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Trip to PNC Park Highlights Midweek Series vs. PSU
May 08, 2017 06:29 PM | Baseball
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University baseball team caps a season-long eight-game homestand against Penn State on Tuesday, May 9, at 6:30 p.m. ET, at Monongalia County Ballpark. The two teams will face off the following day at Pittsburgh’s PNC Park, at 7 p.m. ET.
Tuesday and Wednesday marks the 110th and 111th all-time meeting between West Virginia and Penn State. One of three opponents WVU has faced more than 100 times, the two teams first met in 1904. WVU is 41-68 in the series against PSU.
Wednesday’s game marks WVU’s first at PNC Park, the home of the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Mountaineers’ last game at the Pirates’ home ballpark was in 1998, a 9-8 win over rival Pitt at Three Rivers Stadium.
West Virginia’s visit to PNC Park is the second time in as many years WVU will take the field at the home of an MLB club. Last year, the Mountaineers played an exhibition contest against the Arizona Diamondbacks on Feb. 29, 2016, a 7-4 loss at Salt River Fields at Talking Stick, the Diamondbacks’ Spring Training home.
The Mountaineers (27-19) are coming off a rain-filled series loss to No. 4 Texas Tech, with all three games decided by just one run. WVU won Sunday’s series finale, 3-2, after getting edged in both games of a doubleheader on Saturday, 1-0 and 4-3. West Virginia is ranked No. 13 in the latest NCAA RPI and is in fourth place in the Big 12 Conference with an 11-10 record.
The Nittany Lions enter the week with a 14-32 record and have lost six in a row after getting swept at Iowa and at home vs. Minnesota. Penn State won its last midweek game, a 9-2 triumph over Lafayette on April 26.
TICKETS
Tickets are available for both games against Penn State. Tickets to Tuesday’s home game are available at 1-800-WVU GAME, WVUGAME.com or at the Mountaineer Ticket Office at the WVU Coliseum or on gameday at Monongalia County Ballpark. Tickets to Wednesday’s game at the home of the Pittsburgh Pirates are available at Pirates.com/CollegeBaseball or on gameday at PNC Park. Online, fans can purchase tickets for $7 in advance of gameday by using the promo code “WVU”.
FOLLOWING ALONG
Tuesday’s games will be streamed for free on WVUsports.com. Fans can listen to both games against Penn State on the Mountaineer Sports Network from IMG on various affiliates throughout the state, online at WVUsports.com, on the Mountaineer Gameday App and the TuneInRadio App. Dan Zangrilli and Ernie Galusky will call the action.
Links to Tuesday’s video stream, the radio broadcasts and live stats can be found on the baseball schedule page on WVUsports.com.
Additional behind-the-scenes updates, news and notes from both Monongalia County Ballpark and PNC Park can be found on social media by following and connecting with the team at @WVUBaseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.
PARKING AND SHUTTLE INFO
There are several parking options for fans to make cheering on the Mountaineers even easier again this season at Monongalia County Ballpark
Free parking will be available for all fans in the parking lots behind the outfield fence. Lot 1 is located behind the right field wall and adjacent to the clubhouse facility at the ballpark, and lot 2 is located across the street from Gate A.
A limited amount of ADA accessible parking will be available on a first-come, first-served basis for free in the lot closest to Gate A. The lot is located behind the left-center field wall, behind the scoreboard. An ADA parking permit will be required to park in the spots reserved for ADA parking.
The shuttle service for WVU students will be unavailable for Tuesday’s game against Penn State.
SCOUTING PENN STATE
Penn State is 14-32 on the season and 2-15 in Big Ten action. The Nittany Lions are 8-11 at home, 4-19 on the road and 2-2 at a neutral site. Against top-25 opponents, PSU is 0-6 against top-25 opponents.
The Nittany Lions have lost six in a row, three at Iowa and three against Minnesota last weekend. PSU’s last midweek contest was a 9-2 win over Lafayette on Wednesday, April 26. PSU opened the season against a Big 12 opponent, at No. 1 TCU. The Horned Frogs swept the series in Fort Worth, Texas.
Jordan Bowersox leads the team with a .333 average and is second with 41 hits and third with 18 RBIs. Braxton Giavedoni, who is second with a .280 batting average, has a team-best 42 hits, while Willie Burger’s 24 RBIs and four home runs paces the team.
