On Wednesday, the Maryland Terrapins (17-23, 3-8) picked up a 6-1 win over James Madison to break a six-game losing streak. Behind the arms of Billy Phillips and the bullpen, and the bats of an offense that hit three home runs and recorded 10 hits, the Terps played what looked to be their best game in recent memory.
“We just played a really clean game today overall,” said senior outfielder Zach Jancarski after the win. “Today was a really good step in the right direction.”
Now, Maryland will look to carry that momentum into a crucial Big Ten weekend series in East Lansing against the Michigan State Spartans (15-21, 6-5). For the Terps, the return of some familiar, and new, faces could propel them to a strong finish to the season.
Marty Costes returned to the lineup on Wednesday after serving a three game suspension for violating team rules. Though Costes’ junior campaign has not been as successful as expected, he has become a dangerous bat in the middle of the Terps lineup. With A.J. Lee, Nick Dunn and Zach Jancarski all hitting well, Costes’ return is an improvement for the offense.
Ryan Hill also made his return to the mound against James Madison. Hill, a senior reliever, pitched for the first time this season after dealing with eligibility issues for a good portion of 2018. For a struggling Maryland bullpen that is in need of some shutdown guys for the late innings, Hill is a welcome addition.
“He’s fresh, which is great,” said head coach Rob Vaughn. “That’s going to be big for us.”
The last return could potentially come for the Terps this weekend. Taylor Bloom, the usual Friday starter for Maryland, could see some action against the Spartans after being sidelined close to two weeks ago, when he was struck in the head with a foul ball during warmups against Michigan. According to Vaughn, Bloom is still going through protocol, but did workout during the week.
“He’s feeling much better,” said Vaughn. “Our hope is to have him in some capacity this weekend.”
With Bloom still up in the air, freshman Mark DiLuia, who pitched six strong innings against Purdue last Friday, will likely join Tyler Blohm and Hunter Parsons as the three starters this weekend. If Bloom does make his return, it will be as a reliever, according to Vaughn.
Besides some player returns for Maryland, the team welcomed their newest teammate to College Park on Wednesday. Crumbs Jr., a baby squirrel that appears to be the child of last year’s rally squirrel Crumbs, hung out in the Terps’ dugout before the game. Much like Crumbs did a year ago, C.J., as the team calls the squirrel, helped break a slump for the Terps.
“I was terrified that thing was going to run up my leg,” Vaughn said. “Who knows, maybe we need to try to find that thing again, track it down and take it to Michigan with us this weekend.”
If Maryland continues to win, Crumbs Jr. could become the new face of Terps’ baseball.
“I don’t know if that’s Crumbs’ baby,” said Billy Phillips. “I always thought Crumbs was a dude…I hope she sticks around.”
As for the Spartans, they enter the weekend series on a five-game winning streak. Much like the Terps, they’ll need some conference wins to solidify their postseason chances.
Ethan Landon (2-5, 3.25 ERA), Mason Eria (5-2, 3.51 ERA) and Riley McCauley (2-4, 4.18 ERA) will likely start the three games for Michigan State, while the offense will be lead by Justin Antoncic and Chad Roskelly, who are both batting over .300. Zack McGuire could also add some pop to the lineup, as he leads the team with five home runs.
First pitch is 3:05 p.m. on Friday.
- Maryland volleyball swept by Indiana in second game of weekend homestand - October 7, 2023
- No. 8 Maryland field hockey falls to No. 6 Rutgers in penalty shootout, 3-2 - September 28, 2023
- Maryland women’s soccer stymied by No. 6 Penn State, 4-0 - September 15, 2023
