BOSTON – Riding a four-game winning streak, the Northeastern University baseball team (9-7) faces a pair of midweek non-conference contests this week, hosting Merrimack (7-8) on Tuesday at 2:30 p.m. at Friedman Diamond before traveling to Providence on Wednesday to take on Brown (5-8) at 3 p.m. at Murray Stadium.
THREE THINGS TO KNOW:
1. SWEEPING UP The Huskies head into the midweek on a roll after completing a three-game sweep of Towson at Friedman Diamond over the weekend. Northeastern took the series opener 6-3 on Friday behind home runs from AJ Aschettino and Eric Cha in the eighth inning, before Luc Rising turned in another quality start in Saturday's 3-1 victory. Ryan Griffin was strong again in Sunday's series-clinching win, lowering his season ERA to 1.96 across six appearances. Matt Brinker provided the big swing on Sunday, launching a first-pitch solo homer in the fifth to extend the lead. The sweep marks four consecutive wins for the Huskies dating back to the 18-10 midweek rout at CCSU on March 11.
2. SCOUTING THE WARRIORS Tuesday's matchup is the first meeting of the season between Northeastern and Merrimack, which competes in the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference. The Warriors had their first winning season as a Division I program in 2024, going 33-26 and advancing to the NEC tournament semifinals. Merrimack has faced a demanding early-season schedule with road trips to UNCW, Charleston, Bucknell, Army, and Iona. The Huskies took last year's lone meeting with the Warriors, 10-0 in eight innings at Friedman Diamond. It'll be the first of three total games against Merrimack this season, with two more games taking place at Friedman this April.
3. SCOUTING THE BEARS Northeastern heads to Providence on Wednesday to face a Brown team that enters the week at 5-8 after taking one of three at Seton Hall last weekend. The Bears showed some fight in game two, rallying for four runs in the ninth inning to steal a 9-6 victory, fueled by three RBI doubles in the frame. Sophomore outfielder Alex Benevento leads the Ivy League with a .389 batting average, while freshman shortstop Matt Luigs ranks among the league leaders at .359. It'll be the first game against Brown for NU since 2022, where the Huskies defeated the Bears 8-2 in Providence. It'll be the first meeting of the two programs since the hiring of new Brown head coach Frank Holbrook, who was a former Northeastern assistant coach from 2024 to 2025.
