March 19, 2015
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Rutgers baseball will make its debut in the Big Ten Conference with a three-game series at Purdue, starting Friday at Alexander Field. The weekend set concludes an eight-game spring break trip for the Scarlet Knights in the state of Indiana.
| Rutgers (3-13, 0-0) at Purdue (8-11, 0-0) - West Lafayette, Ind. |
| Game 17 | March 20 - 5:30 p.m. ET |
| Probable Pitching Matchup | Rutgers - LHP Mark McCoy (0-3, 4.87 ERA) vs.
Purdue - RHP Mike Kornacker (1-2, 3.78 ERA) |
| Coverage | | Audio |
| Game 18 | March 21 - 2 p.m. ET |
| Probable Pitching Matchup | Rutgers - LHP Howie Brey (0-3, 4.98 ERA) vs.
Purdue - RHP Brett Haan (1-3, 8.25 ERA) |
| Coverage | | Audio |
| Game 19 | March 22 - Noon ET |
| Probable Pitching Matchup | Rutgers - RHP Gaby Rosa (0-1, 15.00 ERA) vs.
Purdue - RHP Matt Frawley (1-2, 4.18 ERA) |
| Coverage | | Audio |
SCOUTING RUTGERS
The Scarlet Knights (3-13, 0-0) now have a permanent home in the Big Ten after previously playing the American and the Big East the previous two seasons. RU also spent time in the Atlantic 10 before that.
Sophomore Tom Marcinczyk (Middlesex, N.J.) leads Rutgers with a .333 average this season, including hitting 10-for-21 (.476) with five extra base hits during five games on the current road trip. His nine extra base hits overall match the personal total set during 46 games as a rookie last season. Freshman Kyle Walker (Piscataway, N.J.) has also swung the bat effectively by going 5-for-10 during spring break. Sophomore Mike Carter (Bloomfield, N.J.) led the team with a .355 average in league play in 2014, while junior R.J. Devish (Beachwood, N.J.) followed at an even .300.
On the mound, junior Mark McCoy (Barnegat, N.J.) will bump up in the rotation to start the series opener for the first time. The left-hander has pitched to a 2.08 ERA over his last three games with 10 strikeouts. Junior Howie Brey (Middletown, N.J.) will work game two as he leads the staff with 15 games of starting collegiate experience. Sophomore Gaby Rosa (Perth Amboy, N.J.) will slide back into a starting role for the first time since the opening weekend. The right-hander logged a 2.54 ERA over 49.2 innings in conference play last year to win American Rookie of the Year.
In its last game, RU fell at Ball State, 6-2, after surrendering four runs to break open a tie in the bottom of the eighth. Sophomore Ryan Fleming (Churchville, Pa.) pitched five innings with two runs permitted in his first start of the season. Offensively, senior Vinny Zarrillo (Forked River, N.J.) produced four quality at bats for RU with two walks, a single and a sacrifice fly, while freshman Milo Freeman (Millburn, N.J.) delivered a pair of singles.
NOTABLE
This the fifth weekend on the road for RU, as the team will play its home opening series next week against Ohio State ... the Scarlet Knights have won their last 14 games at Bainton Field, holding the second-longest active home winning streak in the nation ... RU has scored at least 12 runs in all three of its victories this season ... the offense has seven home runs through 16 games, having needed 26 games to reach that mark last season ... RU has scored more times in the third inning than any other so far this season (15) ... the staff has used 14 different pitchers on the mound ... Zarrillo needs 21 hits to reach 200 for his career ... Marcinczyk is riding a career-best on-base streak of 10 and hitting streak of seven ... Rosa averaged a league-high 15.01 fly outs recorded per game last year ... Rutgers has played seven games against a ranked opponent ... thirty-two of the 35 players on the roster hail from the state of New Jersey.
SCOUTING PURDUE
The Boilermakers (8-11, 0-0) enter the weekend after earning a 2-0 win over Valparaiso Wednesday in their home opener at Alexander Field. Purdue has also earned victories against Western Carolina, Sam Houston State, Gonzaga, Oklahoma and Northern Illinois in 2015. Kyle Wood leads the bats with a .388 average, while Kyle Johnson has driven in 14 runs. Freshman John Kornacker is set for make the Friday start and sports a 3.78 ERA. Joe Eichmann paces the staff with nine appearances and two saves.
Head coach Doug Schreiber is in his 17th season at the helm of the program, having earned 2012 Big Ten Coach of the Year. Click here to read Purdue's series preview.
THE SERIES
Rutgers and Purdue have two previous meetings played on neutral fields. The Scarlet Knights won 6-5 over the Boilermakers in the Big Ten/Big East Challenge played in Clearwater, Fla., on Feb. 28, 2010. Purdue won the first meeting, 15-9, on March 17, 1999 in Boca Raton, Fla.
UP NEXT
Rutgers will return home for a Tuesday midweek game against NJIT at Bainton Field. The next Big Ten series will be at home versus Ohio State.
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