VALDOSTA, Ga. – The Blazer baseball team will continue their homestand this week, playing host to two teams from the Sunshine State. On Tuesday, March 19 at 5 p.m., Valdosta State will host Eckerd College for a midweek clash. The Blazers will then be back in action starting on Friday as they welcome Nova Southeastern for a doubleheader on Friday starting at 3 p.m. with a single game to follow on Saturday at 1 p.m.
 
The Blazers enter Tuesday night's matchup with a 13-11 (8-7 GSC) record after they took two out of three versus Alabama Huntsville this past weekend while scoring 43 total runs in that series.
 
Valdosta State is led by head coach Greg Guilliams, who is in his 17^th year at the helm of the Blazer baseball team. During his time in Titletown, Guilliams holds a record of 486-314-1 and an overall record of 1,163-571-2 in 34 years of head coaching experience. The VSU offense currently ranks first in the GSC with a team batting average of .327 and on-base percentage of .434. On top of that, the Blazers have slugged 18 home runs and a league-leading 54 doubles. On the mound, Valdosta State has combined for a team ERA of 5.15 and are holding opponents to a .298 batting average.
 
Individually, sophomore Dennis Pierce is second on the team in batting average and fourth in the conference with a .412 clip. The Quakertown, Pa. native has slugged six homers and is tied for the conference lead with 38 RBIs. On the mound, redshirt junior Hunter Booth picked up another win over the weekend as he improved to 6-0 in 11 appearances on the season. Booth currently holds a 3.00 ERA and has fanned 15 opposing hitters so far in 24 innings pitched.
 
Looking at Tuesday's matchup, Eckerd College will enter Titletown with a 11-11 (3-6 SSC) record after they recently dropped two out of three at Barry this past weekend. The Tritons are led by seventh year head coach Josh Beauregard. During his time in Fort Lauderdale, Beauregard is 134-153 overall while coaching his alma mater. As a team, Eckerd is batting .302 and have smacked 19 home runs and laced 35 doubles. On the hill, Eckerd holds a team ERA of 6.36 and have a conference leading eight saves.
 
Individually, Reid Lisle leads the team in batting average with a .362 clip through mid-March. The Apopka, Fla. native leads the team in walks with 19 drawn for an on-base percentage of .500. Pitching wise, the Tritons are led by setup man Gavin Grubbs who is 6-0 on the season with an ERA of 1.87 and has only allowed 18 hits in 33.2 innings pitched.
 
Looking ahead to the weekend, the Nova Southeastern Sharks are 15-9 (6-3 SSC) and enter Valdosta carrying a seven-game winning streak. The Sharks are led by first-year head coach Adrian Morales. Morales' offense is currently hitting .289 on the season and his arms have an ERA of 4.37.
 
Individually, NSU is led in hitting by Bryan Loriga and Justin Wachs. The duo is ranked third and fourth in the Sunshine State Conference with batting averages of .405 and .397, respectively. Loriga is tied for the team in homers with four and is second in RBIs with 20 in 21 starts. For Wachs, he leads the team in steals with five and has an on-base percentage of .548 which also leads the team. On the bump, Nova Southeastern is spearheaded by Collin Rothermel, who is 5-1 in seven starts and has an ERA of 3.68 while fanning 45 hitters.
 
Following this slate of games, Valdosta State will hit the road and will travel to Georgia College on Tuesday, March 26 at 5 p.m.