Cole Van Assen Sugar Land 2026Round Rock Classic Dell Diamond

Purdue Among Elite Field at Round Rock Classic

Purdue, Southern Miss, Baylor and Oregon State all won 30 games last season, posting a combined 159-77 record.

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by Ben Turner

TOURNAMENT INFORMATION
Purdue (2-2) at the Round Rock Classic
Friday, Feb. 20 to Sunday, Feb. 22 / Stream via D1Baseball.com
Dell Diamond / Round Rock, Texas
Friday at 3 p.m. ET: Purdue vs. #20 Southern Miss (3-1)
Saturday at 2 p.m. ET: Purdue vs. Baylor (4-0)
Sunday at Noon ET: Purdue vs. #11 Oregon State (3-1)

PROBABLE PITCHING MATCHUPS
Friday: Cole Van Assen (Jr, RHP) vs. USM’s Colby Allen (Sr, RHP)
Saturday: Zach Erdman (Sr, LHP) vs. BU’s Ethan Calder (Sr, LHP)
Sunday: Jarvis Evans (Sr, LHP) vs. OSU’s Eric Segura (Jr, RHP)

SERIES HISTORY

vs. Southern Miss
All-Time: USM leads 3-1
Last Meetings: USM swept a 3-game series (February 2019 in Hattiesburg)
First Meeting: Purdue 10, USM 9 (March 2012 in Auburn, Ala.)
vs. Baylor
All-Time: Baylor leads 3-0
Last Meetings: Baylor swept a 3-game series (February 2008 in Waco)
vs. Oregon State
Sunday’s Game is the First Meeting

ROUND ROCK, Texas 
– Purdue Baseball closes out its season-opening 11-day road trip in Texas with one of its stiffest tests of the season, taking the field at another Triple-A ballpark and squaring off against three elite programs at the Round Rock Classic.

The Boilermakers play No. 20 Southern Miss, Baylor and No. 11 Oregon State at Dell Diamond this weekend. The four teams are combined 12-4 this season and were all 30-game winners a year ago, posting a combined 159-77 (.674) mark. Oregon State and Southern Miss hosted NCAA Regionals in 2025 and the Beavers qualified for the College World Series for the eighth time.

Purdue is 40-12 in neutral-site action dating back to the start of the 2022 campaign – with 46 of those games played in Sugar Land, Texas (19) or Holly Springs, N.C. (27). The Boilermakers return to Dell Diamond for the first time since squaring off against Nebraska to open the unique conference-only 2021 campaign. Similar to last weekend when Aaron Manias delivered the game-winning hit in a do-or-die spot Saturday in Sugar Land, Purdue’s first victory of 2021 was via a walk-off win in the bottom of the ninth.

Led by Zach Erdman’s eight shutout innings in Saturday’s victory, the Boilermakers’ weekend rotation played a pivotal role in the series win vs. Portland to open the season. Cole Van Assen also went unscored upon over four innings and has now worked 13 2/3 innings over three appearances without allowing an earned run at Constellation Field. Jarvis Evans surrendered only four hits over five innings Sunday in his Purdue debut.

COMBINED TOTALS FOR VAN ASSEN, ERDMAN & EVANS IN SUGAR LAND
17 IP, 11 H, 4 R, 4 BB, 16 K, 0.88 WHIP, .183 B/Avg

Erdman was the only starting pitcher in the nation to work eight innings during the opening weekend. Erdman’s game score of 83 from his gem (8 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 7 K) was good for second nationally, behind only Lamar’s Chris Oliver (6 IP, H, 0 R, 0 BB, 14 K, game score 86). Erdman lost out on Big Ten Pitcher of the Week honors after USC’s Grant Govel struck out 10 over six no-hit innings (game score 81). As a native Texan, Erdman pitched his first three collegiate seasons at Texas Tech but did not face Baylor while he was a Red Raider.

