GAMEDAY INFORMATION
Northwestern (2-17, 0-0 B1G) at Purdue (10-13, 1-2 B1G)
Friday to Sunday, March 31-April 2 / Watch B1G+
Series Opener: Friday, March 31 at 1 p.m. ET (Updated)
Middle Game: Saturday, April 1 at 2 p.m. ET
Series Finale: Sunday, April 2 at 1 p.m. ET
Alexander Field / West Lafayette, Indiana
SERIES HISTORY
All-Time: Purdue leads 118-96-2
All-Time in West Lafayette: Purdue leads 62-43-1
2022: Purdue won 2 of 3 (May 13-15 in Evanston)
Last Series in West Lafayette: Purdue swept a 3-game set (May 2018)
First Meeting: Northwestern 10, Purdue 3 (May 1900 in Evanston)
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday: Khal Stephen (So, RHP) vs. NU's Matt McClure (Jr, RHP)
Saturday: Jonathan Blackwell (Jr, LHP) vs. NU's Michael Farinelli (Grad, RHP)
Sunday: Kyle Iwinski (Jr, RHP) vs. TBA for NU
WEEKEND PROMOTIONS
Friday: Purdue Baseball Blanket Giveaway (First 100 Fans)
Saturday: Coasters Set 1 Giveaway; Autism Awareness Day
Sunday: Bark in the Park Dog Day; Kids Run the Bases Postgame; $12 Family 4-Pack Tickets
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Another opponent from Chicagoland visits Alexander Field as Purdue baseball hosts Northwestern for its first home weekend of the season and first home series vs. the Wildcats since May 2018.
First pitch is slated for 1 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday. Friday's game time was moved up Thursday evening due to thunderstorms in the forecast.
The Boilermakers begin a busy stretch of 21 games in 31 days Friday – they're scheduled to take the field on 20 of April's 30 days. After playing their first six weekends on the road, Purdue is slated to be the home team at Alexander for four of the next six weekends. Beginning this weekend, the Boilermakers enter a stretch in which they will play 19 of their next 25 and 22 of their final 32 regular-season games at home.
The last two Purdue-Northwestern series have been played in Evanston, with the visitors winning two of three in both March 2019 and May 2022. The Boilermakers have won seven of the last nine games in the series since 2018. A COVID pause for the Wildcats canceled a series between the teams in May 2021.
While it may seem like a long stretch since NU's last appearance in West Lafayette, Big Ten expansion (and later the pandemic) led to numerous schedule quirks in the last dozen years that caused five other Big Ten rivals to go much longer without making the trip to Purdue's campus. Nebraska has not played at Alexander Field since the opening weekend of Big Ten play in 2016. That's a streak that ends in May this year.
LONGEST STRETCHES WITHOUT VISITING WEST LAFAYETTE
• Minnesota – 5 Full Seasons: April 2010 (at Lambert Field) to May 2016 (at Alexander Field)
• Indiana – 5 Full Seasons: April 2011 (at Lambert Field) to April 2017 (at Alexander Field)
• Illinois – 5 Full Seasons: May 2011 (at Lambert Field) to April 2017 (at Alexander Field)
• Nebraska – 5 Full Seasons: March 2016 to May 2023
• Maryland – 5 Full Seasons: April 2015 to May 2022
• Northwestern – 3 Full Seasons: May 2018 to April 2023
Northwestern joins Michigan and Ohio State as the Big Ten teams under the guidance of new head coaches this season. Jim Foster came to Evanston after a successful run at both Army (2017-22) and Rhode Island (2006-14). As an associate head coach, he also helped Boston College win an NCAA Regional in 2016. Like Purdue, the Wildcats have been on the road quite frequently over the first seven weeks of the season, with 16 of their first 19 games being true road dates. They've played a number of quality opponents – Texas State, Louisiana Tech, Saint Louis, TCU, Houston and others. Both Purdue and NU have split midweek games against Northern Illinois and UIC.
Northwestern featured a potent lineup last season but lost a few key players to the transfer portal. Starters from last year's team are now playing at Ole Miss, Virginia, Duke, Wake Forest and Kentucky. Michael Farinelli, Stephen Hrustich, Vincent Bianchina, Tony Livermore and Coby Moe are among the notable holdovers. Farinelli pitched a complete game vs. Purdue in Evanston last season, limiting a lineup that scored 22 runs in the series to just one run on six hits.
