PHILADELPHIA – They're home! The University of Pennsylvania baseball team returns to Tommy Lasorda Field at Meiklejohn Stadium for the first time this season.
 
Penn hosts Delaware on Friday at 3 p.m. before heading to Newark for a pair of games Saturday (2 p.m.) and Sunday (2 p.m.) at Bob Hannah Stadium.
 
GAME 7: Penn (0-6, 0-0 Ivy) vs. Delaware (5-7, 0-0 CAA)
March 7 | Tommy Lasorda Field at Meiklejohn Stadium | Philadelphia, Pa.
Game Program (PDF) | Watch on ESPN+ | Live Stats
 
GAME 8-9: Penn (0-6, 0-0 Ivy) at Delaware (5-7, 0-0 CAA)
March 8-9 | Bob Hannah Stadium | Newark, Del.
Watch on FloSports: Game 2, Game 3 | Live Stats: Game 2, Game 3
 
The Delaware Series
Despite being close in proximity to one another, the all-time series between Penn and Delaware is short, the Blue Hens leading 14-7.
 
The Quakers have dropped eight of their last 10 matchups and fell last season at Tommy Lasorda Field, 12-6, in the opening round of the Liberty Bell Classic.
 
This will actually be the first three-game set in series history. Penn and Delaware have never met more than twice in one season.
 
Slow Start, Good Competition
Penn heads into its home opener with its worst record through six games since 2017, but the teams it has faced have been some of the best the nation has to offer.
 
The season began with a three-game series at then-No. 9 Florida State, a College World Series team just a season ago. In that set, the Quakers were outscored, 38-8. This past weekend saw more competitive games against then-No. 21 Troy, but fell in all three.
 
That being said, Penn's RPI ranking is the best in the Ivy League by seven spots, sitting at No. 84 in front of Cornell (No. 91).
 
At The Plate
Ryan Taylor has been the Quakers' most consistent hitter just six games into the campaign. Up until Sunday's series finale at Troy, he had tallied a hit in the first five games of the year. Taylor is currently hitting .333 with a home run, three RBIs, and five walks.
 
Qwynn Ahearn is Penn's only other .300+ hitter right now, hitting the mark by going 3-for-10 at the plate with a walk and a run scored.
 
Five players have one home run through six games including Taylor, Gavin Collins, Gavin Degnan, Davis Baker, and Connor Chavez.
 
At the moment, Penn has scored the third-least runs (19) of Ivy League teams to begin the year and are hitting .205 as a team.
 
Defense will need to improve as we get deeper into the season, Penn currently posting the third-worst fielding percentage (.947) in the conference with 10 errors.
 
On The Mound
Pitching, while not a strength at the moment, was much better against Troy than it was against Florida State two weekends ago.
 
Three pitchers—Thomas Shurtleff (0-1, 0.00 ERA), Marshall Mott (0-0, 0.00), and John Cerwinski (0-1, 0.00)—have not allowed an earned run despite pitching in two or more appearances.
 
Freshman Sebastian Haggard (0-0, 4.76) leads the team in strikeouts with 10 after punching out seven in a relief outing against the Trojans on Saturday.
 
Turning into the team's Sunday starter, southpaw Will Tobin (0-1, 6.75) was excellent on Sunday in Alabama, striking out five batters over four innings of work, allowing just one run on two hits.
 
We Love The Meik
Tommy Lasorda Field at Meiklejohn Stadium has turned into a real home-field advantage for the Quakers over the last couple seasons.
 
Penn was 10-6 at home in 2024, 15-5 in 2023, and 17-5 in 2022. That's a 42-16 record in a three-year span, which overall, could be considered one of the best stretches in program history.
 
Scouting The Blue Hens
Delaware has had some success to begin the year, in its final season participating in the CAA. The Blue Hens are 5-7 through their first 12 games and are 3-1 at home.
 
Delaware is 5-2 in its last seven games, posting victories over FIU, Maryland, Delaware State, and Bryant during that span. The Blue Hens fell at Rutgers, 8-2, on Tuesday.
 
Like Penn, UD only has two hitters batting above .300 this year including Brett Walmsley (.400/.400/.520) and Aaron Graeber (.320/.700/.368). Graeber has a team-high six home runs, which ranks 17th in the nation.
 
On the mound, Doug Marose (0-0, 6.35 ERA), Ryan McLaughlin (0-2, 7.36), and Ethan Shaub (1-2, 9.31) have had a bulk of the workload as starters. McLaughlin has a team-leading 14 strikeouts. As a team, the Hens are giving up an average of 6.95 runs per game and have walked 72 batters, the 39th most in the nation and the most in the CAA so far this year.
 
The Blue Hens also lead the nation in hit batters (37) and are ranked 12th in fielding percentage (.985).
 
Follow The Action
Friday's home opener will be streamed live on ESPN+ with Cory Nidoh on the play-by-play call. Live stats will also be provided. Both games this weekend in Newark will be streamed live on FloSports with live stats provided as well.
 
For the latest on Penn baseball, follow @PennBaseball on X (formerly Twitter), @Penn_Baseball on Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.