College baseball

MAINE vs. VERMONT

Time, site: Friday (2), 5 p.m.; Saturday (2), 3 p.m.; Mahaney Diamond, Orono

Records: Maine 35-14 (15-5 America East); Vermont 30-10 (15-3)

Series, last meeting: Maine leads 74-44; Maine 8-2 on 5/24/02

Top hitters – Maine: 1B Greg Creek (.365, 2 HR, 17 RBI), 2B Brett Ouellette (.352, 9 HR, 41 RBI), DH Alain Picard (.335, 5 HR, 48 RBI), C Aaron Izaryk (.325, 2 HR, 33 RBI), LF Ryan Quintal (.314, 4 HR, 23 RBI), 3B Joe Drapeau (.302, 9 HR, 30 RBI); Vermont: SS Bobby Tewksbary (.383, 4 HR, 28 RBI), 3B Barry Chamberland (.373, 9 HR, 38 RBI), CF Jeff Barry (.317, HR, 18 RBI, 26 SB), 3B Jay Iannoni (.310, 5 HR, 25 RBI)

Possible Pitching Matchups

Vermont Catamounts Maine Black Bears

ERA W-L Ks ERA W-L Ks

RH Jamie Merchant 1.62 6-1 67 RH Mike MacDonald 3.37 7-4 75

LH Brian Robinson 4.24 3-1 51 RH Mike Collar 3.31 7-2 86

LH Derek Miller 2.77 4-2 53 RH Greg Norton 3.12 6-1 51

RH Jeff Dixon 2.05 8-0 28 RH Ryan Harris 3.00 4-1 31

Outlook: Runs could be in short supply as the league’s top two teams go after first place. The Bears need three wins to clinch the top seed in the AE tourney. UVM pitchers boast a sparkling 3.03 ERA, including three lefties who could pose problems for the Bears’ league-high .303 average. UMaine counters with a solid 3.80 ERA against UVM’s .299 average. UVM has won nine straight and 12 of 13 league games on its way to a school-record 35 victories. UMaine has won 7 of its last 10.