VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Valdosta State baseball team heads to Saint Leo, Fla., to face the Saint Leo Lions in a midweek matchup on Tuesday, April 19, at 5 p.m.
 
Fans can access links to live stats and streaming of the games at vstateblazers.com on the baseball schedule page. Check back with the site for complete recaps and stats of each game throughout the season.
 
The Blazers head into the midweek game after a series win over Gulf South Conference foe Auburn Montgomery on Senior Weekend. The Warhawks took game one of the series 7-4, while the Blazers battled back for a doubleheader sweep on Saturday, winning the first game 10-0 and the nightcap, 4-3 in eight-innings.  
 
Valdosta State is 25-11 overall and 15-8 in GSC play, while the Lions are 27-13 overall and 12-9 in the Sunshine State Conference.  VSU won the first meeting between the two teams this season in Valdosta, 8-7 on Feb. 16 for the 2022 home-opener.  VSU won on a walk-off RBI triple to right from senior Jisjar Clotida as SLU had tied the game at seven in the top of the ninth.  Sophomore Ryan Romano paced the Blazers, going 2 for 4 with two runs scored, a triple and one RBI.  For Saint Leo, Sam Crail went 3 for 5 with three runs scored, a double, a triple and one RBI, while Buck Anderson was 2 for 4 with a run scored and one RBI.
 
The Blazers now have won three-straight against the Lions and are 13-7 against them since 2007.  VSU is 6-5 at Saint Leo, but lost the last time there, 4-3, on Feb. 18, 2020.  VSU did win 6-5 on Feb. 19, 2019, at Saint Leo, 6-5 in ten innings.
 
On the season offensively, the Lions are hitting a .306 and have tallied 420 hits, 72 doubles, nine triples, 49 home runs, 269 RBI, and 86 stolen bases.  Defensively, Saint Leo has an ERA of 4.41 with 357 strikeouts and has given up 335 hits, 171 earned runs out of 207 runs, 152 free passes, and 40 hits basemen. 
 
Heading into the week for the Blazers, senior EJ Doskow leads the team in average at a .407 for third in the GSC and is 50 of 123 from the dish.  He has scored 33 runs for second on the team while his 50 hits lead the team. Doskow has a team-high 12 doubles and eight home runs as both lead the team.  He has driven in 47 for the season, while he is slugging .699 for the season and reaching base at a .490.  Redshirt-senior Luke Ard is second in average at a .333 on 38 of 114 from the plate. He has ten doubles, one triple, one home run, and 26 RBI.  Junior Ryan Romano is third in average at a .308 on 40 of 130 from the plate.  He has scored 40 runs to lead the team, while recording six doubles, one triple, one home run, and 13 RBI.  Junior Bryson Gandy leads the team in stolen bases at 15 for 19 for the season.  
 
As a team, the Blazers are hitting .284 on the year with 237 runs scored, 328 hits, 62 doubles, eight triples, 19 home runs, and 202 RBI.  The team is slugging .401, while reaching base at a .380 and going 46 of 65 in stolen bases.  
 
On the mound, the Blazers have a 3.98 ERA in 296.1 innings of work.  VSU has fanned 249 and walked 100 for the season as teams are hitting .266 against it.  Senior Elijah Gill leads the team with a 2.19 ERA for first in the GSC and a 7-1 record in ten starts.  He has one complete game and one shutout, while combining for another. Gill leads the team in innings pitched at 61.2, while he has allowed 29 runs on 64 hits, 15 earned runs, walked 17 and fanned a team-high 72 for third in the GSC.  The opposition is hitting .251 against him.  Junior Kevin Tomas is second in ERA at 2.84 for second in the GSC, while he is 2-0 in nine starts with 44.1 innings pitched.  Tomas has allowed 40 hits, 14 earned runs, walked 11 and fanned 28.
 
Last week, the Blazers were tied for fifth in the latest NCBWA South Region Top Ten, as Tampa leads the poll, followed by Rollins. Delta State sits third in the poll, followed by Florida Southern at fourth and Valdosta State and West Florida are tied for fifth.  Nova Southeastern is seventh, followed by Savannah State, Montevallo, and Saint Leo. VSU is 29th in the latest Collegiate Baseball Newspaper Top 25.
 
Following the midweek game, the Blazers head to Pensacola, Fla., to face West Florida for their final GSC series of the regular season. The series begins with a single game on Friday, April 22, at 7 p.m. ET, and will conclude with a doubleheader on Saturday, April 23, starting at 2 p.m. ET.
 
For all information on Blazer baseball visit vstateblazers.com or follow Valdosta State Athletics on social media.