ANNAPOLIS, Md. – Following its three-game Star Series against Army over the weekend, the Navy baseball team (18-22, 9-13 Patriot League) is slated to return to action Tuesday night for a matchup in College Park against No. 23 Maryland (32-8, 9-3 Big Ten). First pitch of the non-league contest is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. from Bob "Turtle" Smith Stadium.
 
The contest is set to be streamed on Big Ten Network Plus, a subscription-based streaming service that requires users to sign up for a monthly or yearly plan prior to viewing its content. Additionally, a live radio broadcast of the game will be available via the Maryland Baseball Network. Free, live statistics are set to be provided on NavySports.com.
 
ALL-TIME SERIES vs. MARYLAND
Tuesday night's game will mark the first matchup between the Midshipmen and Terps since the 2014 season. The last meeting between the two programs took place in College Park, with Maryland earning an 11-4 victory. However, over 92 all-time meetings, the Mids have played to a 50-40-2 advantage over UM in a series that dates back to the 1899 season.
 
RANKED OPPONENTS
In the latest D1 Baseball rankings released on Monday, Maryland was tapped as the No. 23 team in the nation. Navy last played a ranked opponent during the 2016 season, when it squared off against No. 17 North Carolina State in the NCAA Tournament Raleigh Regional. Tuesday's contest will be the Mids' seventh meeting all-time against a ranked team, along with being an opportunity for its first victory in program history over a ranked opponent.
 
NAVY PRIMER
Overall Record: 18-22
Home Record: 7-12
Away Record: 9-9
Neutral Record: 2-1
Patriot League Record / Standings: 9-13 / Fifth
Streak: W1
Head Coach: Paul Kostacopoulos I 17th Season at Navy, 33rd Overall (1,003-672-7)
 
SCOUTING THE MIDSHIPMEN
LAST TIME OUT: Last time out, Navy dropped two of three games to rival Army in a Star Series played at West Point. Despite dropping the first two games of the set, the Mids bounced back on Sunday with its first shutout victory of the year, a 5-0 decision over the Black Knights. A three-run, four-hit effort highlighted the offensive effort of the Midshipmen, which was paced by Zane Raba (So., San Antonio, Texas) who went 2-for-4 with a double and two runs scored. Eduardo Diaz (So., Miami, Fla.) added three RBIs in a 1-for-4 showing that included a two-run single in the aforementioned first-inning rally.
 
On the mound, Matthew Shirah (So., Blue Ridge, Ga.) and Nolan Jorgenson (So., Eastvale, Calif.) combined to shut down the potent Army offense over 8.2 shutout innings, prior to Landon Kruer (Fr., Sellersburg, Ind.) working out of a bases-loaded jam with two outs in the ninth to earn his sixth save of the season.
 
BOUNCE BACK: Following its series loss to Army over the weekend, Navy will return to action seeking a bounce-back effort in its first of four games on the week. The matchup against the Terps on Tuesday will serve as a primer for a crucial three-game series against Lafayette in Annapolis this weekend which will have serious implications on the Patriot League standings and postseason positioning.
 
POWERFUL POLICELLI: At the forefront of a bounce-back effort will be team captain Christian Policelli (Sr., Walkersville, Md.), who is one of only three players this season to start all 40 games for the Midshipmen. The senior standout leads the way for the Navy offense this season in batting average (.342), on-base percentage (.419), slugging (.471), OPS (.890), hits (53), triples (2) and stolen bases (10). Policelli is tied for the team lead in RBIs (28), while being second in both home runs (2) and doubles (10).
 
DIAZ STAYS HOT: Over the last 15 games, Diaz has proven to be one of the top hitters in the middle of the Navy lineup. The sophomore shortstop is hitting .356 (21-for-59) over that span with two home runs, five doubles, 14 RBIs and 16 runs scored. Overall this season, Diaz joins Policelli and Logan Keller (So., Longwood, Fla.) as one of three players to start all 40 games for the Mids, in which he is hitting .265 (39-for-147) with a team-high 11 doubles.
 
