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Baseball Opens 2011 Season This Weekend
2/17/2011 11:12:00 AM | Baseball
DURHAM, N.C. – Duke baseball opens the 2011 season with a three-game series this Friday through Sunday, Feb. 18-20, at the newly renovated Jack Coombs Field in Durham, N.C. against the Richmond Spiders. Friday's showdown will begin at 4 p.m, followed by games Saturday at 2 p.m. and Sunday at 1 p.m.
Duke's games against Richmond will air live on the GoDuke.com Radio Network with play-by-play provided by Duke students Quentin Ybarra and Matt Greenberg. The broadcast is free of charge and is accessible on the baseball schedule page at www.GoDuke.com.
A live video stream will also be available to GoDuke.com Inside Access members.
The Blue Devils return five position starters and 11 letterwinners from the 2010 squad that posted a 29-27 overall record. Of those 11 returnees, seven pitchers, eight position players and four two-way players highlight a versatile and young Duke team comprised of 14 freshmen. Led by sixth-year head coach Sean McNally, the Blue Devils enter 2011 with four consecutive winning seasons, compiling wins against five of the eight nationally ranked teams they played last year, including No. 11 North Carolina, No. 15 Virginia Tech, No. 22 Georgia, and College World Series qualifiers No. 17 Clemson and No.6 Florida State.
Duke will face a brutal schedule in 2011 including eight qualifiers for NCAA Regionals, four Super Regional qualifiers, and two teams who advanced to the College World Series. In addition to their four opponents ranked in the pre-season top 25 by Baseball America (No.10 Clemson, No. 12 Florida St., No. 15 Virginia, and No. 25 Miami), the Blue Devils will face Southern Conference Champion The Citadel.
Duke's lineup includes the 2010 ACC Freshman of the Year Marcus Stroman, junior center fielder Will Piwnica-Worms, and the lone senior among the Blue Devils, utility man Dennis O'Grady. Last year's young pitching rotation will prove to be very beneficial for the Blue Devils, as they return five pitchers who threw at least 45 innings in 2010, including weekend starters Stroman, O'Grady, and junior Eric Pfisterer.
Stroman, an All-Star and All-League selection in the Cape Cod League over the summer, will anchor Duke's infield at second base and the pitching staff. A 5-9, 185-pound infielder and right-hander, Stroman hit .265, with 20 RBI in 2011, while also leading the team in wins (6) and strikeouts (64) on the mound.
Piwinica-Worms will man the outfield for the Blue Devils while looking to improve on his outstanding offensive season a year ago. Piwinica-Worms started all 56 games in 2011 and led the team in runs scored (49), extra-base hits (21), and triples (6). The 6-2, 200 pound center fielder is Duke's active leader in 11 offensive categories including average (.315), hits (137), slugging percentage (.485) and games started (115).
O'Grady, meanwhile, posted career highs with a .283 average, 32 runs, and 28 RBI a season ago. A pitcher and utility player, O'Grady started at least nine games at three different defensive positions in 2010 and started on the hill for each of the 10 ACC series.
Following the weekend series with Richmond, Duke will host Campbell on Tuesday, Feb. 22 at 3:15 p.m., before heading down to the road to face N.C. Central on Wednesday, Feb. 23, at the historic Durham Athletic Park.
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