Seth continued his amazing transformation from former member of the Penn State club baseball team to weekend rotation member on a Big Ten team last year. One year after bursting onto the scene and snatching a Saturday spot in the rotation in 2006, he was elevated to the Friday night starting slot and did so well, he was named second team All-Big Ten as he helped Penn State go 6-2 in opening games of Big Ten series last year. Expect to see more of the same this year as Seth has proven himself to be a reliable inning eater. Though not flashy, he gets hitters out and keeps his team in nearly every game he pitches as can be seen by his .233 opposing batting average against him in Big Ten play last year. Seth is once again expected to be in the weekend rotation this year, perhaps even as the Friday starter again, and if he once again gets hitters out like he has the past two years and keeps the Nittany Lions in almost every game, he should once again be a candidate for all-conference honors and maybe even beyond.
Summer 2007: Went 1-3 in 10 appearances, including four starts while pitching for the Petersburg Generals of the Coastal Plains League during the first half of the summer....Struck out 18 in 28.1 innings of work....Was teammates with Mike Lorentson and Cory Wine in Petersburg.
'Seth had another solid season for us last year as he moved into the role of a Friday night starter. He earned second team All-Big Ten last season and we anticipate the same contributions from him again. Seth is another one of our guys who comes ready to play everyday. He works hard and has a great attitude about the game. When he[apos]s on the mound, you know he is out there battling for you and is willing to give it everything he[apos]s got. Seth has been a pleasure to have on the team and to coach. His dedication and work ethic have paid off and we[apos]re glad to have him for his senior year.'
From the Coaches[apos] Suite
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2007 (Junior): Was Penn State[apos]s opener starter for Big Ten series for all but one Big Ten series....Second on the team in wins with five and was second on the team in innings pitched with 73.1....Second on the team in quality starts with six, meaning he pitched at least six innings and allowed four or fewer earned runs in those starts....Tied for first on the team in starts (14)....Had a 4-2 record in Big Ten play with a 3.86 ERA in 46.2 innings and limited opposing hitters to a .233 batting average....Also had a much better strikeout to walk ratio in Big Ten play with 34 whifs and 17 walks allowed....Penn State won six out of his eight Big Ten starts....Failed to pitch at least five innings in a Big Ten start only once in eight starts....Threw six or more innings in five of his eight conference starts and threw seven innings twice.
Game-by-Game Highlights: Pitched a season-high eight innings in his first start of the year vs. Kansas State (2-17), allowing just three earned runs....Tossed six shutout innings and allowed just three hits and combined with Ryan Stobart and Drew O[apos]Neil on a shutout vs. Central Connecticut (3-24)....Pitched 5.2 innings, allowing five hits and one unearned run while striking out three and walking none to pick up the win vs. Iowa (4-6)....Got his second straight win with another 5.2-inning effort at Michigan State (4-14), also allowing five hits and one run while striking out four and walking one....Pitched 6.1 innings, allowing just four hits and three runs while striking out five in a no-decision against Northwestern (4-20)....Notched his fourth win of the year with a 6.0-inning effort at Indiana (4-27) in which he allowed six hits and four runs....Threw seven shutout innings, striking out a season-high seven while not walking any to pick up the win vs. Purdue (5-5)....Was named Big Ten Pitcher of the Week after his performance vs. Purdue....Got another no-decision but pitched well to keep Penn State in the game, going seven innings and allowing only four hits and two runs in the series opener vs. Ohio State (5-18) in a game Penn State would go on to win in extra innings....Pitched 3.1 innings in his second start of the Big Ten Tournament against Minnesota (5-26), allowing five hits and two runs with four strikeouts.
Summer 2006: Played for Johnston Realty of the Altoona All-American Amateur Baseball Association (AAABA) and was teammates with Paul Hawkins and Ryan Boonie.
2006 (Sophomore): Burst onto the scene of the Penn State baseball team after spending his freshman year as a member of the club baseball team at Penn State....Started eight games on the year, including Big Ten games in the last six conference weekends....Tossed one of the three complete game shutouts for Penn State on the year....Yielded fewer hits (47) than innings pitched (48.2)....Struck out 36 and had just 13 walks while holding opponents to a .250 batting average along with a 3.33 ERA....Of his eight total starts, five were quality starts....Was the recipient of the Ed Drapcho Award for the most improved player on the Penn State baseball team.
Game-by-Game Highlights: Made his first career appearance by pitching a scoreless inning and throwing just five pitches vs. Sacred Heart (3-5)....Made his second appearance vs. Jacksonville (3-8), and pitched another scoreless inning, allowing just one hit while throwing eight pitches....Earned his first career start vs. Pittsburgh (4-5) and responded by pitching six innings, allowing just four hits and two runs while striking five and walking none....Left as the pitcher of record on the winning side but got a no decision as the Nittany Lions won in extra innings....Started the midweek game vs. Duquesne (4-12) in a warm-up for his first conference start and pitched two innings, allowing two hits and two runs while striking out two....Pitched a career-high eight innings in an extra-inning game but got the loss in his first conference start of the year vs. Michigan State (4-15)....Threw six innings and allowed just two runs while striking out three and once again left as the pitcher of record on the winning side but got a no decision at Northwestern (4-22)....Struck out six in six innings of work and allowed just two runs but got the loss in shutout by Indiana (4-29)....Pitched a complete-game shutout, allowing just three hits while striking out five in a 4-0 win over Purdue (5-7) for his first collegiate win....Won his second straight game with a six-inning effort vs. Michigan (5-13), giving up six hits and two runs while striking out a career-high eight....Allowed just three runs in 5.2 innings and struck out five but got the loss in his last start of the year vs. Ohio State (5-20).
Bellefonte Area HS: First team All-Conference honors his senior year; Earned three varsity letters; A member of the National Honor Society; Also played football.
Background: Seth David Whitehill was born on January 28, 1986 in Bellefonte, Pa.; Parents are Harry and Mary; Sister Michele (23); Seth is majoring in turfgrass science.