Bowling Green baseball (0-3) continues their time away from Steller Field to start the 2026 season with a three-game weekend series against Western Carolina (3-0) in Cullowhee, North Carolina.
The series begins at 4 p.m. on Friday, with game two at 2 p.m. on Saturday and rounding out the weekend on Sunday with first pitch at 1:00 p.m.
The Falcons are still searching for their 1,800th victory in program history, sitting just one win away.
Bowling Green is also looking to avoid their worst start since 2017, where they began the season 0-6 after a three-game series against Texas A&M and losses against Lipscomb, Middle Tennessee and Belmont in the Mule Mix Classic.
The Falcons and Catamounts have only faced off in a three-game series in 2009, with Western Carolina sweeping Bowling Green.
Scouting Bowling Green
The Orange and Brown are coming off a rough start to the season with three losses against nationally ranked Georgia Tech.
One of the positives from the opening series was the play of senior infielder Sam Seidel.
Seidel racked in five hits on eight at-bats, including two doubles and a home run, while holding it down on the defensive side with two double plays.
Along with the returning usage of Seidel, Bowling Green had moments from multiple transfer portal players.
Ohio University transfer junior outfielder Pauly Mancino got off to a hot start in the Orange and Brown, going 4-11 over the weekend with a .471 on-base percentage.
Scouting Western Carolina
Western Carolina heads into their matchup against the Falcons riding their three-game series victory over George Washington.
After their first series of the season, redshirt sophomore catcher Noah Quarless was named Southern Conference Player of the Week. Quarless went 3-5 with a two-run home run and five RBIs over his two games played.
The Catamounts were also extremely dominant on the mound. The combination of junior right-hander Mason Snyder and sophomore right-hander Carter Burnette was able to hold George Washington to only one run over 11 total innings between the two.
Snyder worked through the last six regulation innings in the first game of the series, striking out six while allowing only three hits and zero runs.
Burnette was credited for the win in his first start of the season, coming during the first game of the Saturday doubleheader. While on the mound, the 6-foot-5 right-hander struck out seven batters, allowing one run on three hits through five innings.
Falcon Four Players to Watch
Brady Birchmeier (Bowling Green No. 43)
The power hitting first basemen had a rough series against Georgia Tech, going 1-6 at the plate. Now facing a Western Carolina pitching staff that gave up five home runs as a committee in their first series, Birchmeier will look to steer himself back on track with a positive series against the Catamounts.
Being one of the leaders of this new-look Falcons, Birchmeier is tasked with keeping the losses to start the season to a minimum. He’ll look to not only be an asset through his play on the field, but also his leadership off the field.
Vinny Salvione (Bowling Green No. 23)
Being one of the transfer portal additions for the Falcons, Salvione found himself starting all three games at shortstop in the opening series. The 6-foot junior turned three double plays in the first series, along with nine assists and two put outs.
Salvione also was the lead-off hitter for the entire series against Georgia Tech. Similiar to Birchmeier, Salvione struggled against a top ranked pitching staff. Heading into a matchup against a pitching staff who allowed 27 total hits throughout their first series, Salvione has a chance to solidify his lead-off role in the batting order.
Brody Raleigh (Western Carolina No. 34)
Raleigh looks to have taken the leap from “plug and play” to full time designated hitter heading into his junior season. Over their series against George Washington, the Catamount went .400 at the plate, which is second on the team for qualified players.
Facing off against a Falcon pitching staff that struggled to find their footing against Georgia Tech, the designated hitter may find himself with a multitude of opportunities to continue his hot start to the season.
Mason Synder (Western Carolina No. 5)
One of the most interesting pieces of Synder’s six innings in the Catamounts’ first game victory is that he came in after George Washington scored five runs in the first three innings. Western Carolina may look to hand Synder a start in this series.
If Western Carolina looks to keep their pitching rotation similar to their opening series, Synder will be a strong arm to come in as relief against a Falcon hitting group that is eager to put the bat on the ball.
