LEXINGTON, Va. (Interstat) — The Citadel Bulldogs and the Virginia Military Institute Keydets meet in a Southern Conference doubleheader Friday at Gray-Minor Stadium, with first pitch scheduled for the afternoon and the nightcap in the evening. Weather forecast at game time calls for 54 degrees and cloudy.

Citadel enters with a 27-24 overall record after a 5-3 loss Tuesday at Coastal Carolina. The Bulldogs have won six of their last 10 games but lost the series opener Thursday against VMI, falling 0-1 in what is not included in the provided data.

VMI carries a 28-23 mark into the doubleheader after a 15-5 win Tuesday against Norfolk State. The Keydets have dropped seven of their last 10, including sweeps at Mercer and UNC Greensboro.

The teams play a series finale Saturday at the same venue.

Players to watch

For Citadel, right-handed reliever Liam Foley has been effective in limited recent work. In his last three appearances covering 3⅔ innings, Foley allowed no earned runs on four hits with three strikeouts. He threw two scoreless innings of one-hit ball Tuesday at Coastal Carolina. However, he was tagged for three earned runs on four hits in 1⅔ innings April 26 against UNC Greensboro.

For VMI, catcher Cole Raile has been the Keydets’ most productive hitter. He went 4-for-5 with a home run and five RBIs in Tuesday’s win over Norfolk State. Over his last eight games, Raile is batting .333 (10-for-30) with four home runs and 12 RBIs, including multi-hit performances in six of those contests.

Recent head-to-head

The series opened Thursday with a 1-0 VMI victory, though no additional details on that game were available.

Projected score

Interstat’s game simulator projects a 7-2 Citadel victory in the first game.

Looking ahead

Both teams conclude the series Saturday at Gray-Minor Stadium before continuing conference play next week.