May 10, 2013
Illinois Series Notes / / Listen Live
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State baseball team will head out on its final road trip of the regular season on Friday, kicking off a weekend series against Illinois. The Nittany Lions (12-31, 3-15 Big Ten) will face the Fighting Illini (28-15, 9-9 Big Ten) on Friday, May 10 at 7:05 p.m. ET. Saturday's first pitch is slated for 2:05 p.m. ET, while Sunday's series finale has been moved up to 12:05 p.m. ET.
Links: All contests are available via and Listen Live at GoPSUsports.com, as well as updated at the @PennStateBASE Twitter account.
Lion Stats: Going 4-for-8 in his past two contests, senior Luis Montesinos (Miami, Fla.) currently leads the Lions with a .291 batting average and a .377 slugging percentage. Montesinos recently collected his 21st RBI of the season against Minnesota, just behind sophomore J.C. Coban (Boca Raton Fla.) who holds a team-best 22 RBIs. The sophomore continues to lead the squad in doubles with seven, while sophomore Aaron Novak (Ambler, Pa.), who currently is riding a seven-game hit streak, tallied his six double of the season against Akron on Tuesday. Redshirt junior Steve Snyder (West Chester, Pa.) leads Penn State with 46 hits and 21 runs, along with freshman James Coates (Girard, Ohio). The trio of Montesinos, Coban and Snyder has now combined for 135 hits, 54 RBIs and 53 runs this season.
PSU Rotation: Appearing in his ninth contest of the season, junior Greg Welsh (Holland, Pa.) will make the start on Saturday. After firing 41.1 innings, Welsh currently sits with a 4.14 ERA and a 2-5 record, allowing 41 hits and 19 earned runs. The junior has now struck out 34, second-best to senior Steven Hill's (Colleyville, Texas) 42 strikeouts. Hill, who will make his 11th start of the season on Sunday, holds a 3.72 ERA after 67.2 innings of work. Just 11.2 innings away from the all-time Penn State record of innings pitched, the veteran is currently third in all-time starts with 48, eighth in all-time appearances with 61 and ninth in all-time strikeouts with 203. Friday's starter has yet to be announced.
Scouting the Illini: After dropping a conference series, 2-1, to Michigan State, Illinois holds an overall record of 28-15 with a 9-9 mark in the Big Ten. The Fighting Illini is led by senior Justin Parr, who leads the Big Ten with a .434 batting average, 79 hits and 47 RBIs. Parr, who also holds a team-best slugging percentage of .626, has posted 12 doubles and four triples this season. Redshirt junior Jordan Parr, the twin brother of Jordan, leads the squad in runs with 41. The trio of the Parrs and junior Thomas Lindauer, who holds a team-best nine home runs, has combined for 185 hits, 115 RBIs and 113 runs.
Illinois Rotation: Freshman Kevin Duchene will make the start on Friday, currently holding a 3.10 ERA and a 6-1 record. Firing 52.1 innings this season, Duchene has allowed 55 hits and 18 earned runs while striking out 44. Facing off with Welsh on Saturday, sophomore John Kravetz will make his 12th start of the season following 64.2 innings of work. Kravetz has given up 65 hits and 32 earned runs, and struck out 32 while walking 19. Freshman Ryan Castellanos will close out the series on Sunday, sitting with a 2-1 record and a 5.29 ERA following 11 appearances and four starts. The rookie has fired 34.0 innings with 39 hits and 20 earned runs while striking out 19 and walking just six. Leading Illinois' bullpen, junior Ronnie Much currently boasts a 0.49 ERA after 13 appearances, while redshirt senior Bryan Roberts has recorded four saves and redshirt sophomore Reid Roper has tallied five.
All-Time Series: Penn State leads the all-time series against Illinois, holding a 29-24 record since the first program meeting in 1992. Last season, the Lions swept the Fighting Illini in a Big Ten series 3-2, 8-6 and 3-2. PSU has not traveled to Illinois since April 4, 2010, when the Illini topped the Lions 15-3.
Up Next: The Lions will return to Happy Valley on Tuesday, May 14 when they host Villanova for the final non-conference contest of the season. Penn State will then welcome Michigan State from May 16-18 for the final Big Ten series of 2013.
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.