Feb. 12, 2015
| PENN STATE AT ELON | |
| Friday, Feb. 13 - 4 p.m. ET | |
| Saturday, Feb. 14 - 12 p.m. ET (DH) | |
| Latham Park | Elon, N.C. | |
| GAME DAY LINKS |
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Game Notes: Penn State | ElonStatistics: Penn State | Elon
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State baseball travels south to North Carolina to open the 2015 season with a three-game series at Elon.
Up to Bat: The Nittany Lions are opening their 127th season of baseball with a three-game series against Elon at Latham Park. As per usual for a northern-based school, the Lions are playing their first 18 games on the road. The series opener is scheduled for 4 p.m. on Friday with junior Nick Hedge drawing the first start on the mound for the Blue and White. The series will conclude with a Valentine's Day doubleheader with first-pitch at noon. It was originally scheduled to finish Sunday, but a forecasted 20-degree drop in temperature highs between the days resulted in a rescheduling.
Owning the Openers: Historically Penn State has thrived in the first game of the season. With its 6-4 win over Gardner-Webb in last season's first game, the Nittany Lions improved their overall record to 78-48 (.619) in season openers. The Nittany Lions have won three of their last four first games of the year, picking up wins over ETSU in 2013, Seton Hall in 2011 and Cincinnati in 2010.
Follow the Game Live: The games can be listened to live on ElonPhoenix.com. Fans can also follow along with the live stats found on ElonPhoenix.com, which allows users to get up to the minute stats and plays from the game.
All-Time Series vs. Elon: The only previous meeting between PSU and Elon was on April 5, 1928. Elon won 8-2 at a neutral site.
On Deck: Penn State will fly further south to Texas A&M for a three-game series Fri.-Sun., Feb. 20-22. It will be the first meeting between the teams since 2010, and the first of two SEC opponents (South Carolina) that the Lions will face this season.
Sweet Caroline: Three of Penn State's first four road trips will be in the Carolinas. Following the trip to College Station, the Lions will return to North Carolina to play in the Raleigh area at NC State and at the USA Baseball Complex. PSU's spring break trip the following week will take the team to South Carolina to face Charleston Southern and South Carolina. In total, Penn State is scheduled to play 11 games against six different teams in five different cities in North and South Carolina. Additionally, the spring break trek will conclude in Lynchburg, Va., where the Blue and White will play another North Carolina school, Western Carolina, as part of the Liberty Invitational.
Phoenix at a Glance: A perennial top team in the Southern Conference, Elon is beginning its first season in the Colonial Athletic Association. Over the past nine years, Elon won four SoCon regular season titles and three SoCon tournament titles. The Phoenix have also reached NCAA regionals six times sicne 2002, with their last appearance coming 2013. They are guided by Mike Kennedy, who is starting his 19th season as head coach. Elon senior Casey Jones was named one of the 50 players on the preseason watch list for the USA Baseball Golden Spikes Award. He was also selected as a first-team 2015 Louisville Slugger Preseason All-American following a junior season that saw him claim Southern Conference Player of the Year honors and All-America distinction from three organizations. Jones hit .418 with seven homers and 53 RBI to win Elon's triple crown. He finished in the top five in the nation in batting average. Jones was also recognized as the preseason CAA Player of the Year and was a preseason all-league selection. Elon posted a 27-26 record last season.
Fresh Rotation: Nick Hedge's 14 career starts and 77 career innings pitched represent the only collegiate experience in this weekend's rotation for PSU. Nick Distasio and Taylor Lehman are both true freshmen from head coach Rob Cooper's first recruiting class. Lehman was drafted in the 34th round of the MLB draft in June by the Florida Marlins, but did not sign. He stands at a towering 6-8. Distasio and Lehman are both Pennsylvania natives.
B1G Players to Watch: PSU's underclassmen are drawing attention in the Big Ten. In a release Wednesday, the league recognized sophomore shortstop Jim Haley, redshirt-sophomore third baseman Christian Helsel and freshman LHP Taylor Lehman as "Players to Watch." Helsel is a transfer from Ole Miss in his first season at Penn State. Hailing from nearby Altoona, Pa., Helsel appeared in 39 games with 23 starts as a freshman.
Tough Slate: Penn State is playing a challenging schedule this season, including games against five teams (Texas A&M, South Carolina, Liberty, Indiana, Bucknell) that reached the 2014 NCAA Tournament. Five teams also are projected to win their respective conference championships: Western Carolina (SoCon), Liberty (Big South), Canisius (MAAC), Kent State (MAC) and Bucknell (Patriot).
The Nittany Lions will have five home series and seven midweek games at Medlar Field. In all, Penn State plays 55 games, including 23 at home, 29 on the road and three on a neutral field. Twenty-four will be Big Ten contests. The home opener will be Wednesday, Mar. 18, against Canisius. The game will start a season-long 10-game homestand that also includes the Big Ten opener that weekend (Mar. 20-22) against Indiana. The Big Ten Tournament will be held at Target Field, the home of the Minnesota Twins, in Minneapolis, Minnesota from May 20-24.
Experience Returns: Penn State is returning seven starters from last year's lineup, and a total of 19 letterwinners.
B1G Outlook: Penn State was not ranked in the preseason coaches poll by the Big Ten, which only includes the top six vote getters. Former ACC power Maryland was tabbed as the preseason favorite for the league title in its first year in the league. Nebraska, Illinois, Indiana, Michigan and Ohio State followed, in order.
Last Time Out: Penn State is looking to snap a three-game losing streak dating back to last season after getting swept by Michigan State in the final 2014 series of the season. The Nittany Lions had a rough conclusion to the 2014 season, losing 18 of the final 19 games after winning 12 of 14 games from mid-March to early April.