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Who’s the Pack playing?
Opponent: Northeastern
Mascot: Good Doggies | School Location: Bahsten, MA | Conference: Colonial
2022 Record: 3-5 (0-0, T-1st) | 2022 RPI Rank: 194
2021 Record*: 36-12 (20-3, 1st) | 2021 RPI Rank: 40
2020 Record: 10-5 (0-0, T-1st) | 2019 RPI Rank: 11
*2021 CAA Tournament Champions
When? Where? How do I watch?
Location: Doak Field at Dail Park (Raleigh, NC)
Game Time(s): Fri, Mar 4 @ 3:00pm | Sat, Mar 5 @ 2:00pm | Sun, Mar 6 @ 1:00pm
TV: ACCNX (Friday | Saturday | Sunday)
Radio: GoPack.com (Friday | Saturday | Sunday) / WKNC 88.1
Live Stats: Sidearm Sports
Tell me about this team
After winning the CAA regular season and tournament championships in 2021, Northeastern was the popular pick to win the Colonial again this year. Heck, I even said as much. And that may still well turn out to be true, but it’s been a rougher than expected start for the kids from Boston.
The Huskies opened their season down the road in Cary, playing in the Penn State Tournament... wait. What?! Anyways, they went 2-2 in the event, beating “host” Penn State, but dropping games to LIU and Monmouth, which is simply not a good look.
Add on the fact that their annual Spring Training matchup with the Red Sox in Florida was cancelled because of the shenanigans currently being pulled by Major League Baseball, and this season has just been all kinds of wrong for Northeastern. Oh yeah, and they lost a double-header to Marshall... MARSHALL!
Okay, so your expectations are pretty low now. You’re expecting another Evansville or Quinnipiac. Now I’m going to tell you why you’re wrong.
Northeastern has finished in the Top 40 in RPI in two of the last three full seasons, making an NCAA Regional in both of those seasons. If you’ll remember, the Huskies were actually the 3-seed in the 2018 Raleigh Regional, where the Wolfpack sent them home with a 9-3 victory. In 2021, the Huskies were the 3-seed in the Fayetteville Regional where they were bounced by NJIT.
This team is the best one yet under 9th year head coach Mike Glavine. The starting pitching is legit and, aside from Campbell, this will be the best group of relievers State has seen so far. Aside from Justin Bosland, this is a team that doesn’t strike out much and will push the issue on the bases to an extent that NC State’s defense has yet to see.
They’re going to be a hard out.
Who’s on the mound for these guys?
Friday: RHP Cam Schlittler (rSO)
Saturday: RHP Sebastian Keane (rSO)
Sunday: RHP Wyatt Scotti (SO)
Key Players:
Offense
CF Mike Sirota (FR) - .455/.486/.667, 4 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 6 R, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HBP, 2-3 SB. A 16th round draft pick by the Dodgers, the freshman is already the 3-hole hitter for the Huskies. Has legit talent and will be a high draft pick in 2024.
DH Mark Darakjy (SO) - .313/.389/.750, 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 5 R, 5 RBI, 1 BB, 4 K, 1 HBP, 1-1 SB. Didn’t play in a single game for Northeastern last year, but has come out on fire this year. Big kid with a big bat.
LF Corey DiLoreto (rJR) - .313/.333/.344, 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 4 R, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 2 K, 0 HBP, 1-1 SB. Big 6’4, 210 kid who was a CAA All-Rookie Team pick in 2019. Hasn’t quite been able to tap into the power that you’d expect from his frame.
1B Justin Bosland (FR) - .269/.457/.423, 2 2B, 1 3B, 0 HR, 7 R, 0 RBI, 4 BB, 10 K, 5 HBP, 6-6 SB. I clowned on Bosland above about the strikeouts, but he is just a freshman and not everyone can be Sirota or Tommy White out of the gate. The dude has some serious talent and impressive speed.
Pitching
RHP Cam Schlittler (rSO) - 0-2, 2.70 ERA, 10.0 IP, 8 H, 4 BB, 8 K. The numbers haven’t been bad so far for the 6’6, 210 pounder, but not quite to the 8-1, 1.88 ERA level of his 2021 Freshman All-American campaign. Pitched the Cape Cod League last summer where he was a teammate of NC State 3B Josh Hood. Pumps a mid-90’s fastball with a slider that he likes to to use in against righties.
RHP Sebastian Keane (rSO) - 0-1, 4.91 ERA, 7.1 IP, 9 H, 3 BB, 11 K. Was an 11th round pick (Red Sox) in 2019, but opted to go to Northeastern. Also pitched in the Cape Cod League this past summer where he more than held his own, out-performing Schlittler at that level. That was after going 6-1 with a 4.09 ERA last year for the Huskies. Low-to-mid 90’s fastball with a huge curve, coming from a low funky cross-body arm slot.
RHP Wyatt Scotti (SO) - 2-0, 0.73 ERA, 12.1 IP, 11 H, 1 BB, 10 K. Scotti makes it 3-for-3 on Northeastern starting pitchers who pitched in the Cape Cod League last year, where he, too, played on Harwich with Schlittler and Hood. Was a CAA All-Rookie Team pick last year. Doesn’t have the velo of Schlittler or Keane, but gets good run on his pitches and has a sick change-up.
RHP Jordy Allard (SR) - 1-0, 1.29 ERA, 7.0 IP, 6 H, 0 BB, 2 K. Transfer from D-III Babson College where he was lights out, going 15-1 with a 2.91 ERA over two-plus seasons, including a 0.91 ERA last year. Shorter guy who is a contact pitcher, but a strike pounder, too.
RHP Dennis Colleran (FR) - 0-0, 1 SV, 1.69 ERA, 5.1 IP, 1 H, 6 BB, 7 K. Huge build (6’3, 225) for a freshman. Reached 97 mph with his fastball in high school, and couples it with a hard slider. Control is obviously an issue as he’s plunked a guy and uncorked a wild pitch.
RHP Thomas Balboni (rSO) - 0-0, 0 SV, 3.37 ERA, 2.2 IP, 2 H, 1 BB, 7 K. If nothing else, just look at the picture on this dude’s Northeastern roster page. Bro. Hasn’t got much run over his first two years on campus, but sure will if he keeps putting up those K numbers.
Quick! Fun Facts!
Northeastern Head Coach Mike Glavine is the brother of MLB Hall of Fame member Tom Glavine.
NC State is 4-0 all-time versus Northeastern.
Northeastern has a roster very much true to its name, with only two players coming from a state not considered in the northeast: RHP Thomas Balboni (Naples, FL) and RHP Nick Davis (Pasadena, CA).
OF Mike Sirota is the great-nephew of MLB Hall-of-Famer Whitey Ford.
Prediction
This is going to be a good match-up for State, especially against the best starting pitching they’ve faced thus far.
Outcome: State takes two out of three