NORTH CHARLESTON, S.C. (Interstat) — The Charleston Southern Buccaneers will look to continue their dominance over the struggling Presbyterian Blue Hose when the Big South Conference rivals meet again Friday at Buccaneer Ballpark.

First pitch is scheduled for the evening, with cloudy skies and temperatures near 78 degrees forecast.

The Buccaneers (18-10) enter the series opener riding high after a 7-0 shutout victory over Presbyterian (6-24) on Thursday. Charleston Southern’s Titus von Kapff was brilliant in that contest, throwing a complete-game, six-hit shutout with five strikeouts.

Von Kapff, a player to watch for the Buccaneers, has been a workhorse. In his start prior to the shutout, he took a hard-luck loss against Winthrop on March 27, allowing four earned runs over eight innings in a 4-0 defeat.

Presbyterian, mired in a difficult season, will seek to end a four-game skid. A bright spot in Thursday’s loss was reliever Mason McDaniel, who tossed three scoreless and hitless innings in relief. Over his last eight appearances, McDaniel has allowed earned runs only once, establishing himself as a reliable arm out of the Blue Hose bullpen.

The teams’ recent history heavily favors Charleston Southern. Beyond Thursday’s result, the Buccaneers have won 10 of the last 12 meetings, according to conference records.

Interstat’s projections give Charleston Southern a strong advantage, with its game simulator predicting a 5-3 Buccaneers victory and its ELO rating system calculating a 69.7% win probability for the home team.

Following Friday’s contest, the three-game conference series will conclude Saturday afternoon in North Charleston.