What: Florida Atlantic vs East Carolina
When: April 4th @ 6:00 PM | April 5th @ 4:00 PM | April 6th @ 1:00 PM
Where: Clark-LeClair Stadium
Video: ESPN+
Stats: Stats Broadcast
Projected Pitchers
FAU – LHP Trey Beard (4-0, 2.82 ERA)
ECU – LHP Ethan Norby (4-2, 2.49 ERA)
FAU – RHP Tyler Murphy (2-2, 4.71 ERA)
ECU – TBD
FAU – RHP James Litman (2-0, 3.06 ERA)
ECU – TBD
Owls Notables
It was a rough past week for FAU, but the Owls ended a four-game skid with a midweek victory against FGCU on Tuesday. Florida Atlantic (20-9, 2-4 AAC) is slashing .308/.421/.472. The offense has been so dominant this season, the Owls sit second in the conference in batting average. The Owls also lead the way in slugging percentage and BB in the American.
When it comes to FAU’s pitching, it clearly is a different story. The biggest storyline coming out of the UTSA series was the Owls inability to close out a game. In each contest Florida Atlantic led, but the pitching staff had a bad inning or two that flipped the game. UTSA does statistically have the best offense in the conference, and every arm throwing against the Roadrunners will most likely struggle.
On the mound, FAU has a 4.16 ERA, and is allowing an opponent’s BA of .249. ECU sits in front of Florida Atlantic in ERA in the AAC as the squads are 1 and 2 in the category.
One of the bullpen pieces that has been on a tear this season is RHP Braden Ostrander. Last season, the Florida native had 15 appearances, a 10.80 ERA, and allowed a batting average of .380.
But, on the 2025 campaign the numbers have flipped. In his 15 appearances already this season, Ostrander has an ERA of 4.24, and has dropped his opponent’s averages from .380 in 2024 down to .273. The Grad-student has put on a show and the Owls could use the momentum in the pitching room, especially against a tough ECU team.
Coach McCormack’s starters will look the same in the lineup, the Owls will have an extra bat off the bench if needed in Kyle Boylston. The two-sport athlete will travel with the team this weekend, and so will his .438 BA. Expect Boylston to come off the bench in most contests, but the freshman may start to give an outfielder a rest.
Projected Starters
C Ayden Garcia/Dylan LaPointe (Alternating starts)
1B Jake Millan
2B John Martinez
SS Brando Leroux
3B Pat Ward
RF Jake Duer
CF Marshall Lipsey
LF John Schroeder
Florida Atlantic will have the midweek off as the Owls will host the Tigers next Friday in Boca Raton.
East Carolina Notables
Ever since ECU joined the American Conference in 2015, the Pirates have been the team to beat. Historically, East Carolina has been a powerhouse, and recently have won the AAC Regular season title four-years-in-a-row.
ECU (20-10, 6-0 AAC) enters the weekend with back-to-back victories over UNCW and Elon on Tuesday and Wednesday. Before those contests, East Carolina has put on weekend sweeps over Memphis and Rice.
On the season, the Pirates are slashing .272/.392/.437. Notably, the Pirates lead the AAC in home runs hit with 37, yet are fourth in the conference in RBIs. Many one or two run shots come from the ECU bats, but blasts are not coming at high rates when multiple runners are on.
As mentioned earlier, ECU leads the conference in ERA at 3.92. Unlike FAU, the Pirates rely on long relievers. During Saturday and Sunday games, East Carolina has thrown the starter for only a couple of innings before relying on the bullpen.
Colby Wallace is ECU’s leader in home runs and RBIs. The two-way player will most likely make an appearance on the mound as well thanks to his recent performance against Rice over the weekend. The sophomore pitched two innings total in the series and earned a save in the Pirates sweep-clinching win on Sunday.