Panthers Host Troy to Open Sun Belt Play; Series Begins with DH Saturday

GEORGIA STATE (9-8) vs. TROY (13-4)
March 18-19 | GSU Baseball Complex

Georgia State opens Sun Belt Conference play by hosting Troy in a weekend series at the GSU Baseball Complex, with all three games on ESPN+. Due to inclement weather forecasted for Friday, the series schedule has been altered to:

Saturday, March 18 - DH, 1 p.m.
Sunday, March 19 - 2 p.m.

PROBABLE PITCHERS
Game 1: RHP Joseph Brandon (1-0, 2.12)
Game 2: RHP Ryan Watson (0-1, 5.00)
Game 3: RHP Rafael Acosta (0-0, 6.75)

LEADING OFF
> The Panthers are 13th in Division I with 35 home runs, led by JoJo Jackson with six, Luke Boynton with five and Max Ryerson, Will Mize and Dylan Strickland with four apiece.

> Twelve different Panthers have hit at least one homer, including three freshmen--Michael Maginnis, Colin Hynek and Jaden Anderson--whose first career hit was a home run.

> The series between Georgia State (35 HR/No. 13 in D1) and Troy (33 HR/No. 18) is a matchup of two of the top home run-hitting teams in the Sun Belt and the nation. GSU enters the series with a team batting average of .301, while Troy is at .302.

> Fourth-year head coach Brad Stromdahl is six wins from 400 career victories. Stromdahl (394-183 overall) took over the Georgia State program in 2020 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 his last two years (2018-19).

> Former Major League pitcher Chad Bell is in his first season as the Panthers' pitching coach. Bell played 10 seasons of professional baseball, reaching the Majors with the Detroit Tigers in 2017-18.

WHO'S HOT
> Preseason All-American Max Ryerson leads the Panthers and ranks fifth in the Sun Belt in batting average at .407, along with four homers and 12 RBI. His .551 on-base percentage is second in the Sun Belt.

> Sophomore outfielder JoJo Jackson hit his team-leading sixth home run Tuesday at Mercer, when he reached base in all five plate appearances with a single and three walks along with the homer.

> Jackson is hitting .375 with 16 RBI. He leads the league with a 1.467 OPS, including a .925 slugging percentage that is first in the Sun Belt and No. 13 in the nation, and a .542 on-base percentage that ranks fourth in the conference.

> Max Ryerson has reached base safely in 29 consecutive games. Cameron Jones had his streak of 32 straight games reaching base, which is tied for fifth in school history, snapped last game. The GSU record is 41 games by Bradley Logan in 2009-10.

> Cameron Jones leads the Sun Belt and ranks No. 6 in Division I in stolen bases (14-16).

> Luke Boynton hit three homers in the Clemson series last weekend and is second on the team with five. The junior first baseman has 17 career homers.

> Will Mize is hitting .333 with four homers and a team-leading 18 RBI. In Tuesday's contest at Mercer, he tied the game with a 2-run double in the top of the ninth inning.

> Shortstop Matt Ruiz, in his first season at GSU after transferring from USF, is second on the team with 17 RBI.

SERIES NOTES
> Since joining the Sun Belt in 2014, Georgia State is 8-7 against Troy at home, including a series win in 2021.

> The Trojans swept last year's series at Troy, including one-run games Saturday and Sunday.

> In the Sun Belt era, Troy leads the series, 16-8, including a 5-1 advantage at Troy. The teams previously played as conference foes in the Atlantic Sun Conference, and Troy leads the all-time series, 40-15.

CAREER WATCH
> After hitting a school-record 22 home runs in 2022, Max Ryerson now has 26 homers in a Panther uniform, tied for ninth in GSU history.

> Add his one season (2019) at Charleston Southern, and Ryerson has 35 career homers, tied for 14th among active Division I players.

> Super senior right-hander Ryan Watson is the Panthers' active leader with 12 career saves (third in GSU history) and 13 career victories (T-11th). Justin Malone (14 saves, 13 victories from 2009-12) is the only pitcher in GSU history with more combined wins and saves.

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Players Mentioned

#7 Joseph Brandon: RHP; 6' 1"; Freshman; R/R

#25 Ryan Watson: RHP; 6' 2"; Freshman; R/R

#33 Rafael Acosta: RHP; 6' 2"; Senior; R/R

#3 Luke Boynton: INF; 6' 5"; Junior; R/R

#22 Colin Hynek: C; 6' 1"; Redshirt Freshman; R/R

#42 JoJo Jackson: OF; 6' 2"; Sophomore; S/L

#1 Cameron Jones: LHP/OF; 6' 1"; Junior; R/L

#14 Will Mize: INF; 6' 2"; Junior; R/R

#23 Max Ryerson: OF; 6' 2"; Senior; R/R

#10 Dylan Strickland: INF; 5' 11"; Junior; R/R

#21 Matt Ruiz: INF; 6' 3"; Junior; R/R

#24 Michael Maginnis: INF; 6' 0"; Redshirt Freshman; R/R

Players Mentioned

#7 Joseph Brandon
: 6' 1"; Freshman; R/R
: RHP

#25 Ryan Watson
: 6' 2"; Freshman; R/R
: RHP

#33 Rafael Acosta
: 6' 2"; Senior; R/R
: RHP

#3 Luke Boynton
: 6' 5"; Junior; R/R
: INF

#22 Colin Hynek
: 6' 1"; Redshirt Freshman; R/R
: C

#42 JoJo Jackson
: 6' 2"; Sophomore; S/L
: OF

#1 Cameron Jones
: 6' 1"; Junior; R/L
: LHP/OF

#14 Will Mize
: 6' 2"; Junior; R/R
: INF

#23 Max Ryerson
: 6' 2"; Senior; R/R
: OF

#10 Dylan Strickland
: 5' 11"; Junior; R/R
: INF

#21 Matt Ruiz
: 6' 3"; Junior; R/R
: INF

#24 Michael Maginnis
: 6' 0"; Redshirt Freshman; R/R
: INF