Baseball team opens Southern Conference season Wednesday at home

The Eastern Florida State College baseball team will open its Southern Conference schedule Wednesday afternoon.

The Titans, who are 12-13 on the season, will host Miami Dade in Game 1 of a three-game series Wednesday at 4 p.m. at Bruce Bochy Field. 

Miami Dade comes into the conference opener 16-9 on the season and No. 6 in the NJCAA Region 8 Coaches Poll. The Sharks have won five in a row heading into Wednesday's game.

"They are a veteran lineup. Those guys have a lot of experience, they can swing it and play elite defense," Eastern Florida State College baseball coach Jason Arnold said. "They are the class of the conference. It's going to be a different intensity tomorrow and I think the guys are ready for the challenge."

The Titans will turn to sophomore Darien Smith in Game 1. Smith comes into the contest leading the nation in strikeouts with 66 in eight starts this season and is 4-1 with a 4.12 ERA.

Tyler Vogel will take the ball in Game 2 Friday in Miami Dade and the duo have been the leaders of the pitching staff all season.

"They have been what we needed them to be, the team has confidence when they are on the mound and they have been consistent," Arnold said. "They have both pitched in a lot of big games already in their college career and they have a good understanding about what conference play is going to look like. They bring stability and you need that in conference play."

Miami Dade comes into the contest fifth in the state in team ERA with a 3.82 ERA and hitting .287 as a team which is 10^th in the state.

Kaeber Rog and Garrett Evans lead the Titans offensively, both hitting over .310 this season.

"We have got to be consistent. We can play with anyone on any given day, but we just have to be more consistent day to day and that starts on the mound," Arnold said. "Getting into a rhythm of playing three times a week should help the guys. I am not exactly sure what to expect as we head into the conference season, I would not say we are on a down slide, but I wouldn't say we are playing our best baseball either. Some nights we have it all together and some nights we don't. It goes back to finding that consistency."

Wednesday's game will begin at 4 p.m. at Bruce Bochy Field with the final two games of the series scheduled to be played at Miami Dade Friday at 6 p.m. and Saturday at 1 p.m.

"We have played 25 games and none of that matters now. The teams in this conference are good and it will be a battle to the end for sure," Arnold said.