ANNAPOLIS, Md. – After dropping two of three games to Marist last time out, the Navy baseball team (7-7) will return to action seeking a bounce-back effort Tuesday as it welcomes Massachusetts (2-4-1) to Terwilliger Brothers Field at Max Bishop Stadium.
 
The contest will also serve as the final tune-up for the Mids before beginning Patriot League play with a four-game weekend series against Bucknell. First pitch is slated for 2 p.m., with free, live statistics being provided on NavySports.com.  
 
ALL-TIME SERIES vs. UMASS
Over seven all-time meetings against the Minutemen, Navy has tallied a 6-1 mark that includes winning each of the last four contests over UMass. The two programs last met during the 2020 season, with the Mids earning a sweep of a three-game set hosted in Annapolis over the Minutemen.
 
NAVY PRIMER
Overall Record: 7-7
Home Record: 4-6
Away Record: 1-0
Neutral Record: 2-1
Patriot League Record: 0-0
Streak: L1
Head Coach: Paul Kostacopoulos I 17th Season at Navy, 33rd Overall (992-659-7)
 
SCOUTING THE MIDSHIPMEN
LAST TIME OUT: Last time out, Navy dropped two of three games against Marist. The Midshipmen fell in game one of the series, 4-1, before bouncing back by taking a 4-1 decision of their own in game two. In Sunday's rubber match, the Mids were bested by the Red Foxes, 5-2, in a contest that saw Navy leave 13 runners on base after loading the bases three times.
 
LEADING THE CHARGE: Christian Policelli (Sr., Walkersville, Md.) remains atop the leading hitters for the Midshipmen this season. The senior is hitting .392 with a triple, a home run, five doubles and 11 RBI along with reaching base at a .492 clip and having a slugging percentage of .588. Logan Keller (So., Longwood, Fla.) ranks as the second behind Policelli in batting average (.296) along with tallying a double, a triple and three RBI.
 
The duo of Alex Smith (Jr., Laguna Hills, Calif.) and Eduardo Diaz (So., Miami, Fla.) round out the top performers at the plate for the Mids this season. Smith is hitting .270 with a team-leading two home runs and six RBI, in addition to having a .386 on-base percentage and slugging at a .459 clip. Diaz has a .250 batting average through 14 games, including tallying a triple, two doubles and five RBI.

1-2 PUNCH: The duo of Nate Mitchell (Jr., Parker, Colo.) and Matthew Shirah (So., Blue Ridge, Ga.) each turned in career-best outings against Marist last time out. Despite taking the loss, Mitchell pitched a career-high six innings, allowing four runs on seven hits while striking out four batters. The junior right-hander yielded just one run on three hits through the final five frames of his outing, but ultimately came up short in his first decision of the 2022 campaign. Shirah pitched a career-high 6.2 innings in game two of Friday's doubleheader against the Red Foxes, allowing just one run on four hits while walking one batter and striking out a career-best six.
 
FINDING RELIEF: In addition to the bright spots of Mitchell and Shirah in the Navy pitching effort, the trio of Nolan Jorgenson (So., Eastvale, Calif.), Colin Jones (Sr., Collierville, Tenn.) and Landon Kruer (Fr., Sellersburg, Ind.) have proven to be a formidable trio out of the bullpen for the Mids.
 
Kruer leads the way amongst the trio, having a 1.59 ERA over five appearances this season along with yielding just three hits and striking out five batters over 5.2 innings. The freshman has found success in high-leverage situations through those five outings, tallying two saves.
 
Jorgenson follows closely behind Kruer with a 1.88 ERA over seven appearances, allowing just three earned runs in 14.1 innings of work. The sophomore right-hander has yielded just a .204 batting average against, in addition to striking out six batters.
 
Jones has been a consistent presence for the Midshipmen this season, providing 11.1 innings of work over five appearances. The senior lefty has allowed just a 2.38 ERA this season, in addition to giving up just three runs while striking out 10 batters.
 
TOP OF THE HEAP: Amongst fellow Patriot League teams this season, Navy leads the way in triples (7) and walks (66), along with posting the lowest strikeouts total in the league (98). The Midshipmen also rank second in the league in on-base percentage (.358) and third in home runs (7) and RBI (57).
 
Individually, Policelli is the leading hitter in the Patriot League (.392), along with being first in on-base percentage (.492) and second in slugging percentage (.588), OPS (1.080) and hits (20). The senior standout also ranks third among league hitters in RBI (11) and doubles (5) while being fifth in runs scored (10) and triples (1). Keller has the eighth-most hits (16) this season in the Patriot League, while Colin Smith (Jr., Wilmington, Del.) is tied for second in home runs (2) with teammate Alex Smith.
 
