March 26, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Taking to Medlar Field at Lubrano Park for the first time in 2013, the Penn State baseball team will host Pittsburgh on Wednesday, March 27 at 3 p.m. for the season home opener. The Nittany Lions (5-14, 0-3 Big Ten) first battled the Panthers (15-6, 3-0 Big East) in 1912, making their instate rivalry over a century old.
Links: The Penn State-Pittsburgh contest will be available via , as well as updated on the @PennStateBASE Twitter account.
Promotions: 2013 schedule magnets will be available while supplies last.
Last Time Out: The Lions opened the 2013 Big Ten season with a tough opponent, with No. 24/19 Indiana sweeping Penn State in the weekend series. Senior Steven Hill (Colleyville, Texas) led the team on the mound, firing 7.1 innings in the close 2-0 loss. Hill surrendered five hits without an earned run to improve to a 3.48 ERA. Opening the series on Friday, sophomore T.J. Jann (Westford, Mass.) had a solid showing, allowing six hits and four earned runs in a career high 6.2 innings. The sophomore also struck out a career-best four against the Hoosiers. Sophomore Ryan Harper (Texas City, Texas) and freshman Blake Estep (Choctaw, Okla.) each pitched scoreless innings of relief in the 11-3 loss on Saturday, with Harper holding Indiana hitless in 1.2 innings. Estep closed out the contest with just one hit allowed in the eighth.
Leading Penn State at the plate, sophomore J.J. White (Lansdowne, Va.) tied two career records in the Indiana series, earning two RBIs in the eighth inning of the 11-3 loss and scoring two runs in Friday's contest. White and sophomore J.C. Coban (Boca Raton, Fla.) each came away from the weekend with their fifth multiple-hit game of the season, while Elliot Searer (Lewistown, Pa.) reached a milestone in the 2-0 loss to the Hoosiers. Stepping up to the plate in the eighth inning with two outs, the redshirt senior singled to the pitcher for the 150th hit of his career, moving him to a .350 batting average on the season.
Lion Stats: Currently hitting .253 as a team, Searer leads the Lions with 14 hits in 40 at-bats, with sophomore Taylor Skerpon (Sayre, Pa.) sitting close behind with a .328 average. Skerpon, Coban and redshirt junior Steve Snyder (West Chester, Pa.) have each collected over 20 hits this season, combining for 25 runs, 64 hits and 28 RBIs. Skerpon and Coban lead the squad with 10 RBIs a piece, while White has now earned nine following his weekend performance at Indiana.
Harper is expected to make the start on Wednesday, currently holding a 3.92 ERA following his relief effort on Saturday. The sophomore is 1-0 on the season, and has struck out 12 while allowing 26 hits and nine earned runs. Redshirt senior Cody Lewis (Laguna Niguel, Calif.) leads Penn State out of the bullpen with 13 strikeouts, while junior Greg Welsh (Holland, Pa.) sits with a 3.68 in two appearances after returning from injury.
Scouting the Panthers: Pittsburgh travels to Happy Valley on a three-game win streak, with the Panthers most recently sweeping the defending Big East Champions St. John's this weekend. The squad opened conference competition with 12-9, 14-2 and 11-2 victories, bringing its double-digit win total to eight. Seven Panthers are currently batting over .300, with Casey Roche leading with .384. Roche has racked up 33 hits in 86 at-bats, and currently boasts a .593 slugging percentage. The trio of Roche, Boo Vazquez (.356) and Elvin Soto (.338) has combined for 80 hits, 62 RBIs and 61 runs this season, while Steven Shelinsky Jr. leads the pack with seven home runs. Taking the mound against the Lions, Alex Caravelle currently holds a 4.15 ERA and a 1-0 record in three appearances. The senior has fired 8.2 innings, allowing four hits and four earned runs while striking out five.
All-Time Series: Wednesday's contest will mark the 126th meeting between the Lions and the Panthers, with Penn State leading the all-times series with an 83-41-1 record. Last season, the Lions opened at home with a 5-3 victory over the Panthers on March 21, and went on to fall 5-3 in Oakland on April 11.
Up Next: Penn State will host Purdue for the first home conference series of the season, with action beginning on Friday, March 29th. The first pitch is slated for 6:05 p.m., with Schedule Travel Mugs available while supplies last. Following Saturday's 2:05 p.m. contest, there will be an Easter Egg Hunt for all children in attendance.
Season tickets for students are just $20, with Student General Admission tickets starting at $2 and Student Bleacher tickets at $1. Season tickets for Adult General Admission start at $63, while Adult General Admission tickets are sold for $4. For fans interested in the Diamond Club "In the Box" seats, single games start at $6 and season tickets will be sold for $99. Youth General Admission and Season tickets are the same cost as student tickets. Single game tickets can be purchased at the Spikes' Box Office or via the Tickets page on GoPSUSports.com.
Check back to GoPSUSports.com for continued updates during the 2013 season. Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/PennStateBASE and find us on Facebook at facebook.com/pennstatebaseball.