UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State returns to Big Ten baseball action with a three-games series at Purdue starting Friday at 4 p.m. at Alexander Field. The series-opener is slated to start two hours earlier than originally scheduled due to inclement weather, and the series is slated to continue Saturday and Sunday at 1 p.m.
Essentials
Live Video: BTN Plus
Live Audio: GoPSUsports.com
Live Stats: GoPSUsports.com
TV: N/A
Radio: State College's ESPN Radio 1450
Series History: Purdue, 45-35
Last Series: Purdue, 3-0, 2018
Streak: L3
Friday Probables
PUR LHP Patrick J. Smith (2-1, 4.10 ERA)
PSU LHP Dante Biasi (2-2, 2.12 ERA)
Saturday Probables
PUR RHP Andrew Bohm (0-3, 5.60 ERA)
PSU RHP Bailey Dees (2-1, 4.68 ERA)
Sunday Probables
PUR LHP Ryan Beard (0-3, 6.26 ERA)
PSU RHP Eric Mock (2-1, 3.00 ERA)
Playing Purdue At Purdue This Time
Penn State is making its second trip in as many years to West Lafayette, but its first trip to play Purdue there since 2015.
Last season, Purdue generously allowed Minnesota to host Penn State at its Alexander Field, April 6-8, as Minneapolis was still contending with large snow storms.
Good Start
Despite a setback over the weekend, Penn State's 14-6 start is its best since starting with the same record in 2000.
The losses to Minnesota were Penn State's first consecutive losses of the season.
Penn State is 6-0 in games decided by one run this season after going 5-13 in one-run games last season.
Sit Down
Penn State is averaging 10.5 strikeouts per nine innings to lead the Big Ten and rank 11th in the nation.
Penn State has struck out 10 or more batters in 13 out of 20 games this season.
Over its last eight games, Penn State is averaging 11.95 strikeouts per nine innings.
Dante Biasi and Conor Larkin combined for 17 strikeouts against Minnesota Saturday, marking the most strikeouts in a game for Penn State since at least 2004.
Biasi leads the Big Ten with 13,50 strikeouts per nine innings and ranks 15th in the nation.
Pitching Prowess
Penn State ranks among the national and Big Ten leaders in pitching with a WHIP of 1.24 (2nd Big Ten, 34th NCAA) and hits allowed per nine innings rate of 7.17 (3rd Big Ten, 22nd NCAA).
Penn State's strikeout-to-walk ratio of 2.62 leads the Big Ten, and its 4.01 walks allowed per nine innings ranks fourth.
Penn State's 3.66 ERA ranks fourth in the Big Ten and is a big improvement over last season's 5.29 ERA through the first 20 games.
Penn State's bullpen has seen four different pitchers earn seven saves, led by Mason Mellott (3) and Kyle Virbitsky (2).
Milestones
Senior Jordan Bowersox tallied his team-best 150th career hit Sunday against Minnesota.
Senior Ryan Sloniger is one home run shy of 10 for his career.
Both Bowersox (24) and Sloniger (23) are approaching 25 career doubles.
Bowersox is seven games played shy of 150, while Sloniger is nine games shy. Fellow senior Conlin Hughes leads the team with 164 games played.
Sophomore Dante Biasi surpassed 100 career strikeouts with his 12-strikeout effort against Minnesota and now has 102. Of those 102 career strikeouts in 96.1 career innings pitched and 19 starts, 25 of them have come in his last two starts (13.0 IP).
Redshirt junior Eric Mock is Penn State's career leader for strikeouts with 107. He surpassed 100 with a six-strikeout effort against No. 21 Duke on Mar. 3.
Head coach Rob Cooper is three wins shy of 400 for his career.
All-Time vs. Purdue
Purdue holds the all-time series record over the Nittany Lions, 45-35. In their three game series last season, Purdue swept the Nittany Lions at Medlar Field. The series makes it's return to West Lafayette, Ind. for the first time since the 2015 season. The all-time series dates back to 1983.
Scouting Purdue
Purdue is 8-16 overall and 2-1 in Big Ten play after opening its conference slate last weekend against Northwestern. The Boilers have played a challenging schedule, opening the season at No. 21 Southern Miss and No. 14 Texas, taking one from the Longhorns. Purdue is led at the plate by Skyler Hunter, who is batting .349 to rank sixth in the Big Ten, and his 1.45 hits per game rank third in the conference.
Reaching Base
Junior college transfer Jacob Padilla owns the team's longest active reached base streak, reaching in all 12 games he's played this season.
Kris Kremer owns the team's second-longest active reached base streak at eight games.
See Multiples & Streaks on Page 6
Mellott Earning A Lot of Decisions
Sophomore Mason Mellott has emerged as Penn State's relief ace. He is 4-1 and has three saves, factoring in on seven of Penn State's 13 wins.
Mellott leads the team with a 1.52 ERA that ranks third in the Big Ten.
Mellott is third on the team in innings pitched with 29.2 and is tied for the lead with nine appearances.
Mellott's three saves this season are one shy of his season total from 2018.
Mellott's four wins rank second in the Big Ten and 31st in the NCAA. They are the most by a Penn State reliever since Nick Distasio and Dakota Forsyth both won four games each in 2017.
In part by virtue of Penn State entering the game just two wins shy of last season's total, Mellott's four wins are the most by a Penn State pitcher since Sal Biasi won five games in 2017.
Mellott's seven career saves rank tied for ninth all-time at Penn State with Dave Walking (2011-13) and Scott Russo (1998-2000). Next on the list are Kevin Damiano (2000-03) and Josh Palm (2002-05) tied for seventh with eight.
See Record Watch on Page 7
The Smallest Swinging the Biggest Bats
Gavin Homer is Penn State's shortest player at 5-9 and Kris Kremer is the lightest at 166 pounds, but both lead the team with three home runs each.
Kremer is slugging a team-best (.528) and leads the team with seven extra-base hits (4 doubles, 2 triples, 3 home runs).
Homer is second with eight extra base hits (team-high 5 doubles and 3 home runs). He is the only player on the team with more extra-base hits (8) than singles (7).
The Train is Chugging
LHP Dante Biasi ranks second in the Big Ten and 18th in the NCAA with 51 strikeouts, and his 13.50 strikeouts per nine innings leads the Big Ten and ranks 15th in the country.
Biasi's 13 strikeouts against UMass Lowell (3/15) were the most strikeouts by a Penn State pitcher since Alan Stidfole stuck out 13 against Northwestern on April 10, 2005.
Biasi followed that performance with 12 strikeouts against Minnesota, becoming the first Penn State pitcher to strikeout 10 or more batters in back-to-back appearances since at least 2004.
Biasi's 25 strikeouts in consecutive appearances are the most by a Penn State pitcher since at least 2004.
Biasi has held opponents to one earned run or less in five out of six starts this season.
Biasi boasts a 2.12 ERA that ranks eighth in the Big Ten.