MEET THE SMITH'S: Joining Diaz and Policelli among the top offensive performers for the Midshipmen this season is the pairing of Alex Smith (Jr., Laguna Hills, Calif.) and Colin Smith (Jr., Wilmington, Del.). Colin Smith ranks second on the team in batting average (.305), along with having a team-leading three home runs and 28 RBIs. Alex Smith is third in the team with a .301 batting average (40-for-133), in addition to recording two triples, two home runs, six doubles, 24 runs scored and 27 RBIs.
 
SHIRAH SHINES: After recording 5.2 shutout innings on Sunday against Army, Shirah earned his third win of the season and lowered his season ERA to 5.01. The sophomore right-hander has pitched a team-high 46.2 innings on the year, in which he has struck out 32 batters. Over his last four starts, Shirah has proven to be the top starting pitcher for the Midshipmen, having a 2-0 record with a 2.75 ERA. He has allowed just six earned in 19.2 innings over that span, along with striking out 11 batters and walking just five.
 
LIGHTS OUT: Jorgenson continued his terrific season out of the Navy bullpen on Sunday against Army, pitching 3.2 shutout innings in relief of Shirah. On the season, the sophomore has yielded just seven earned runs over 37.1 innings for a 1.69 ERA, along with striking out 15 batters and allowing just a .231 batting average against. Jorgenson has also become a multi-inning specialist out of the bullpen, allowing just one earned run over his last six appearances of two or more innings.
 
KRUER CLOSES THE DOOR: In what has proven to be one of the best seasons by a Navy closer in recent history, Kruer posted his Patriot League leading sixth save of the season on Sunday. The newcomer is now tied for sixth on the Mids' single-season saves list and is just four saves shy of the program record of 10 set by Ryan Hefner in 2006 and Trey Braithwaite in 2019. Kruer enters the week with a 2.35 ERA over 15.1 innings pitched, along with striking out 15 batters over that span.
 
STEVENS MOVES UP THE BOARD: With his home run against Army in game one of Saturday's doubleheader, senior first baseman Zach Stevens (Lexington, Mass.) moved into a four-way tie for the 10th most career home runs in program history (14). Stevens now sits just one home run away from moving into a tie for the eighth-most long flies in team history (15).  
 
MILESTONE ON TAP FOR KOSTY: Fresh off earning the 1,000th win of his career as a head coach, Paul Kostacopoulos stands on the doorstep of yet another milestone. Now in his 17th season in Annapolis, Kostacopoulos is just one win shy of 500 for his career at Navy, which would make him just the second coach in program history to accomplish the feat. Joe Duff (1962-93) totaled the most wins by a head coach in program history over his 32 seasons at the helm of the Midshipmen baseball program, finishing his career with 595 victories.
 
POSTSEASON PUSH: With three games remaining on their Patriot League schedule, the Midshipmen enter the week fifth in the league standings. Army (13-5) occupies the top spot in the standings, followed by Bucknell (13-9), Lehigh (8-10) and Lafayette (8-10), respectively, ahead of Navy (9-13) and Holy Cross (7-11). The Mids will have an opportunity to make up ground in its final Patriot League series over the weekend, as they welcome Lafayette to Annapolis for a three-game set. The top-four teams in the standings at the end of the regular season earn a berth to the Patriot League Tournament.
 
HOT STREAKS: Over the last five games, Policelli leads the way for the Navy offense with a .333 batting average (6-for-18) that includes two runs scored and four RBIs. Policelli is followed by Keller, who is hitting .294 (5-for-17) over that same span with a double, an RBI and a run scored. Shirah has been the top pitcher for the Mids over the last five games, posting a 1.54 ERA and six strikeouts in two appearances and 11.2 innings pitched.
 