NAVY HITTERS vs. UMASS: Among players on the current roster, Alex Smith ranks as the top hitter for the Mids against UMass. The junior has 10 career at-bats against Minutemen pitching, going 6-for-10 with a triple, two doubles and six RBI. Policelli has also found success against UMass in his career, tallying five hits in 11 at-bats, including two doubles and six RBI. Rounding out the top-performing hitters for the Midshipmen against Massachusetts is Stevens, who has gone 4-for-8 in his career against UMass pitchers, including a triple, two RBI and four runs scored.
 
NAVY PITCHERS vs. UMASS: Among Navy pitchers who have squared off against the Minutemen previously, Jones and Reece Early (Jr., Reistertown, Md.) have seen the most action. Jones appeared in a game against UMass in 2020, going 3.1 innings in relief where he allowed just two hits while striking out four batters. Early pitched three innings against UMass in a start during that same series, allowing five hits in addition to striking out three. Trent Topping (Sr., Temecula, Calif.) has made two appearances against Massachusetts in his career, pitching 2.1 innings and allowing just one run on three hits.
 
NATIONAL RANKINGS: In the national rankings, the Midshipmen rank 16th in triples (7) and 17th in triples per game (0.55). Zach Stevens (Sr., Lexington, Mass.) is currently 18th nationally in triples (2), along with being 38th in triples per game (0.18).
 
Policelli has proven to be one of the toughest batters to strike out in the nation this season, ranking 24th in the toughest to strike out category. Rounding out the Navy presence among the national leaders are Kruer and Shirah, as Shirah is currently tied for 31st in games started (4) and Kruer is 43rd in saves (2).
 
HOT STREAKS: Over the last five games, Diaz leads the way for Navy at the plate, hitting .375 with a double and two runs scored. Policelli has totaled a .333 batting average over his last five games, including recording a double, two runs scored and three RBI. Colin Smith rounds out the top-performing hitters for the Mids over the last five games, posting a .278 batting average along with driving in a run and scoring two.
 
CHASING 1,000: After Friday's victory over Marist, Navy head coach Paul Kostacopoulos has 992 career wins as a head coach. Now in his 33rd season overall as a head coach, 17th at Navy, is seeking to become just the 16th active coach across all divisions to eclipse the 1,000-win plateau. Additionally, Kostacopoulos sits just 12 wins shy of reaching 500 victories for his career at the helm of the Midshipmen baseball program. Kostacopoulos already has the second-most wins by a head coach in program history, trailing only Joe Duff (1962-93) who recorded 595 wins over his 32 seasons in Annapolis.
 
MASSACHUSETTS PRIMER
Overall Record: 2-4-1
Home Record: 0-0
Away Record: 0-0-1
Neutral Record: 2-4
A-10 Record: 0-0
Streak: L1
Head Coach: Matt Reynolds I Fifth Season at UMass, Eighth Overall (108-148-2)
 
SCOUTING THE MINUTEMEN
LAST TIME OUT: Last time out, UMass lost two of three games against Penn State in a series that was hosted at the USA Baseball Training Complex in Cary, N.C. The Nittany Lions earned a 10-6 victory in game one over the Minutemen, followed by Massachusetts evening the series with an 11-4 win in game two. In the rubber match of the three-game set, the Penn State pitching staff combined to limit UMass to just one hit to secure a 1-0 win and the series victory.
 
LEADING THE CHARGE: Nolan Tichy enters play Tuesday as the top hitter for the Minutemen, posting a .375 batting average that includes a home run, two doubles and four RBI. Mike Gervasi ranks second behind Tichy in batting average, hitting .346 with a triple, a home run, two doubles and five RBI. Rounding out the top-performing hitters for UMass through seven games is Steve Luttazi, who is hitting .240 with a team-high two home runs and seven RBI.
 
ON THE MOUND: Daniel Livnat has pitched a staff-best 10 innings for UMass this season, having just a 2.70 ERA after allowing three runs on 12 hits. Kevin Dow has posted a 4.50 ERA over eight innings of work this season, allowing four runs on 14 hits while striking out a team-high nine batters. Jack Steele has seen the third-most innings for Massachusetts this season, having an 11.57 ERA after giving up nine runs on 13 hits.
 
UP NEXT
Following its contest against UMass, Navy is slated to return to action Friday as it hits the road to begin Patriot League play against Bucknell. The Midshipmen will take on the Bison in the first game on the series on Friday at 1 p.m., prior to a Saturday doubleheader beginning at noon. The final game of the league-opening series for the Mids is scheduled for 1 p.m. Sunday.