WEEKEND #2 OF BIG TEN PLAY
• Northwestern (0-0) at Purdue (1-2)
• Michigan (3-0) at Illinois (1-2)
• Indiana (3-0) at Penn State (0-3)
• Michigan State (2-1) at Rutgers (0-0)
• Minnesota (0-0) at Ohio State (0-3)
• Maryland (0-0) at Iowa (0-0)
• Nebraska (2-1) vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi & Abilene Christian in Abilene (Non-Conference)
ACTIVE STREAKS
• Mike Bolton Jr. – 14-game on-base streak, 10-game on-base streak at Alexander, 10-game on-base streak in B1G play
• Couper Cornblum – 10-game on-base streak
• Jo Stevens – 6-game on-base streak
• Jake Jarvis – 5-game hit streak
• Cam Thompson – 23-game on-base streak at Alexander Field, 5-game on-base streak in B1G play
BEST STRETCH OF THE SEASON ON THE MOUND
• Khal Stephen, Aaron Suval and Jonathan Blackwell teamed up for 13 innings of one-run ball over the first half of the Michigan State series, accounting for a combined 12 zeros from the third inning of game 1 through the sixth inning of game 2. Considering it came on the road against a potent lineup that scored 16 runs over the final 10 innings of the series, it certainly ranks as Purdue's finest stretch of the season on the mound.
• The 13 innings of one-run ball is a feat the Boilermakers have now accomplished five times under head coach Greg Goff (2020-present). Purdue did it twice last year and also achieved a stretch of 15 innings of one-run ball vs. Michigan State in 2021. Calvin Schapira led the way in 2021 with eight innings of one-run ball in a 2-1 pitcher's duel Purdue won on an 11th-inning walk-off in Champaign.
• In the Akron series the first weekend of March, Kyle Iwinski's seven-inning complete-game shutout buoyed a stretch in which Purdue had 10 consecutive scoreless innings and allowed just two runs over 14 frames.
TOP 10 IN THE BIG TEN ENTERING THE WEEKEND
• Paul Toetz – T-2nd in HR (8), 3rd in RBI (33), 5th in Slugging (.709), 8th in OPS (1.155)
• Couper Cornblum – 2nd in Steals (14)
• Mike Bolton Jr. – 2nd in Sac Bunts (4), T-4th in HBP (8), T-5th in Triples (2), T-7th in Steals (9)
• Evan Albrecht – T-3rd in Steals (10), T-8th in HBP (6)
• Cam Thompson – T-3rd in Sac Flies (3), T-5th in HBP (6)
• Jake Jarvis – 5th in OPS (1.181), T-6th in HR (6), 6th in Slugging (.700), 8th in OBP (.481), T-8th in HBP (6)
• Jake Parr – T-5th in Triples (2)
• Jonathan Blackwell – T-6th in Innings (31 2/3)
• Kyle Iwinski – 7th in ERA (2.77)
RACKING UP THE RBI EARLY – RBI IN THE FIRST 23 GAMES
• Paul Toetz in 2023: 33 (8 multi-RBI games – 2 Six-RBI, 1 Four-RBI, 3 Three-RBI, 2 Two-RBI)
• Cam Thompson in 2022: 34 (11 multi-RBI games – 1 Four-RBI, 2 Three-RBI, 8 Two-RBI)
Northwestern (2-17, 0-0 B1G) at Purdue (10-13, 1-2 B1G)
Friday to Sunday, March 31-April 2 / Watch B1G+
Series Opener: Friday, March 31 at 1 p.m. ET (Updated)
Middle Game: Saturday, April 1 at 2 p.m. ET
Series Finale: Sunday, April 2 at 1 p.m. ET
Alexander Field / West Lafayette, Indiana
SERIES HISTORY
All-Time: Purdue leads 118-96-2
All-Time in West Lafayette: Purdue leads 62-43-1
2022: Purdue won 2 of 3 (May 13-15 in Evanston)
Last Series in West Lafayette: Purdue swept a 3-game set (May 2018)
First Meeting: Northwestern 10, Purdue 3 (May 1900 in Evanston)
PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday: Khal Stephen (So, RHP) vs. NU's Matt McClure (Jr, RHP)
Saturday: Jonathan Blackwell (Jr, LHP) vs. NU's Michael Farinelli (Grad, RHP)
Sunday: Kyle Iwinski (Jr, RHP) vs. TBA for NU
WEEKEND PROMOTIONS
Friday: Purdue Baseball Blanket Giveaway (First 100 Fans)
Saturday: Coasters Set 1 Giveaway; Autism Awareness Day
Sunday: Bark in the Park Dog Day; Kids Run the Bases Postgame; $12 Family 4-Pack Tickets
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Another opponent from Chicagoland visits Alexander Field as Purdue baseball hosts Northwestern for its first home weekend of the season and first home series vs. the Wildcats since May 2018.
