Red Storm Rolls into Western Carolina

Following a lopsided four-game sweep of Sacred Heart this past weekend at Jack Kaiser Stadium, the St. John's baseball team will hit the road for the first time this weekend, traveling to Cullowhee, N.C., for a three-game set with Western Carolina.

The Red Storm is off to a 7-0 start for the third time in the last five seasons. The Johnnies won their first nine games of 2017 before rattling off eight straight the following year. Both of those season-opening winning streaks included a victory over North Carolina in Chapel Hill. St. John's would go on to qualify for a regional in both of those seasons, earning at at-large berth in 2017 before winning the BIG EAST for a league-record ninth time in 2018.

The main difference between those 2017-2018 streaks and their 2021 counterpart is that all of this season's victories have come in Queens. Prior to this year, the Red Storm had never played a February home game in more than 100 years of baseball at St. John's. Since 1956, the first year for which home and away designations are marked in the program record book, St. John's had also never started a season with seven consecutive home games.

The Johnnies have dominated on both sides of the ball so far this season. As a team, the Red Storm is batting .322 with five everyday starters hitting .360 or better. A pair of St. John's players, Brandon Miller and David Williams, are hitting an even. 400. Ryan Hogan was named the BIG EAST Player of the Week on Monday after going 9-for-14 with four doubles and a grand slam against Sacred Heart. Williams hit .533 with a home run and 11 RBIs in four games against the Pioneers.

On the mound, the Red Storm rotation was nearly untouchable over the first two weekends of the season. Friday starter Nick Mondak has yet to allow a run in 12.0 innings of work while Saturday starter Ian Murphy also carries a 2-0 record and a 0.00 ERA through two starts. Brian Hendry, the Red Storm's scheduled Sunday hurler, currently sports the highest ERA of the weekend rotation at 0.93.

Red Storm relievers have also impressed to start the season, as four arms out of the bullpen currently boast a 0.00 ERA through two or more appearances. Joe Joe Rodriguez has allowed just one hit and struck out four in 3.0 innings of work while Ethan Routzahn has registered two saves in three scoreless appearances. In the Sunday finale against Sacred Heart, he struck out the side to end the contest.

As a staff, the Red Storm's ERA currently sits at 1.03 while opponents are hitting a meager .154. St. John's pitchers have struck out 69 batters in seven games while surrendering just 33 walks.

Western Carolina (8-4) welcomes the Red Storm to Cullowhee on the heels of a 12-11 win over Kennesaw State on Wednesday. The Catamounts hung up a six spot in the bottom of the first and never trailed. Third baseman Gaivn Patel knocked in a game-high three runs.

The midweek victory over Kennesaw State came after the Catamounts took a three-game series on the road at Charlotte. Western Carolina also dropped a set at UNC Wilmington and swept four games from Towson in convincing fashion, including a 23-1 win in the season opener.

Five Catamounts enter the series with St. John's hitting .348 or better on the season. Four of those players have left the yard at least two times.

As a staff, the Catamounts have posted a 4.29 ERA with 50 walks, 106 strikeouts and 1.48 WHIP.

St. John's and Western Carolina have met nine times in the history of the two programs with the Red Storm holding a slight 5-4 advantage in those games. The teams last met two seasons ago in Cullowhee, but excessive rain limited the series to just a Sunday doubleheader. St. John's won the opener before the Catamounts pulled away late for a 13-4 victory in game two.

The two teams also met three times during the 2016 and 2017 seasons, as the Red Storm won all three of those games by a combined margin of 37-7.

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Players Mentioned

Brian Hendry

Ryan Hogan

Brandon Miller

Nick Mondak

Ian Murphy

Joe Joe Rodriguez

Ethan Routzahn

David Williams

St. John's University Athletics