Wofford is set to begin its conference slate of action against The Citadel in back-to-back seasons. Unlike last season, the Terriers will travel to Charleston this year for a three-game set with the Bulldogs. Wofford is 18-8 and fresh off a 14-3 run-rule win in eight innings at No. 17 Troy in midweek play. The Citadel is 14-12 and 2-1 in SoCon play after taking two-of-three from Mercer at home over the weekend before a 4-2 triumph over the College of Charleston. The rivalry between these clubs dates back over a century as the programs have squared off 128 times since the first meeting in 1899. Wofford won all four match-ups last season and has claimed 15 wins in a row over the Bulldogs. Last season saw the Terriers win all three games at home in the regular season before an 8-3 win in the SoCon Tournament.
 
Probable Pitchers
Friday: Wofford's RHP Branton Little (3-2, 5.97 ERA) vs. The Citadel's RHP Andrew Stanley (1-1, 3.96 ERA)
Saturday: Wofford's RHP Cullen Condon (0-0, 6.75 ERA) vs. The Citadel's LHP George Derrick Floyd (1-0, 2.14 ERA)
Sunday: Wofford's TBD vs. The Citadel's RHP Chandler Anderson (0-0, 3.06 ERA)
 
Quick Hits
• Wofford's 12-5 triumph over No. 23 Kentucky was the program's first ranked win since besting No. 18 Dallas Baptist in 2022.
• With the 14-3 win over No. 17 Troy, the Terriers have victories over two different ranked teams in the same season for the first time in program history.
• Ryan Wynn hit for the cycle in the series finale on opening weekend against Ohio, marking the third cycle in program history.
• Champ Davis was named SoCon Pitcher of the Week on March 17, the first such honor of his career.
• Four of the five qualified Terrier batters are hitting over .300 with James Layman leading the way at .351.
• Tyler Hare is second in the SoCon in on-base percentage (.533) and eighth in slugging (.651).
• Niko Brini swiped four bases at UNC Asheville and owns 15 on the season, fifth in the SoCon and 27th in the country.
• Champ Davis owns the third-best ERA in the SoCon at 1.97, ranking 35th in the nation.
• The Terriers have been hit 60 times at the plate, ninth most in the nation.
• With 147 steals last season, Wofford has stolen 100 or more bases in 11-straight full seasons dating back to 2013, the longest active streak in Division I. With 94 steals, the Terriers need just six more to extend the streak.
 
About the Opponent
The Citadel Bulldogs are 14-12 on the season with a 2-1 SoCon record. The Bulldogs began their conference slate last weekend by hosting Mercer, claiming two-of-three from the Bears. The Citadel is fresh off a midweek home win over the College of Charleston, 4-2. The Bulldogs hit .237 as a squad compared to Wofford's .305 team average. Small ball will likely be evident throughout the weekend with The Citadel's 25 sacrifice bunts topping the conference, and Wofford's 18 are fourth in the league. Garrett Dill paces the Bulldogs with a .294 average and .400 slugging clip. Travis Elliott has 17 RBI to lead the team. The Citadel boasts a team ERA of 4.47 with 165 total punchouts. Will Holmes posts a team-best 0.72 ERA out of the bullpen with Maddox Webb accruing a team-high 29 strikeouts. The duo are tied for the team lead with three wins each. Anthony Hausner posts four saves as the closer, one shy of the SoCon lead.
 
SoCon Openers
Wofford is 9-17 all-time in in the opening game of Southern Conference play. In the opening series of league action, the Terriers are 12-14 all-time. Fortunes have been better recently, though, as Wofford has won the opening series of SoCon play in five-straight seasons (COVID-shortened 2020 season excluded - no SoCon play). This includes a sweep of The Citadel last season at home to begin conference action. By opening the league slate on the road this season, a streak of three-straight campaigns beginning conference play at home comes to end. The last time the Terriers hit the road to begin SoCon action was 2021 when Wofford coincidentally started things off at The Citadel. That series saw Wofford claim two-of-three from the Bulldogs.
 
A Hare Above
Senior Tyler Hare enters his final campaign as a Preseason All-SoCon honoree. This comes after a breakout first season in Spartanburg after transferring over from Georgia Tech. Starting all 62 games at first base last season, Hare clubbed 16 homers to rank eighth in the conference. His 63 RBI were ninth in the league. Hare hit .315 with a .418 on-base clip and .586 slugging mark. He spent his first two seasons at Georgia Tech and saw limited action. The Atlanta native elected to transfer to Wofford, leaving his hometown and seeing an immediate jolt to his career. This season, Hare is hitting .333 with 21 hits and 18 RBI. He is eighth in the league with a .651 slugging mark. He is fifth with 22 walks to aid the second-best OBP in the conference (.533). Hare has been a doubles machine, owning 11 as about half of his 21 total knocks. He leads the conference and ranks 19th in the country. With 41 total bases out of those 21 hits, he is averaging 1.95 total bases per hit, meaning when gets a base hit, it's most likely to be a two-bagger.
 
Can He Get on Base?
A question popularized by the hit movie Moneyball is "Can he get on base?" For many of the Terriers, the answer is a resounding, "Yes." Wofford is second in the SoCon with an on-base clip of .435, ranking 14th in the country. Tyler Hare leads the team with an on-base mark of .533, ranking second in the conference and 38th nationally. James Layman adds a .495 clip to mark a pair of Terriers at .490 or better, and he ranks sixth in the league. Consistency has been key for the Terriers, as six players have posted on-base streaks of 10-plus games this season. Four are still active, as Harrison Campi's 15-game on-base streak is the longest still in play on the squad. Tyler Bak is right behind with an active 14-gamer. James Layman recently cracked over the threshold with his current 12-game clip. David Wiley is currently in the midst of his second 10-plus streak this season, currently at 10 after previously tallying a marker of 11. Though it came to a close against USC Upstate on March 19, Adam Haber's streak of 17 games is the longest by a Terrier this season. Ryan Wynn posted a 13-game streak earlier this season.
 
The Magic Man
Junior outfielder Niko Brini has not just been magic for Wofford on the field, he is a magician off it, too. The transfer from UConn can do several mind-bending magic tricks, including multiple card tricks, that have left his teammates in awe. On the field, Brini has dazzled this season with magical breakout performances. Though he's seen limited play time in comparison to some teammates, Brini has made the most of it with a .400 batting average over 18 games of action, 10 starts. It's the best non-qualified average on the squad and would lead the team if Brini had enough at-bats. He adds a .629 slugging clip and .488 on-base mark. Brini has accrued 14 hits with two doubles and two homers, the first of which was an inside-the-park homer at Elon for his first-career round-tripper. He has 10 RBI and 12 runs scored with 15 steals to rank fifth in the SoCon and 30th in the country.
 
On Deck
Wofford returns to Spartanburg but will play a neutral site midweek tilt against USC Upstate on Tuesday, April 1. The contest will take place in Fifth Third Park downtown, and the match-up will be historic as it serves as the first-ever baseball game in the new home of the High-A Hub City Spartanburgers. The Terriers then actually return home to host Samford for three games at Russell C. King Field.