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Probable Pitching Matchups
Friday: Mike Kornacker (Fr, RHP) vs. RU's Mark McCoy (Jr, LHP)
Saturday: Brett Haan (Sr, RHP) vs. RU's Howie Brey (Jr, LHP)
Sunday: Matt Frawley (So, RHP) vs. RU's Gaby Rosa (So, RHP)
Series History
All-Time: Tied 1-1
Last Meeting: Rutgers 6, Purdue 5 (Feb. 28, 2010 in Clearwater, Fla.)
First Meeting: Purdue 15, Rutgers 9 (March 17 in Boca Raton, Fla.)
Weekend Weather Forecast for West Lafayette
Friday: 55 degrees, 20 percent chance of rain
Saturday: 60 degrees, clear skies
Sunday: 51 degrees, clear skies
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Purdue baseball's opening weekend of Big Ten play will still have a bit of a non-conference feel to it as league newcomer Rutgers visits Alexander Field to complete the spring break schedules for both teams.
First pitch at Alexander Field is slated for 5:30 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday and noon Sunday. The Boiler Block Party beer garden debuts Friday and the first 100 fans will also receive a Purdue thermal mug. Sunday, the first set of 2015 Purdue baseball cards will be given away to fans in attendance. Sunday's are also kids day at Alexander Field with inflatable play houses setup and other games along the third base concourse.
The Boilermakers (8-11) have only played Rutgers twice before, both previous meetings being neutral-site games in Florida. Purdue was a winner in Boca Raton in 1999, head coach Doug Schreiber's first year, but lost the most recent matchup at the 2010 Big East/Big Ten Challenge in Clearwater.
The Boilermakers will also host Maryland, the other Big Ten newcomer, for the final weekend of April.
Doug Schreiber & Shane Bryant Discuss the Opening of Conference Play
The Scarlet Knights (3-13) have spent their entire spring break trip in the state of Indiana, going 1-3 at Indiana State's tournament last weekend and dropping a midweek game at Ball State Wednesday. Rutgers' 3-13 record may be a bit misleading. Seven of its losses have come on the road at Miami (four) and Florida Atlantic (three), which were both nationally ranked at the time. The Scarlet Knights' series at Tennessee the weekend of Feb. 20-22 was canceled due to cold weather and they were unable to schedule a replacement.
A year ago, Purdue was in a similar position as Rutgers. Entering their mid-March series at Southern Illinois, the Boilers were just 2-14 after playing the likes of Tennessee, Rice, LSU and San Diego State. Purdue went on to win the opening game of three of its next four series.
The Boilermakers have won their conference-opening series just once (2012) in the last six years. But with Rutgers tied with Penn State at the bottom of the conference standings going into league play and the games being played in West Lafayette, this weekend would be an opportune time for Purdue to post its first Big Ten series victory at its third-year ballpark.
While the 51 runs the Boilers have scored over the last six games certainly qualify as an offensive awaking, the strong showings by the Purdue starting pitchers over the last five games is likely more significant to continued success. Mike Kornacker, Brett Haan, Matt Frawley, Gavin Downs and Shane Bryant have all put together quality outings, teaming up for a combining 2.45 ERA while recording 21 strikeouts versus only five walks. Boilermaker pitchers issued only three walks in the Northern Illinois series.
Defensively, Harry Shipley's consistency at shortstop has perhaps exceeded the coaching staff's expectations when he was made the starter to begin his freshman season. After recording 19 defensive assists in the NIU series, Shipley extended his streak of consecutive games without an error to 13. He has made just two errors this year and been part of all three game-ending double plays turned by the Boilers. And at the plate, he has certainly held his own while batting in the nine hole every game.
Tom Marcinczyk has led the way offensively for Rutgers, leading the team in batting average (.333), extra-base hits (9) and RBI (14). Lefthanders Mark McCoy and Howie Brey have been constants in the weekend rotation all season. Bray has given up fewer hits (21 in 21 2/3 innings) and has a better strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.18). He'll start Saturday.
The Boilermakers are scheduled to play their first two Big Ten series at home as well as their final conference weekend. However, from April 11 through May 11, Purdue will play nine of its 12 Big Ten games on the road.