10-inning thriller. Despite a shaky day defensively, the offense was humming from the start. The squad drove in six runs in the final two innings to secure the road win. Senior Nick Lorusso came up big, hitting his eighth home run of the year. He finished the day with two hits in five at-bats with a home run, three RBIs, and three runs scored. 

The Terps now sit at 9-7 on the young season. They’ll be looking for a successful weekend as they try to claw their way back into the rankings.

Here’s what you need to know about the visiting Great Danes.

Albany Great Danes (2-7-1)

Last Season

Albany wrapped up last season with a 22-25 overall record and an 11-19 conference record. They finished last in Division A of the American East, behind Maine, University of Massachusetts Lowell, and Hartford. However, they ended the season on a high note, with a victory over UMass Lowell, 4-1.

This Season

The Great Danes, 2-7-1, currently sit at second-to-last in their conference, with only UMass Lowell behind them. They started the season getting swept by Hofstra, losing two and tying one to Farleigh Dickinson, then finally getting in the win column against Central Connecticut State. Most recently, they went 1-2 in a series vs. St. John’s last weekend. They were supposed to play Army on Wednesday afternoon, but the game was postponed. 

Next weekend, they will head home to take on UMBC in a three-game series, then hit the road for an eight-game stretch. They will start that road trip against the University of Massachusetts at Amherst before beginning conference play against the New Jersey Institute of Technology the following weekend. 

Hitters to Watch

Albany has had a strong offensive output thus far despite its record. Junior Dan Tauken has far and away been Albany’s best hitter, leading the team in most offensive categories. He has tallied a .406 batting average with a team-high 13 hits, four of which have been doubles and three of which have been home runs. He also has recorded a phenomenal 1.313 OPS to go along with a .813 slugging percentage, 10 runs scored, and 12 RBIs. 

Redshirt senior Will Feil and redshirt junior Chris Fisher will be names to watch as well. Feil has recorded a .300 batting average, a .951 OPS, and a .500 slugging percentage with 12 hits, 9 runs scored, 12 RBIs, and a team-leading 11 walks. Fisher has recorded a .385 batting average, a .979 OPS, and a .423 slugging percentage with 10 hits, 8 runs scored, and 6 RBIs. 

These three are the only players for the Great Danes to have above a .300 batting average and above a .900 OPS.

Pitchers to Watch

Only three pitchers for the Great Danes – freshman Dylan Banner, redshirt junior Cregg Scherrer, and junior Connor Eisenmann – have averaged at least one inning pitched per game, and all three have struggled to start the new campaign. 

Banner holds a 6.57 ERA, 1.70 WHIP, and a .333 batting average allowed with 18 hits, 9 runs, 3 walks, and 13 strikeouts in 12.1 innings pitched. Scherrer holds a 6.60 ERA, 1.93 WHIP, and a team best .328 batting average allowed with 20 hits, 12 runs, 9 walks, and 15 strikeouts in 15 innings pitched. Finally, Eisenmann holds a rough 9.95 ERA, 2.21 WHIP, and a .333 batting average allowed with 18 hits, 16 runs, 10 walks, and 7 strikeouts in 12.2 innings pitched.

Projected Starting Pitchers

Friday, March 17th: Jason Savacool and Cregg Scherrer

Saturday, March 18th: Nick Dean and Connor Eisenmann

Sunday, March 19th: Kyle McCoy and TBD