LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – The Rider University baseball team is set to begin its 2018 campaign with a road trip to South Carolina to square off with Ohio University in a four-game neutral-site series this weekend, February 16-18. The Broncs and Bobcats will play single games on Friday and Sunday sandwiched around a doubleheader on Saturday.

This weekend's series marks the start of a challenging non-conference slate for Rider that includes games against Miami (Ohio), Navy, Campbell, Elon, Rutgers and neighboring Princeton.

"We have a good, young core this year," Rider Head Coach Barry Davis said. "We are young at several positions, however those guys got valuable playing time last year. Our weekend starters last year were a pair of freshmen and they're back."

Heading into the season, the team has a strong defensive core and returns some stability at the top of the order. What will be the squad's top-four hitters in the lineup all saw extensive time in 2017. Rider will get a head start in giving their returners and newcomers game action, as the squad opens up on the first official weekend of the college baseball season.

"This is the first time we've started the opening weekend," Davis added. "This is new territory for us. I thought it was important with this team as young as we are to get out a week early. It will help this team and we can see some of the things we need improve on. These four games are going to provide a lot of guys with an opportunity to step up and give us an indication of how we'll proceed for the rest of the year."

Entering his 14th season at the helm of the program, Davis is in search of his third MAAC Championship. With a good mixture of young, but experienced veteran players and talented fresh faces in 2018, the Broncs will look to contend for another conference crown.

POSITIONAL BREAKDOWN

CATCHERS
"Collectively, we have a good group of catchers this year," Davis noted. "They have some pop in the bats, some defense, they block and frame well. Stockwell has the potential to give us some good offense and defense."

Behind the dish, sophomore Tyler Stockwell (LaPlata, MD/La Plata High School) returns healthy after a freshman campaign that saw him make eight starts and appear in 17 games total. He provides some pop and smacked one homer last year. His defense, footwork and receiving have all improved heading into this season and he'll be the team's starter.

Junior Brennan McCallister (Middletown, DE/Middletown) and freshman Liam Harding (Staten Island, NY/Saint Peter's Boys) will both add depth behind the plate. McCallister's biggest strength is his offensive ability. As a sophomore, he appeared in 23 games and had to extra-base hits to go along with two RBIs. Harding provides good defense because he is so athletic behind the plate and he has the strongest arm of the group.

INFIELD
Senior Jake Bender (Ellicott City, MD/Marriots Ridge) and junior Riley Mihalik (Churchville, PA/Chesnut Hill Academy) will each play first. Bender, a former middle infielder, was converted to a first basemen last season. He is athletic and versatile with good hands and a quick release. He posted a .987 fielding percentage for the team last spring and at the plate he was one of just two Rider players with more walks than strikeouts.

Mihalik will mostly see time at DH for the Broncs and he is coming off a breakout season. As a sophomore, Mihalik poked five homers to go along with a team-high 12 doubles and 28 RBIs. He hit .279 for Rider and recorded 81 total bases, which is tops amongst returning players.

Sophomore Kyle Johnson (Jackson, NJ/Jackson Memorial) will bat leadoff once again for the Broncs and be the everyday second basemen. During his first year on campus, Johnson appeared in all 53 games and smacked a team-best 59 hits. He hit .285 and stole a team-high 13 bases, while posting a .961 fielding percentage.

Junior Richie Tecco (Drexel Hill, PA/Monsignor Bonner) made the most of his opportunity last season and started 47 games at short for Rider. He registered a .949 fielding percentage and led the team in hitting in conference play. He brings stability to the lower third of the lineup as he also led last year's team with 13 sacrifices.

At the hot corner, both senior Christian Estevez (River Edge, NJ/River Dell) and freshman Jake Barbiere (Randolph, NJ/Randolph) will see time. Estevez will begin the season as the starter. Due to his athleticism and versatility, Barbiere will see time at several positions in the infield. Both players are pushing each other to become better players. Estevez hit .237 in 36 games last season and this year he'll also see some time on the mound. Barbiere has some range and he'll get more confidence as he gains experience. Barbiere will also surprise people with his power and above average speed.

OUTFIELD
Sophomore Joe Simone (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Hills) has made the biggest jump this year amongst the position players. He is coming off a strong summer and solid fall with the team. Simone will be the team's starting rightfielder. Last year, he hit .294 in 27 games. With his plus-arm he'll add to the defensive strength of the team in the outfield. He'll start the season batting in the two-hole.

Senior Harrison McClure (Atlanta, GA/North Atlanta) will be the team's everyday centerfielder and hit in the middle of the lineup. He can also play first for the Broncs in the infield if the situation arises. He has above average speed and gets strong jumps on balls in the gaps and to center. In his first year with the team, he posted a .991 fielding percentage and chipped in 10 extra-base hits. He registered 20 RBIs and hit a pair of dingers in 2017.

"If you had to pick one strength of our team, it would be our outfield play," Davis said. "We have some speed, strength, power and defensive skill. Defensively, I'd put our five guys up against anybody in the league."

Senior Dallas Clark (Moorestown, NJ/Moorestown) and freshman Lou Priolo (Voorhees, NJ/Eastern) have been competing for the starting job in left field. Clark was mainly used for experience and defensive ability a year ago, appearing in 36 games and making one start. He posted a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage, while making several highlight reel plays. Priolo runs well and brings some offensive skills to the outfield. Priolo is a player that Davis notes is always hustling. Freshman Dom Caraballo (Woodbridge, NJ/Red Bank Catholic) is coming off some injuries and he's finally healthy for the Broncs. He has some power and will add depth to outfield contingent.

PITCHING
Rider returns a pair of weekend starters from last year in sophomores Pete Soporowski (South Amboy, NJ/Sayreville Memorial) and John Yocum (Easton, PA/Freedom). Yocum went 4-4 for the team and tossed 69.1 innings, while fanning 67 hitters as a freshman, while Soporowski went 2-5 in 66 innings. Redshirt-junior CJ Hirschy (Toms River, NJ/Toms River HS East) is returning to the team after missing last season due to injury. Hirschy will look eat up innings for the Broncs and should provide leadership to the bevy of newcomers in the rotation.

Junior transfer Zach Gakeler (Jobstown, NJ/North Burlington) will be the team's number three starter this season. The Broncs are expecting big things from Gakeler with his history at Mercer County Community College.  

"All the freshmen pitchers that we have need to be able to go out there and compete," Davis said.

Amongst the first-year pitchers, Joe Papeo (Matawan, NJ/Old Bridge) and Vincent Vitacco (Staten Island, NY/Monsignor Farrell) will vie for weekend starting positions. Papeo will get the ball for the team in the season-opener against Ohio.  The Broncs also have high expectations for freshman Ray Pacella (Stony Point, NY/North Rockland) and classmate Timothy Stephan (Culpeper, VA/Highland School) will predominantly work out of the bullpen.

Rider has five junior pitchers on their staff that will be called upon out of the bullpen and occasionally start. Leading the way will be southpaw Jordan Silverman (Holland, PA/Council Rock HS South). Silverman will make a lot of appearances out of the pen for Rider after posting a 3.94 ERA in over 29 innings of work last year. Other hurlers who will need to get pivotal outs for the Broncs are Eric Schulte (Vero Beach, FL/Vero Beach), Anthony Arneth (Pine Beach, NJ/Central Regional) and Nick Payesko (Yardville, NJ/Holy Ghost Prep).