Tucker Triebold has a team-best 3.52 ERA, having made seven relief appearances. Sal Biasi’s 76 strikeouts is a team best in 60.1 innings pitched.
Rob Cooper is in his fourth season as the Nittany Lions’ head coach. He owns a 78-118 record in State College and is 364-348 in his career after coming to PSU from Wright State.
SERIES HISTORY VS. THE NITTANY LIONS
West Virginia is 41-68 all-time against Penn State. WVU is 24-25 at home, 15-41 on the road and 2-1 at a neutral site. In coach Randy Mazey’s five season, the Mountaineers are 0-3 after a 5-4 loss in State College, Pa., last season.
- The series began in 1904, a 9-5 PSU win in Morgantown. The two former Atlantic 10 rivals have met in each of the last three seasons.
- Last year, WVU suffered a 5-4 setback in State College. Jackson Cramer led the WVU offense with a home run, a two-run shot in the third inning. Seven different Mountaineers accounted for WVU’s nine hits, with Kyle Gray and Darius Hill notching two apiece.
ON DECK: WEEKEND SERIES VS. GARDNER-WEBB
This weekend, West Virginia welcomes Gardner-Webb to Monongalia County Ballpark for a three-game series. It begins on Friday, May 12, at 6:30 p.m., and continues on Saturday at 4 p.m. The finale is set for Sunday at 1 p.m. Prior to Sunday’s game, WVU will honor its two seniors Jackson Cramer and Jackson Sigman, for their outstanding careers as Mountaineers.
LAST TIME OUT: ANOTHER TOP-FIVE BIG 12 SERIES
West Virginia is coming off a rain-filled series loss against No. 4 Texas Tech. All three games against the Red Raiders were decided by just one run, and West Virginia held the Big 12’s best offense to five earned runs on 24 hits in the three-game series. Junior Kyle Davis hit his eighth home run of the season on Saturday and extended his reached-base streak to a season-best 16 games in the series, while his hitting streak was snapped at 12 games. Sophomore Kyle Gray also extended his reached-base streak to a career-best 16 games.
- The series against Texas Tech opened with a doubleheader on Saturday, after Friday’s game was rained out. TTU won the opener, 1-0, holding WVU to a season-low two hits.
- The Red Raiders won the second game, 4-3, after the contest was delayed for 1:19 after the fourth inning due to rain. WVU took an early 3-1 lead, but the delay forced a second consecutive rain-shortened outing for junior starter BJ Myers, who pitched 4.0 innings and allowed one run on five hits.
- WVU won the finale on Sunday, 3-2, thanks to two unearned runs in the fifth inning and another strong pitching performance. Senior Jackson Sigman picked up the win and freshman Cody Wood earned his first career save as the bullpen held Texas Tech to just three hits in the final 4.1 innings.
QUICK HITS: KEY TEAM NOTES
- West Virginia is celebrating its 125th year of baseball. Founded in 1892, WVU owns an all-time record of 2,122-1,521-19. The Mountaineers are the second-oldest program in the Big 12.
- West Virginia is ranked No. 13 in the NCAA RPI. The Big 12 has four teams in the top 15 and the league has the No. 1 RPI in the nation.
- WVU is 27-19 on the season, 11-7 at home, 14-12 on the road and 2-0 at a neutral site.
- WVU is in fourth place in the Big 12, with an 11-10 record, and won its first four weekend series in conference play. West Virginia is one game behind third-place Oklahoma and two games behind second-place Texas Tech.
- The Mountaineers are 9-6 against top-25 teams, with all but six games coming on the road.
- Senior Jackson Cramer has been named one of 10 finalists for the Senior CLASS Award. The award recognizes senior student-athletes who have shown a commitment in four areas: community, classroom, character and competition. Fans can vote for Cramer at seniorCLASSaward.com.
- Kyle Davis has reached base in a team-high-tying 16 consecutive games, a stretch that included a team-best 12-game hitting streak.
Single game tickets, flex plan tickets and mini packs for the 2017 WVU baseball season are on sale now. Fans can purchase tickets by calling 1-800-WVU GAME, going to WVUGAME.com or visiting the Mountaineer Ticket Office in the WVU Coliseum. The 2017 schedule is available on WVUsports.com.
For more information on the Mountaineers, follow WVU Baseball on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram and visit WVUsports.com.
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