ETSU to open baseball season this weekend

Reigning Southern Conference champion East Tennessee State will open its 2026 baseball season with a three-game series against Marist this weekend. First pitch for game 1 is set for Friday 3 p.m. The Bucs swept last season's Southern Conference regular-season and tournament championships. They finished 41-17 with the win total the second most for a season in school history. The Red Foxes, out of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference, finished 26-28 last season. ETSU's memorable 2025 campaign included a 7-6 win at then No. 1 Tennessee. The Bucs made the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2013 when they were Atlantic Sun Conference champions. But, that was last year and the Bucs are looking forward to a new season under coach Joe Pennucci. They will be playing on a new field at Thomas Stadium. It's the same turf which the Atlanta Braves and Cincinnati Reds used for the Speedway Classic last August at Bristol Motor Speedway. ETSU players Jamie Palmese and Nate Conner called it the best surface they've played on. Pennucci is appreciative of it, and called it a great addition to Thomas Stadium. "The turf has been great. I mean it's played really well," Pennucci said. "It took a little time to get down, but once we got it down and broke in, it's been good. When people come to see it, it looks really nice, so it's a great addition to already a beautiful stadium." The Bucs were picked third behind Samford and Mercer in the Southern Conference preseason poll. The conference schedule doesn't begin for another month when ETSU visits UNC Greensboro for a three-game series starting March 20. ETSU plays 10 of its first 11 games at home with the lone road trip next Tuesday, Feb. 17 at Virginia Tech. Pennucci believes the home-field advantage is real for his team early in the season. "The support in town is awesome. Our fans are great," he said. "It's been so much fun to see different families throughout the years and old timers that have been around since years and years of season-ticket holders. It's great to see them. Being here is great with the addition of the new turf and in the building that's happening, there are a lot of pretty neat things that are going on here." Five ETSU players were named all-conference selections. Pitchers Michael Harpster and Derek McCarley, along with outfielder Palmese, were named to the first team. Another pitcher, Tristan Curless, and outfielder Alex Melendez were second-team selections. Conner returns to Johnson City after two seasons at Walters State Community College where he hit .368 and helped the Senators to a national runner-up finish. He also was a part of Science Hill's 2021 state championship team. He scored two runs and drove in another run in the Hilltoppers' 9-5 victory over Hardin County in the title game. While the all-conference picks are holdovers from last year's team, Pennucci is optimistic about the new version of the Bucs. He first referenced last season which the 41 wins were second most in school history and the team crushed a single-season record with 121 home runs. "Last season was a fun, a special season, but it's been a really fun fall with these guys," Pennucci said. "It's a really good group of players. Does that result in wins and losses? I don't know, but I think they've competed well. We've gotten better." Pennucci is 231-161 in his eight years as the Bucs' skipper. The last two years have been exceptional with 77 victories. He doesn't know the identity of this team yet, although having two preseason all-conference pitchers is a good place to start. He doesn't expect them to be as much of a power-hitting squad as last season, but a different style could work out fine. "We'll probably have to play a little bit different than we have in the past. I don't know that we'll be setting records for home runs," he said. "I think that we can play differently and still be successful. There are just some new faces to see, and there's a lot of competition internally. I'm excited for that."