TOP OF THE HEAP: Policelli leads the way for Navy among the Patriot League offensive leaders, being among the top-10 performers in batting average (.342), slugging percentage (.471), OPS (.890), hits (53), RBI (28), doubles (10), triples (2), at-bats (155) and stolen bases (10). Joining Policelli on the Patriot League offensive leaderboard is Ivan Aguirre (Fr., Temple City, Calif.) who is sixth in on-base percentage (.423) and Diaz who is top 10 in doubles (10). Keller is among the top 10 home run hitters in the league this season, recording three long balls in his 2022 campaign.
 
On the pitching side of the rankings, Kruer leads the league in saves (6), while Shirah is top 10 in both ERA (5.01) and innings pitched (46.2). Jorgenson, Shirah and Liam Golden (Fr., Springfield, Va.) all rank among the top 10 in wins (3) while Golden has allowed the fifth-fewest runs among league pitchers this season (25). 

NATIONAL VIEW: Among the national stats leaders, Navy enters the week as the 19th-best fielding team in the nation with a .979 fielding percentage. Individually, Nate Mitchell (Jr., Parker, Colo.) is first in strikeout to walk ratio (25.00) and walks allowed per nine innings (0.21). Policelli is 16th in the toughest to strike out category (14.1), while Shirah is 18th nationally in games started (10). Rounding out the Navy presence amongst the individual national leaders is Golden, who is 36th in complete games (1), and Kruer who is 45th in saves (6).
 
OUTSIDE THE PATRIOT LEAGUE: Over 18 non-league games this season, the Midshipmen have played to an even 9-9 record. Policelli is the Mids' top hitter in games outside of the Patriot League, hitting .368 (24-for-65) with a triple, a home run, six doubles and 14 RBIs. Keller is a .324 hitter (23-for-71) over those 18 games, including a triple, two doubles, two home runs and 10 RBIs. Jorgenson has made a team-high 10 appearances against non-league teams, posting a 1.31 ERA with nine strikeouts over 20.2 innings pitched. Mitchell is the top starting pitcher over that span, recording a 2.92 ERA over three starts and 12.1 innings of work.
 
MARYLAND PRIMER
Overall Record: 32-8
Home Record: 16-1
Away Record: 15-6
Neutral Record: 1-1
D1 Baseball National Ranking: No. 23
Big Ten Record / Standings: 9-3 / Second
Streak: W2
Head Coach: Rob Vaughn I Fifth Season (125-90)
 
SCOUTING THE TERPS
LAST TIME OUT: Last time out, Maryland won two of three games in a road series against Big Ten rival Illinois. The Terps lost the first game, 19-1, but bounced back with a 13-9 victory in 10 innings of Saturday. In the second game of Saturday's twin bill, Maryland downed the Illini in a narrow 7-4 decision to win the series.
 
AT THE PLATE: Troy Schreffler Jr. leads the way for the Maryland offense with a .348 batting average (56-for-161) that includes a triple, six home runs, 13 doubles, 37 RBIs and a lofty .553 slugging percentage. Luke Shigler ranks second on the team with a .340 batting average (53-for-156), along with leading the team in OPS (1.038). Maxwell Costes is the top power threat in the Terps' lineup, mashing a team-best 12 home runs.
 
ON THE MOUND: Jason Savacool has pitched a team-high 72 innings over 10 starts this season, posting a 2.63 ERA and a .208 batting average against over that span. The sophomore has also walked just 18 batters while striking out 85 in his 72 innings of work. Ryan Ramsey has pitched the second-most innings for Maryland this season (61.2), totaling a 2.77 ERA and a staff-best .198 batting average against.
 
UP NEXT
Following a postponement of Wednesday's home contest against Maryland Eastern Shore, the Midshipmen are slated to return to action Saturday as they open the aforementioned three-game set against Lafayette at Max Bishop Stadium. First pitch of both Saturday's doubleheader and Sunday's series finale is slated for 1 p.m.