First pitch is slated for 1 p.m. Friday, 2 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday. Friday's game time was moved up Thursday evening due to thunderstorms in the forecast.
The Boilermakers begin a busy stretch of 21 games in 31 days Friday – they're scheduled to take the field on 20 of April's 30 days. After playing their first six weekends on the road, Purdue is slated to be the home team at Alexander for four of the next six weekends. Beginning this weekend, the Boilermakers enter a stretch in which they will play 19 of their next 25 and 22 of their final 32 regular-season games at home.
The last two Purdue-Northwestern series have been played in Evanston, with the visitors winning two of three in both March 2019 and May 2022. The Boilermakers have won seven of the last nine games in the series since 2018. A COVID pause for the Wildcats canceled a series between the teams in May 2021.
While it may seem like a long stretch since NU's last appearance in West Lafayette, Big Ten expansion (and later the pandemic) led to numerous schedule quirks in the last dozen years that caused five other Big Ten rivals to go much longer without making the trip to Purdue's campus. Nebraska has not played at Alexander Field since the opening weekend of Big Ten play in 2016. That's a streak that ends in May this year.
LONGEST STRETCHES WITHOUT VISITING WEST LAFAYETTE
• Minnesota – 5 Full Seasons: April 2010 (at Lambert Field) to May 2016 (at Alexander Field)
• Indiana – 5 Full Seasons: April 2011 (at Lambert Field) to April 2017 (at Alexander Field)
• Illinois – 5 Full Seasons: May 2011 (at Lambert Field) to April 2017 (at Alexander Field)
• Nebraska – 5 Full Seasons: March 2016 to May 2023
• Maryland – 5 Full Seasons: April 2015 to May 2022
• Northwestern – 3 Full Seasons: May 2018 to April 2023
| FEWEST GAMES AT ALEXANDER AMONG BIG TEN TEAMS (Since 2013) | |||
| Team | Games | Opponent Record | Last Visit |
| Maryland | 5 | 5-0 | May 2022 |
| Nebraska | 6 | 6-0 | March 2016 |
| Illinois | 6 | 3-3 | April 2021 |
| Michigan State | 6 | 4-2 | May 2019 |
| Indiana | 7 | 2-5 | April 2022 |
| Northwestern | 9 | 4-5 | May 2018 |
Northwestern joins Michigan and Ohio State as the Big Ten teams under the guidance of new head coaches this season. Jim Foster came to Evanston after a successful run at both Army (2017-22) and Rhode Island (2006-14). As an associate head coach, he also helped Boston College win an NCAA Regional in 2016. Like Purdue, the Wildcats have been on the road quite frequently over the first seven weeks of the season, with 16 of their first 19 games being true road dates. They've played a number of quality opponents – Texas State, Louisiana Tech, Saint Louis, TCU, Houston and others. Both Purdue and NU have split midweek games against Northern Illinois and UIC.
Northwestern featured a potent lineup last season but lost a few key players to the transfer portal. Starters from last year's team are now playing at Ole Miss, Virginia, Duke, Wake Forest and Kentucky. Michael Farinelli, Stephen Hrustich, Vincent Bianchina, Tony Livermore and Coby Moe are among the notable holdovers. Farinelli pitched a complete game vs. Purdue in Evanston last season, limiting a lineup that scored 22 runs in the series to just one run on six hits.
