April 21, 2014
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; April 21, 2014 - The Blue and White travel to Kent, Ohio for the first of two midweek games against the Kent State Golden Flashes over the next two weeks. Penn State plays at Kent State on Tuesday at 6 p.m. and then the Golden Flashes will make the return visit to Happy Valley a week later on Tuesday, April 29 for a game at 6:30 p.m.
On Deck: Penn State will head northwest after Tuesday's matchup in Ohio, as the squad is set to play a three-game away series at Minnesota in a Big Ten matchup. The three games are scheduled for Friday at 7:35 p.m., Saturday at 7:05 p.m. and Sunday at 2:05 p.m. All times are Eastern.
Follow the Games Live: Tuesday's game will have a number of options in ways fans can follow the action. The action can be listened to live on State College ESPN 1450 or can be heard on GoPSUsports.com. Fans can also follow along with the live stats found on GoPSUsports.com, which allows users to get up to the minute stats and plays from the game.
All-Time Series vs. Kent State: Penn State and Kent State first met in a game during the 2007 season and has faced each other 11 more times from 2009-13. The Nittany Lions hold a narrow edge in the matchup with a 7-5 record against the Golden Flashes, including winning four of the last six matchups. The Blue and White is 2-2 when playing at Kent State, 4-2 at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park and 1-1 in neutral site affairs. Five of the last six games between the two squads have been decided by two runs or less.
Kent State at a Glance: The Golden Flashes enter Tuesday's game playing some of their best baseball of the season. Kent State has won its last two games and 11 of its last 14 contests dating back to the beginning of April. The two sides share a common opponent in Youngstown State, as Kent State is 2-1 against the Penguins and Penn State is 1-0 against YSU. Kent State's most impressive win of the season came in the opening weekend, defeating the University of Arizona in Tucson by a final of 14-5.
KSU at the Dish: The Golden Flashes feature a potent offense, as the team has five hitters with batting averages over .300. Kent State's top hitter for average is Zarley Zalewski, who enters Tuesday with a batting average of .400 (58-for-145). KSU's power threat is Alex Miklos, who sports a slugging percentage of .638 with 26 extra base hits, including three home runs. The Golden Flashes are also dangerous on the basepaths, as the team has combined for 63 steals in 76 attempts.
KSU on the Mound: Through 38 games, Kent State has a team ERA of 3.56. Tuesday's starter, Andy Ravel, will make his third start of the season and 10th appearance. The freshman right hander has a record of 2-1 and an ERA of 4.37, holding opposing hitters to an average of .225. Ravel has struck out 20 batters in 22.2 innings of work. The Golden Flash bullpen features Eric Dorsch, who has racked up eight saves in 2014 and has a sparkling ERA of 1.59. Hitters are batting just .169 against the 6-8 junior.
Last Season vs. Kent State: The Nittany Lions and Golden Flashes split the 2013 head-to-head matchup with each side winning its game at home. Kent State won the first game on April 3, recording a 10-0 shutout victory over Penn State. One week later the Blue and White fought back to come away with a 3-2 victory in Happy Valley. PSU's Taylor Skerpon went 2-for-3 with a run scored in the win and Aaron Novak also picked up two hits and a run scored.
Last Time Out: The Nittany Lions were swept for just the second time this season in a three-game series, as Illinois won all three games this past weekend. Penn State had the lead late in the first two games but was unable to hold on. The Fighting Illini scored four runs in the eighth in Friday's opener to win 6-3 and then used six combined runs in the seventh and eighth during Saturday's game to win 8-3. Penn State nearly recorded a comeback win of their own in the series finale on Easter Sunday, scoring one run in the eighth and two in the ninth before falling by a final of 7-6. James Coates led the Blue and White at the plate, posting a team-high five hits over the series in 12 at bats.
Getting it Dunn: Senior pitcher Tim Dunn has gone from starting the season coming out of the bullpen to now serving as the Friday starter for the Nittany Lions. The senior has an overall ERA of just 1.17 and has stymied opposing bats, allowing a batting average against of .176 in 30.2 innings of work. For Big Ten games only Dunn ranks in the top 10 in ERA (8th; 1.66), batting average allowed (6th; .186), earned runs allowed (5th; 3) and hits allowed (T-6th; 11).
B1G Double Plays: Despite playing the fewest amount of Big Ten games thus far this season, the Nittany Lions are tied for third in the number of double plays turned in conference games with 12. The 12 double plays have been turned in just 11 games. The Blue and White is tied with Nebraska in the rankings, which also has played 12 conference games.
The Steve Snyder Show: Senior outfielder Steve Snyder ranks in the top 10 in a number of individual categories in the Big Ten. The senior's .358 batting average places the senior fifth in the conference. Snyder has recorded 49 hits, tied for sixth most in the Big Ten. Snyder's on-base percentage of .438, ranks seventh in the league.
The outfielder is also beginning to make his mark in the Penn State history books, moving into the top 10 in career hits this season. Snyder's 49 hits in 2014 has moved him into eighth place on the all-time list and the senior is just four hits shy from reaching the top five. Snyder also ranks fourth in total at bats and is one triple and four walks shy of cracking the top 10 in each category.