Nationally-ranked MOC opens CVAC baseball schedule at Belmont Abbey

By MOC Sports Information
Published in Sports on February 16, 2007 2:17 PM

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Nationally 27th-ranked Mount Olive heads to Belmont this weekend as the Trojans open Carolinas-Virginia Athletics Conference baseball play with a three-game series against Belmont Abbey. The series opens Saturday with a doubleheader beginning at noon, then concludes Sunday at 1 p.m.

Mount Olive (4-4 overall, 0-0 CVAC) is coming off a 13-1 win Tuesday at North Carolina Wesleyan in a game called after six innings due to rain. Josh Carter and David Cooper both homered for the Trojans, while Daniel Wood pitched four scoreless innings in his first appearance of the season.

Cooper collected four hits Sunday against Lenoir-Rhyne and has gone 6-for-8 in his last two games to raise his average to .400.

Dustin Richardson, who is batting .370 with three home runs, has hit safely in 17 of his last 18 games, dating back to last year. Richardson homered in three consecutive games over the weekend.

On the mound, a pair of transfers are the probable starters for Saturday's doubleheader. Tom Layne (2-0) and Judson Smith (1-1) both enter this weekend with a 1.50 earned run average. Layne picked up a win against No. 5 Francis Marion last Friday and Smith followed with a win over No. 7 Francis Marion the next day. Layne was named CVAC Pitcher of the Week earlier this week.

Belmont Abbey (6-2, 0-0) fell 10-9 Thursday at Presbyterian. The Crusaders have been listed among Others Receiving Votes in the Collegiate Baseball Division II Poll in each of the last two weeks.

Including this weekend's series, nine of the Trojans' first 11 games this season come against teams that are either nationally ranked or received votes in the Top 30 poll.

Mount Olive swept last year's three-game series over Belmont Abbey at Scarborough Field.

Notes: After playing its first 11 games on the road, Mount Olive plays seven home games in five days, beginning Wednesday with a doubleheader against Virginia State.