Bulldog Baseball Opens This Weekend

By Natalie Pearson

The Bulldog baseball season begins this weekend in front of a home crowd at Greenwood Field. The team will face non-conference opponents Murray State – a Division I school traditional in good baseball. However, with UNC Asheville’s enhanced roster, cosmetic improvements to the dugouts, the field and the backstop, and the promise of good weather this weekend, the team is raring to go.

“I’m excited, the staff’s excited, I think the entire department’s excited and the kids are excited,” Head Coach Tom Smith said.

Since last season, the Bulldogs have welcomed 15 freshmen and two junior transfer student athletes. These players, representing a healthy mix of local and out of state athletes, carry with them the hope of a successful season.

“We’ve brought in very talented freshmen,” Smith said. “They’ll progress with seasoning and some will have important roles from the very beginning.”

The three game series against the Thoroughbreds from Kentucky will be the first match up the Bulldogs have played against them historically. The homestand will also mark the beginning of a brand new 53-game season including eight home games and 10 contests at the Asheville Tourist’s home turf, McCormick Field.

Go Bulldogs!