RADFORD (0-0) at COLLEGE OF CHARLESTON (0-0)
PATRIOTS POINT PARK - MOUNT PLEASANT, S.C.

GAME 1: Friday – 5 p.m. | Live Stats | Live Video
RHP Aerik Taylor (5-4, 4.90 ERA in '09) vs. RHP Josh Salay (10-1, 3.82 ERA at Spartanburg JC)
GAME 2: Saturday – 1 p.m. | Live Stats | Live Video
LHP Paul DeVito (6-3, 6.95 ERA in '09) vs. RHP David Peterson (7-3, 5.73 ERA)
GAME 3: Sunday – 1 p.m. | Live Stats | Live Video
RHP Shane Pysh (3-4, 5.94 ERA in '09) vs. RHP Christian Powell (first collegiate start)

RADFORD, Va. – Radford opens its 2010 baseball season with a three-game non-conference series at the College of Charleston, beginning Friday evening.

The Highlanders are coming off the fifth winning season in school history in 2009 and will continue a string of opening day games away from Radford that stretches back to the 1993 season.  Radford will also bid for its first opening day win since 2000, when the Highlanders began the season with a 12-0 win at North Carolina A&T.

It's also the first of two consecutive weekend trips for Radford to the Lowcountry of South Carolina – the Highlanders head back for three games at the Charleston Crab House Shootout, hosted by The Citadel, on Feb. 26-28.

Entering the 2010 season, the Highlanders return five regulars to the lineup, led by sophomore shortstop Jeff Kemp.  The 2009 Big South Freshman of the Year and a Louisville Slugger Freshman All-America, Kemp hit in the heart of the order and was second on the team with a .337 average, five homers, 36 RBIs and 13 stolen bases.

Including Kemp, four of Radford's returning five starters hit better than .300 a year ago, when the Highlanders posted a .319 average, the second-best in school history.

The Highlanders will begin the 2010 season with the same opening weekend rotation as last year, headlined by Second Team All-Big South right-hander Aerik Taylor.  Last season, Taylor went 5-4 in his first season as a Division I starter and posted seven quality starts (6 IP, 3 ER or fewer).

Radford finished the 2009 campaign 26-24, posting the most wins in a season since 2000.

The Cougars, picked fourth in the Southern Conference preseason poll and anywhere from third to fourth in national publications, begin a stretch where they play 19 of their first 20 games at Patriots Point Park.

Under second-year head coach Monte Lee, College of Charleston returns three everyday starters to a lineup that typically ranks among the nation's best.  Last season, the Cougars were fourth in the country in home runs (110) and scoring (9.7 runs/game), and ninth in team batting average (.345).  Senior shortstop Joey Bergman led the country in both runs (88) and on base percentage (.551) in 2009 while finishing second nationally with a .452 batting average.

College of Charleston has a 1-0-1 series lead over Radford, with the two teams last meeting in 1991.