THE BASICS:

SERIES INFORMATION: Hartford Hawks (14-24, 8-4 AE) vs. UMass Lowell (17-20, 8-7 AE)
TIME: Saturday, April 28 at 12 P.M. (Doubleheader) and Sunday, April 29 at 12 P.M.
LOCATION: Fiondella Field (West Hartford, Conn.)
COVERAGE: Live Stats | Twitter: @HartfordBASE
 
FIRST PITCH
The University of Hartford baseball team continues its 2018 campaign with a #AEBase weekend series with a three-game set against UMass Lowell at Fiondella Field starting on Saturday.

SCOUTING UMASS LOWELL                                                       
The second-place team in the America East, the River Hawks have opened their season 17-20 overall and 8-7 in conference. Recently, UMass Lowell has swept UMBC in a three-game set before taking two of three against Maine.
 
All-TIME vs. THE RIVER HAWKS
The Hawks hold a slight, 8-7 advantage in the young conference rivalry, including winning six of the last nine.  
 
LAST TIME OUT
The Hawks dropped all three games during their trip to Elon, N.C., this past weekend. Freshman Nicholas Dombkowski posted a career-high 10 strikeouts on Saturday afternoon, while sophomore Nathan Florence pitched seven and a third innings, only giving up four hits, two earned runs and striking out nine on Sunday.  
 
#AEBASE AWARDS
Dombkowski posted a stellar performance on the mound during the Hawks, 1-0 victory of Maine on March 24, to earn America East Co-Pitcher and Rookie of the Week. The native of West Springfield, Mass., threw eight shutout innings, striking out six Black Bears and only giving up five hits for his first career victory.
 
Florence followed that up with a Pitcher of the Week performance of his own, throwing seven shutout innings, striking out a career-high twelve while only giving up four hits in the Hawks 2-1 victory over CCSU on March 31.


BARDZELL BOMB
Bardzell tied a career-high two home runs and four RBIs in the Hawks 13-11 win over Fairfield on February 28th. Bardzell leads the Hawks in Home runs (7), which sits him third in the America East, and RBIs (27) which places him sixth in the conference.
 
HOT BAT
Senior Nick Campana has continued his stellar season at the plate. He currently rides a 14-game hit streak, leads the America East and sits eighth in the nation with a .409 batting average, third in the conference in doubles with 14 and seventh in RBIs with 25.  
 
POWERFUL PITCHING
The Hartford pitchers have been a force to be reckoned with this season, highlighted by junior Seth Pinkerton who ranks tied for first in saves (8) and fifth in opposing batting average (.164), while sophomore Nathan Florence has the most strikeouts looking (20) and tied for second in total strikeouts (55). Pinkerton's eight saves this season places him second all-time in saves in a season, and his career total of 12 is tied for the career program record.
 
LAST SEASON
The Hawks finished last season 20-30 overall and 8-13 in the America East before falling to Maine in the America East Tournament. Then-senior first baseman David MacKinnon, junior shortstop Ben Bengtson, and Bardzell were all named to the America East All-Conference First Team. It marked the second consecutive First Team selection for MacKinnon and Bengtson and the first for Bardzell.
 
TRIO OF CAPTAINS
In the fall, the team voted senior third baseman TJ Ward, redshirt-junior pitcher Jake Regula and Bardzell as the Hawks' team captains for the 2018 season. Ward, who will be serving his second season as team captain, started 38 games as a junior, ranking third on the team in RBI (32) and fifth in home runs (5). Regula appeared in 19 games on the hill for the Hawks this past season, making three starts and recording a pair of saves. Bardzell started 49 games in his sophomore campaign, leading the America East in RBIs (43), batting average (.343) and slugging percentage (.619), while lead the team in doubles (13), triples (5) and home runs (9) on his way to earning America East First Team All-Conference honors.
 
THE SHOW
A trio of Hawks was selected in the 2017 Major League Baseball Draft in June. Hawks catcher Erik Ostberg was taken by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 13th round, while shortstop Ben Bengtson went to the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 23rd round and first baseman David MacKinnon was selected by the Los Angeles Angels in the 32nd round. Hartford now has 17 players drafted in program history and seven during head coach Justin Blood's tenure.
 
ALL-TIME WINNER
With the Hawks 5-3 victory over Maine on Friday, March 23, head coach Justin Blood became the all-time winningest coach in program history, passing the late Roger Wickman with 147 wins.
 
STAFF STRUCTURE
The majority Blood's coaching staff remains the same for the 2018 campaign, but the group has had some minor adjustments since last season. Associate head coach Steve Malinowski, who has been on Blood's staff since his arrival in Hartford, returns for his seventh season while assistant coach Elliot Glynn returns for his fourth season in the Hartford dugout.
 
Joining the staff this season is volunteer assistant coach Ethan Newton, who comes to Hartford from Allegany College where he served as the associate head coach for two seasons. Dr. David Miller also joins the Hawks this season as the Director of Baseball Analytics.
 
DUNKIN' DONUTS PARK   
The Hawks will host two more games inside Dunkin' Donuts Park, home of the Colorado Rockies AA affiliate Hartford Yard Goats. The Hawks will host UMass on Tuesday, May 1, and Central Connecticut on Wednesday, May 16. CLICK HERE to purchase tickets.
 
NEXT ON TAP
The Hawks will return to Dunkin' Donuts Park on Tuesday night, as they take on the UMass Minutemen in a 7 p.m. tilt.