March 15, 2013
Live Stats - Saturday / & Live Audio - Sunday
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State baseball team will head back out on the road this weekend, taking on Temple in a doubleheader on Saturday, March 16 and facing Saint Joseph's on Sunday, March 17. The Nittany Lions' (5-9, 0-0 Big Ten) doubleheader against the Owls (4-9, 0-0 A-10) will begin at noon, while the single contest against the Hawks (6-10, 0-0 A-10) will begin at noon on Sunday, as well.
Links: Saturday's games will be available via Live Stats and Sunday's game will be available via and live audio.
Last Time Out: The Lions are coming off of a momentum building series against Houston Baptist, earning two wins over the Huskies and scoring 27 runs in the process. Penn State hit .373 as a team, with sophomore J.C. Coban (Boca Raton, Fla.) leading the pack with an average of .533 over the three-game span. In the 9-3 win over HBU on March 8, the sophomore went five-for-five, becoming the first Penn Stater to do so since 2010. Coban came away with eight hits and two RBIs, while senior Luis Montesinos (Miami, Fla.) batted .462, posting six hits, six RBIs, a triple and his first collegiate homerun.
Montesinos and Coban are two of seven Lions that are currently on an at least three-game hitting streak, with sophomore Taylor Skerpon (Sayre, Pa.) recording six hits against the Huskies, as well. Skerpon also hit his first collegiate homerun in the three-game series, ending the weekend with a .429 batting average, five runs and two RBIs. Redshirt junior Steve Snyder (West Chester, Pa.) had a stellar day in the extra-inning loss on March 9, earning four RBIs, two of which came on a game-tying play, two hits and a run scored. Snyder ended the series with five runs and five hits.
Leading Penn State on the mound, redshirt sophomore T.J. Jann (Westford, Mass.) earned his first collegiate win on March 9 in game one of the doubleheader. Jann fired 4.1 innings after relieving senior Dave Walkling (Nanaimo, B.C.), allowing just one earned run and striking out one batter to earn a 2.08 ERA. Senior Steven Hill (Colleyville, Pa.) shined on Friday's contest, pitching the seventh complete game of his career after throwing 143 pitches. The Texas native tied his career-high of eight strikeouts, while allowing four earned runs and nine hits.
Lion Stats: The Lions head into the weekend with a 5-9 record after topping HBU 9-3 and 8-4, and falling 11-10 in the extra-inning loss. Skerpon leads the squad with a .370 batting average, and holds 10 RBIs along with Coban. Snyder and redshirt senior Elliot Searer (Lewistown, Pa.) continue to bat above.300, combining for 28 hits, 18 runs and 13 RBIs. Snyder leads with 20 hits this season, while Coban and Skerpon follow with 18 and 17, respectively. On the pitching staff, Walkling leads with a 2.62 ERA after 24.0 innings, while sophomore Ryan Harper (Texas City, Texas) holds a 4.11 ERA and Hill holds a 4.44 ERA.
Scouting the Owls: Temple recently snapped a two-game losing streak, topping Lafayette 10-3. Henry Knabe leads the Owls with a .409 batting average, racking up 18 hits and 10 RBIs. Derek Peterson leads with 15 RBIs, collecting 16 hits and 13 runs to lead the squad. Also batting over .300, Nick Lustrino holds a .391 average, recording 12 runs, 18 hits and nine RBIs. Temple will put sophomore twin brothers Patrick and Eric Peterson on the mound in the doubleheader, with Eric Peterson holding a 2.53 ERA and a 2-0 record. He has made four appearances this year, allowing eight hits and three earned runs with nine strikeouts in 10.2 innings. His brother, Patrick, currently sits with a 4.80 ERA and a 0-2 record, and leads the team with 15 strikeouts. He has appeared and started in three games, allowing 14 hits and eight earned runs.
Scouting the Hawks: The Hawks are currently on a four-game win streak after taking down Central Connecticut, Iona and Villanova, and will play against Marist and Wagner before taking on the Lions. Anthony Cirillo, Mike Huha and Brian O'Keefe are currently all batting above .300, holding .341, .327 and .317 averages, respectively. The trio has combined for 28 runs, 51 hits and 19 RBIs. SJU will put Daniel Thorpe on the mound, who currently holds a 2.86 ERA and a 1-2 record. The junior has fired 22.0 innings this season, allowing 24 hits and seven earned runs, while retiring 22 batters.
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