WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. –
Ben Wereski left with a four-run lead after pitching seven shutout innings, but Purdue (3-10) scored seven runs in the bottom of the ninth to steal a 7-4 victory away from Rutgers baseball (7-6) Saturday at Alexander Field. The series is now tied at one game apiece.
"The message is that you have to get 27 outs to win," head coach
Steve Owens said. "You have to keep making pitches and playing defense right to the end. We didn't do either of those in the last inning. The other message is there are a lot of ways to win and a lot of ways to lose. Sometimes you're on the good end of those types of walk-off wins, sometimes you're on the other end.
"Tomorrow is a new day. We have to be resilient, still have a chance to win a series on the road and stay in the upper third of the standings. It's a big challenge for our guys to come back after such a dramatic loss. I told them we'll find out a lot about our character if we play really hard and find a way to win a series."
Wereski posted seven zeroes on the scoreboard to extend his consecutive scoreless innings streak to 16.1 and lower his ERA to 1.44 through four starts. The left-hander struck out eight with no walks and four hits allowed, retiring 13 of the last 14 batters faced. He has fanned 24 compared to three walks in 2021.
"Ben was awesome," Owens said. "He's one of the top pitchers in the conference. He's walked three guys this year, rarely gives up hits and strikes guys out. He was pretty much flawless today. With him and Harry back-to-back, you can't ask for much more from your starters. What we can ask for more out of is what we're getting out of the bullpen right now. It has been very poor this weekend."
Offensively,
Mike Nyisztor reached all four trips with three singles and a walk to spark a four-run rally in the seventh.
Chris Brito contributed a three-run double to increase his season total to 22 RBIs.
Held scoreless through 8.1 innings, Purdue scored seven runs (two earned) on five hits and one error in the bottom of the ninth. Mason Gavre hit a walk-off homer with two outs and the game tied at four.
- After six scoreless innings, Rutgers broke through with four runs in the seventh. Nyisztor drew a leadoff walk and advanced on a sacrifice bunt by Kevin Welsh. After Sam Owens singled to put runners at the corners, Cameron Love picked up on RBI fielder's choice when Nyisztor slid in safely at the plate. Josh Rodriguez continued with a single to load the bases. After a force out at home, Brito produced a three-run double down the right-field line to make it 4-0.
- A one-out error started the Boilermakers' rally, followed three consecutive singles. A hit by pitch and single loaded the bases in a 4-3 game, with Miles Simington lifting a sacrifice fly to tie the score. Gavre ended with a homer to left field.
The rubber game of the series is scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m. Watch on Big Ten Network+ or listen on ScarletKnights.com.
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