April 8, 2014
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Jim Haley (Upper Darby, Pa.) was awarded the Big Ten Freshman Player of the Week on Tuesday afternoon, marking the first Big Ten accolade in his collegiate career. The award is the first weekly honor from the conference for any Penn State baseball player in 2014.
Haley played a large role in the Nittany Lions' successful week, hitting .500 in the three-game series against Purdue. The freshman turned in two multi-hit performances in West Lafayette, propelling the Blue and White to its first series win over the Boilermakers since 2007. The Upper Darby native posted an on base percentage of .583 against Purdue.
Deadlocked with the Boilers in a 1-1 tie in the top of the seventh inning in the series opener on Saturday, Haley laced a double down the left field line and into the corner to score Greg Guers (Langhorne, Pa.) and give Penn State its first lead of the afternoon at 2-1. The hit ended up being the game winner, as the Nittany Lions went on to win by a final of 2-1.
Haley and the Nittany Lions are back in action on Tuesday evening, as the squad welcomes West Virginia to Happy Valley for a midweek game. After the non-conference matchup against the Mountaineers the Blue and White travel to Columbus, Ohio for a Big Ten three-game series against Ohio State. Game one will be played on Friday with a start time of 6:30 p.m.