April 8, 2013
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State baseball team will face back-to-back opponents this week, hosting Kent State on Tuesday, April 9 and Bucknell on Wednesday, April 10. Tuesday's contest between the Nittany Lions (6-21) and the Golden Flashes (14-15) will be aired by BTN, as well as available by BTN2Go, with coverage beginning at 7:05 p.m. from Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. The first pitch against the Bison (9-22) is slated for 6:05 p.m. on Wednesday.
Promotions: Tuesday is the "Panhellenic Pink Out", with $1 from every ticket sold donated to benefit Penn State's Pink zone. Fans are encouraged to wear pink to the game. For more information on Pink Zone at Penn State, please visit www.pennsylvaniapinkzone.org.
Wednesday's contest against Bucknell is "Paint the Park Purple" Night, benefitting Penn State's Relay for Life. Fans are encouraged to wear purple to the game, and $1 of every ticket sold will be donated to Relay for Life. This year's Relay for Life event will take place at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park this weekend, April 13th and 14th. For more information, please click here.
Links: Both contests will be available via and Listen Live at GoPSUsports.com, as well as updated at the @PennStateBASE Twitter account.
Last Time Out: The Lions snapped a 13-game slump on Sunday against Wright State, posting 17 hits to top the Raiders 11-3. Five Nittany Lions recorded multiple-hit performances, with senior Luis Montesinos (Miami, Fla.), junior Alex Farkes (Boston, Mass.) and sophomore J.C. Coban (Boca Raton, Fla.) each going 3-for-5. Montesinos led the team with two RBIs and three runs scored, tying his career record for hits and RBIs in a single contest. His three runs were a new personal record. Coban collected two RBIs and a run, while Farkes tallied a run and an RBI. Posting two doubles against the Raiders, sophomore Aaron Novak (Ambler, Pa.) notched two RBIs, and freshman James Coates (Girard, Ohio) moved to 16 runs on the season as he scored twice in the contest. Firing 8.0 innings for his first win of the season, junior Greg Welsh (Holland, Pa.) allowed just six hits and three unearned runs, while striking out eight and walking one. Welsh tied his career record of innings pitched and currently holds a 2.31 ERA on the season.
Lion Rotation: Freshman Nick Hedge (Winnetka, Ill.), who sits with a 5.56 ERA after six appearances, is expected to make his first career start on Tuesday against the Golden Flashes. Hedge has fired a total of 11.1 innings this season, allowing 11 hits and seven earned runs while striking out three. Making his fourth start of the season on Wednesday, sophomore Patton Taylor (Nichols, N.Y.) currently holds a 0-3 record on the season, allowing 14 hits and 16 earned runs.
Scouting the Golden Flashes: Kent State is coming off of a winning series against Ohio, most recently recording a 10-3 victory on Sunday. The Golden Flashes continue to be led by sophomore Sawyer Polen, who holds a .363 batting average and a team-best 41 hits. Senior Evan Campbell leads the squad with 19 RBIs, while junior Derek Toadvine leads with 26 runs. The trio has combined for 110 hits, 68 runs and 48 RBIs this season. Redshirt sophomore Spencer Bryant is expected to make the start on Tuesday, holding a 13.50 ERA in 6.0 innings. The right-handed pitcher has allowed nine earned runs and 11 hits while striking out one. Sophomore Brian Clark leads the bullpen with a 1.93 ERA and a 1-1 record in 11 appearances, while redshirt sophomore Dan Kopcak holds a 3.60 ERA in six appearances.
Scouting the Bison: Snapping a five-game losing streak, Bucknell recently swept Navy in a weekend-series, winning 8-4, 3-1 and 16-10. Junior Corey Furman, sophomore Anthony Gingerelli and senior Carter Bumgardner are each batting over .300, holding averages of .325, .321 and .315, respectively. Furman leads the Bison with 38 hits and 22 runs, while Bumgardner has collected a team-best 18 RBIs. The trio has combined for 85 hits, 39 RBIs and 39 runs this season. The starting pitcher for Wednesday's contest has yet to be determined.
All-Time Series: The Lions are 6-5 in the all-time series against the Golden Flashes, most recently falling 10-0 on April 3 at Kent State. Penn State will face Bucknell for the 150th time in program history on Wednesday, with the Lions sitting with a 19-1 record in the last 20 contests and an overall record of 120-28-1. The last time the two squads met, Penn State topped the Bison 2-0 on April 18, 2012 at Medlar Field.
Up Next: Penn State will head back out on the road on Friday, April 12, traveling to Michigan for a three-game conference series.
Tickets: 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.