DOBBS FERRY, N.Y. (Mar. 8, 2021) – The Mercy College baseball team opens their 2021 season on Thursday, March 11th when they host Bloomfield at 3 p.m.

Who, When and Where
Date/Time: Thursday, March 11th 3 p.m.
Records: Mercy (0-0), Bloomfield (0-0)
Location: Dobbs Ferry, N.Y.
No spectators permitted due to COVID-19

Scouting the Mavericks

• Thursday's game marks the first game for the Mavericks in just over a year due to COVID-19. 
• Mercy was picked to finish in a tie for 3rd in the ECC Preseason Poll. It is the highest ranking in the poll for the Mavericks.
• Mercy looks to win their season opener for the first time since 2018 when they defeated Barton 16-5 on February 16th.
• Mercy looks to win their third straight home opener. 
• Mercy is looking to make their first ECC Championship since 2010.
• In 2018 and 2019, Mercy won 20+ games in back-to-back seasons for the first time in program history.
• Mercy last posted a winning record in 1990.
• The program record for wins in a season is 26 set in 1990.
• Mercy is 1-7-1 in their last nine meetings against Bloomfield dating back to 2007. The Mavericks lone win came last year in a 5-4 victory at Mercy Field on February 27th.
• Leading the returners in the infield is graduate student second baseman Miguel Ortiz Sanchez who was named NCBWA East Region Hitter of the Week and ECC Player of the Week in 2020. He started all 12 games and hit .455 with 20 hits, 14 RBI and five stolen bases, leading the team and ECC in average. Ortiz Sanchez also led the team in RBI, hits and stolen bases. He has 116 career hits, 65 RBI, and 55 runs scored as a Maverick.
• Also returning in the infield is graduate student Anthony Murphy who started all 12 games last year and hit .273 with 10 RBI and four homes. He led the team and ECC in home runs and was second in RBI. In 2019, he was named NCBWA Preseason All-Region and was named All-Region and First Team All-ECC after 2018. During his first season as a Maverick in 2017, Murphy was named ECC Rookie of the Year and Second Team All-ECC. He has a career .322 batting average with 116 RBI, 167 hits, 86 runs and 16 home runs.
• Returning in the outfield for the Mavericks are seniors Kuzari Jocelyn and Robert Wootten, juniors James Dieguez and Ryan Saltzman and sophomore Isaiah Ortiz. Jocelyn made nine starts in 2020 and had four hits and two runs scored, while Wootten appeared in three games. Jocelyn has 24 career hits, 14 runs and seven RBI as a Maverick.
• Leading the pitching staff are senior Jack Kelly and sophomore Anthony Burgio. Kelly was named ECC Pitcher of the Week once in 2020 and went 3-1 with a 3.22 ERA in 22.1 innings with 21 strikeouts. He led the team and ECC in wins and led the team in ERA. For his career, Kelly has won 10 games and has a 4.56 ERA with 95 strikeouts in 144 innings pitched. Burgio made three appearances on the mound in 2020 with two starts, pitching seven innings.
• Also returning on the mound is senior Andrew Hernandez who made five appearances in 2020 with one save in 8.1 innings. In 2019, he went 2-1 with a 2.30 ERA and nine saves, setting a single-season and career record for saves. Hernandez was named First Team All-ECC following the 2019 season finishing with 32 strikeouts in 31.1 innings.

Scouting the Bears

• Bloomfield was picked fourth in the North Division in the CACC Preseason Poll.
• The Bears went 1-8-2 in 2020 with their lone win coming at Pace on March 2nd.
• In their last full season in 2019, Bloomfield went 16-36-1 and qualified for the CACC Tournament.
• Bloomfield last posted a winning record in 2012 when they went 22-21.
• The Bears are looking to win their first season opener since 2018.
• Leading the returners for the Bears is graduate student Julius Puryear who hit a team-high .300 with a team-high eight RBI in 11 starts. Also returning is graduate student Kendon Strachan who hit .297 with four RBI and a home run.
• Junior Tyree Bradley returns after hitting .341 in 2019 with 39 RBI and nine home runs.
• On the mound, graduate student Kevin Mojica returns after posting a 1.42 ERA in 6.1 innings in 2020. Senior Anthony Elefante also returns after recording a 2.25 ERA in a team-high 16.0 innings with 10 strikeouts.

Next Game
Mercy resumes action on Sunday, March 14th when they host Adelphi at 1 p.m.