WEEKEND #2 OF BIG TEN PLAY
• Northwestern (0-0) at Purdue (1-2)
• Michigan (3-0) at Illinois (1-2)
• Indiana (3-0) at Penn State (0-3)
• Michigan State (2-1) at Rutgers (0-0)
• Minnesota (0-0) at Ohio State (0-3)
• Maryland (0-0) at Iowa (0-0)
• Nebraska (2-1) vs. Texas A&M-Corpus Christi & Abilene Christian in Abilene (Non-Conference)
ACTIVE STREAKS
• Mike Bolton Jr. – 14-game on-base streak, 10-game on-base streak at Alexander, 10-game on-base streak in B1G play
• Couper Cornblum – 10-game on-base streak
• Jo Stevens – 6-game on-base streak
• Jake Jarvis – 5-game hit streak
• Cam Thompson – 23-game on-base streak at Alexander Field, 5-game on-base streak in B1G play
BEST STRETCH OF THE SEASON ON THE MOUND
• Khal Stephen, Aaron Suval and Jonathan Blackwell teamed up for 13 innings of one-run ball over the first half of the Michigan State series, accounting for a combined 12 zeros from the third inning of game 1 through the sixth inning of game 2. Considering it came on the road against a potent lineup that scored 16 runs over the final 10 innings of the series, it certainly ranks as Purdue's finest stretch of the season on the mound.
• The 13 innings of one-run ball is a feat the Boilermakers have now accomplished five times under head coach Greg Goff (2020-present). Purdue did it twice last year and also achieved a stretch of 15 innings of one-run ball vs. Michigan State in 2021. Calvin Schapira led the way in 2021 with eight innings of one-run ball in a 2-1 pitcher's duel Purdue won on an 11th-inning walk-off in Champaign.
• In the Akron series the first weekend of March, Kyle Iwinski's seven-inning complete-game shutout buoyed a stretch in which Purdue had 10 consecutive scoreless innings and allowed just two runs over 14 frames.
| BEST STRETCHES FOR PURDUE PITCHING IN GOFF ERA (Since 2020) | ||||
| Season | Pitchers | Combined Line | Opponent(s) | Game Results |
| 2022 | Landon Weins (4 IP) Griffin Lohman (2 IP) Jackson Smeltz (4 IP) Ricky Castro (5 IP) Troy Wansing (3 IP) CJ Backer (2 IP) |
20 IP, 1 R | vs South Dakota St. | W, 5-4 W, 11-1 W, 14-3 |
| 2022 | Landon Weins (2 IP) Ricky Castro (2/3 IP) Nolan Daniel (1/3 IP) Eric Hildebrand (1 IP) Griffin Lohman (2 2/3 IP) Khal Stephen (1/3 IP) Jackson Smeltz (7 IP) Kyle Wade (2 IP) |
16 IP, 1 R 13 IP, 0 R |
at Charlotte vs Longwood |
W, 6-2 W, 6-1 |
| 2021 | Jett Jackson (1 IP) Joseph Whitman (2/3 IP) Avery Cook (1/3 IP) Calvin Schapira (8 IP) Nick Alvarado (2 IP) Jackson Smeltz (1 IP) Trent Johnson (2 IP) |
15 IP, 1 R | at/vs Michigan State | W, 8-2 in EL W, 2-1 (11) in C-U W, 8-3 in C-U |
| 2020 | Bo Hofstra (2 IP) Cory Brooks (5 IP) Conner Tomasic (1/3 IP) Andrew Bohm (3 2/3 IP) Jett Jackson (5 IP) Jackson Smeltz (2 1/3 IP) Eric Hildebrand (2/3 IP) Matt Moore (2/3 IP) Trevor Cheaney (1/3 IP) Trent Johnson (2 IP) |
14 IP, 1 R 22 IP, 3 R |
