GEORGIA STATE (5-6) vs. NORTH ALABAMA (3-9)
March 6-8  |  GSU Baseball Complex

Friday, 4 p.m. (ESPN+)
Saturday, 2 p.m.
Sunday, 1 p.m.

LEADING OFF

>Georgia State (5-6) opens an eight-game homestand at the GSU Baseball Complex with  weekend series against North Alabama (3-9), beginning Friday at 4 p.m.

>This is the Panthers' first meeting with North Alabama, a member of the Atlantic Sun Conference that is playing just its second season at the Division I level. The Lions were a long-time power in Division II and the Gulf Coast Conference.

>First-year head coach Brad Stromdahl took over the Georgia State program after seven seasons as the head coach at Georgia Gwinnett, where he started the program from scratch in 2013 and compiled a record of 328-104. He led the Grizzlies to the Avista-NAIA World Series three times, including the last two years. Before going to Georgia Gwinnett in November 2011, Stromdahl spent five seasons (2007-11) as an assistant coach at Georgia State.

>Senior outfielder Elian Merejo is second in the Sun Belt in batting average (.439), home runs (4), .slugging (.829) and on-base percentage (.566) as well as fifth in runs scored (16). He has walked 12 times, including four intentional walks.

>Merejo was named Sun Belt Player of the Week on Feb. 17 after going 7-for-11 with two homers, two doubles, seven RBI and seven runs scored as the Panthers opened the season with wins over 2019 NCAA Regional team Cincinnati, St. John's and Saint Peters.

>One of the top freshmen in the Sun Belt Conference, shortstop Will Mize is hitting .421 and ranks third in the league with 14 RBI. In four games last week, Mize went 7-for-17 with  homer and eight RBI. In the 10-inning win at Western Carolina, he drove in the tying run in the eighth inning and then brought home the go-ahead run with a 10th-inning single.

>Junior third baseman Griffin Cheney leads the Sun Belt and ranks 11th in the nation in walks (13). He also ranks among the Sun Belt leaders in stolen bases, on-base percentage and runs scored.

>Georgia State freshmen hurlers have earned three wins and a save. Five freshmen (Cameron Jones, Chandler Dawson, Duncan Lutz, Chad Treadway and Brandon Haston) have combined for a 3.53 ERA with 46 strikeouts in 35.2 innings.

>Freshman reliever Cameron Jones earned a win vs. 2019 NCAA regional team Cincinnati and a save vs. St. John's in his first two collegiate appearances. The lefty from Kathleen, Ga., pitched 3.2 innings scoreless out of the bullpen, allowing just one hit while striking out four. In the top of the 10th inning against Cincinnati, he pitched a rare Immaculate Inning, striking out the side on nine pitches, to set up the Panthers' walk-off in the bottom half.

>Freshman righty Chad Treadway leads the Panthers with a 3.18 ERA and 17 strikeouts in 11.1 innings out of the bullpen.
>Twenty-eight of the 33 players on the roster hail from Georgia, including 23 from Metro Atlanta.