at Campbell vs Maine vs Villanova vs Duke |
W, 6-4 W, 6-2 W, 7-1 L, 5-1 |
| 2023 | Khal Stephen (4 IP) Aaron Suval (3 IP) Jonathan Blackwell (6 IP) |
13 IP, 1 R | at Michigan State | W, 5-4 L, 5-4 |
| 2022 | Jackson Smeltz (8 IP) Kyle Wade (1 IP) Troy Wansing (2 IP) |
11 IP, 0 R | Indiana | W, 17-0 L, 10-3 |
| 2022 | Landon Weins (5 IP) Troy Wansing (2 1/3 IP) CJ Backer (2 2/3 IP) Nolan Daniel (1 IP) |
11 IP, 0 R | Ohio State UIC |
W, 7-8 L, 10-9 |
| 2023 | Carter Doorn (1 IP) CJ Backer (1 IP) Kyle Iwinski (7 IP) Calvin Schapira (4 IP) Davis Pratt (1 IP) |
14 IP, 2 R 10 IP, 0 R |
vs Akron | W, 17-9 W, 13-0 W, 23-4 |
| 2022 | Landon Weins (1 IP) Khal Stephen (2 2/3 IP) Wyatt Wendell (6 1/3 IP) Kyle Wade (2 IP) Ricky Castro (2/3 IP) Troy Wansing (2 IP) |
14 2/3 IP, 3 R | Illinois State | L, 4-3 (11) W, 9-2 W, 7-6 (10) |
| 2022 | Wyatt Wendell (3 IP) Khal Stephen (2 IP) Troy Wansing (4 IP) Landon Weins (2 2/3 IP) Griffin Lohman (1 1/3 IP) |
13 IP, 2 R | vs Princeton | W, 8-3 W, 4-3 |
| 2021 | Jackson Smeltz (1 IP) Cory Brooks (7 2/3 IP) Eric Hildebrand (1 1/3 IP) Jett Jackson (3 IP) |
13 IP, 2 R 10 IP, 0 R |
Minnesota Penn State & MINN |
W, 7-4 vs PSU L, 2-1 vs MINN W, 7-6 vs MINN |
TOP 10 IN THE BIG TEN ENTERING THE WEEKEND
• Paul Toetz – T-2nd in HR (8), 3rd in RBI (33), 5th in Slugging (.709), 8th in OPS (1.155)
• Couper Cornblum – 2nd in Steals (14)
• Mike Bolton Jr. – 2nd in Sac Bunts (4), T-4th in HBP (8), T-5th in Triples (2), T-7th in Steals (9)
• Evan Albrecht – T-3rd in Steals (10), T-8th in HBP (6)
• Cam Thompson – T-3rd in Sac Flies (3), T-5th in HBP (6)
• Jake Jarvis – 5th in OPS (1.181), T-6th in HR (6), 6th in Slugging (.700), 8th in OBP (.481), T-8th in HBP (6)
• Jake Parr – T-5th in Triples (2)
• Jonathan Blackwell – T-6th in Innings (31 2/3)
• Kyle Iwinski – 7th in ERA (2.77)
RACKING UP THE RBI EARLY – RBI IN THE FIRST 23 GAMES
• Paul Toetz in 2023: 33 (8 multi-RBI games – 2 Six-RBI, 1 Four-RBI, 3 Three-RBI, 2 Two-RBI)
• Cam Thompson in 2022: 34 (11 multi-RBI games – 1 Four-RBI, 2 Three-RBI, 8 Two-RBI)
| REACHED 40 RBI BEFORE MAY 1 (Since 2001) | |||
| Year | Boilermaker | Date of 40th RBI | Season Total |
| 2022 | Cam Thompson | April 9 | 56 |
| 2012 | Cameron Perkins | April 17 | 61 |
| 2001 | Nate Sickler | April 18 | 54 |
| 2018 | Jacson McGowan | April 24 | 59 |
| 2009 | Dan Black | April 28 | 51 |
| 2017 | Jacson McGowan | April 28 | 50 |
| 2001 | Nick McIntyre | April 29 | 48 |
| 2023 | Paul Toetz | TBD | 33 (as of March 30) |
| FASTEST TO 10 HOME RUNS (Since 2001) | |||
| Year | Boilermaker | Date of 10th HR | Season Total |
| 2016 | Kyle Wood | April 8 | 12 |
| 2003 | Nick McIntyre | April 8 | 11 |
| 2022 | Cam Thompson | April 10 | 13 |
| 2009 | Dan Black | April 11 | 15 |
| 2008 | Dan Black | April 19 | 18 |
| 2018 | Jacson McGowan | April 21 | 13 |
| 2023 | Paul Toetz | TBD | 8 (as of March 30) |