HEAD COACH CONNECTION
Purdue’s Greg Goff and Southern Miss head coach Christian Ostrander go way back. Goff was the pitching coach at Delta State, an NCAA DII program in Mississippi, when Ostrander was a student-athlete at DSU. When Goff made the move to DI as an assistant at Southeast Missouri State for the 1997-98 school year, Ostrander replaced him as the DSU pitching coach. Goff later hired Ostrander as the pitching coach at Louisiana Tech in the fall of 2015. Together, Goff and Ostrander led Louisiana Tech to an NCAA Regional berth in 2016, LaTech’s first since 1987. Goff was hired as the head coach at Alabama in the summer of 2016, but Ostrander opted to remain in Ruston for one more season before becoming the pitching coach at Southern Miss in the summer of 2017. Ostrander succeeded the retiring Scott Berry as USM’s head coach in the summer of 2023.
In the first-ever Purdue-Southern Miss game in March 2012 on the middle day of a four-team tournament hosted by Auburn, current Purdue assistant coach Barrett Serrato connected for a three-run homer in a seven-run seventh inning as the Boilermakers rallied for a 10-9 victory after trailing 9-3. Purdue’s 2012 team went on to win a team-record 45 games and a pair of Big Ten titles along with hosting an NCAA Regional in Gary, Ind.

PURDUE’S RECENT NON-CONFERENCE TOURNAMENT HISTORY (Since 2014)

Year

Tournament

Location/Host

Record

Game Results

2024

Keith LeClair Classic

Greenville, N.C. /
East Carolina

2-1

East Carolina (L, 7-1)
SE Louisiana (W, 5-0)
Cal St. Fullerton (W, 11-3)

2020

Cambria College Classic

Minneapolis / Minnesota

0-3

Duke (L, 5-1)
NC State (L, 6-0)
North Carolina (L, 6-5 [10])

2020

Campbell Invitational
[Champion]

Buies Creek, N.C. /
Campbell

3-0

Campbell (W, 6-4)
Maine (W, 6-2)
Villanova (W, 7-1)

2018

Stetson Invitational

DeLand, Fla. / Stetson

2-1

Central Michigan (W, 11-1)
Virginia Tech (W, 12-5)
Stetson (L, 11-6)

2018

Irish Alamo Classic
[Champion]

San Antonio /
Notre Dame

3-1

Saint Louis (W, 5-2)
Incarnate Word (W, 5-4 [10])
Notre Dame (L, 4-2)
Notre Dame (W, 8-7)

2016

Millard MGMT Classic

Lawrence, Kan. / Kansas

1-2

Saint Louis (L, 3-2)
North Dakota (W, 5-0)
Kansas (L, 8-1)

2016

Atlanta Challenge

Atlanta, Ga. / Georgia Tech, Kennesaw State, Georgia St.

1-2

Georgia Tech (L, 5-2)
Kennesaw State (L, 5-2)
Georgia State (W, 5-3)

2015

Phoenix Muni Classic

Phoenix / Arizona St.

1-3

Gonzaga (W, 5-3)
Gonzaga (L, 12-2)
Arizona St. (L, 15-5)
CSU Bakersfield (L, 6-4 [11])

2015

Kleberg Bank Classic

Corpus Christi, Texas /
A&M Corpus Christi

2-2

A&M-Corpus Christi (L, 6-2)
Sam Houston St (W, 4-3 [12])
Sam Houston St (W, 9-7)
Missouri (L, 1-0)

 

PURDUE AT PROFESSIONAL STADIUMS (Since 2020)
Constellation Field (Triple-A; Sugar Land, Texas): 16-3
…Opened the season there every year since 2022
Wrigley Field (MLB; Chicago): 1-0
…Defeated Northwestern in April 2024
U.S. Bank Stadium (NFL; Minneapolis): 2-4
…Won 2 of 3 vs Minnesota in March 2025; lost all 3 at Minnesota’s Tournament in February 2020
Dell Diamond (Triple-A; Round Rock, Texas): 1-3
…Opened the 2021 season there vs. Nebraska
Fluor Field (High-A; Greenville, S.C.): 0-4
…Lost all 4 vs Michigan in March 2021

FREQUENT TRIPS TO TEXAS (Since 2017)
2026: Sugar Land, Houston, Round Rock – vs Portland, at Rice, at Round Rock Classic
2025: Sugar Land – 4-game series vs Stephen F. Austin (4-0)
2024: Sugar Land – 4-game series vs Stony Brook (3-1)
2023: Sugar Land – 4-game series vs Holy Cross (3-1)
2022: Sugar Land – 4-game series vs South Dakota State (4-0)
2021: Round Rock – 4-game series vs Nebraska (1-3)
2020: None
2019: Austin – 4-game series at Texas (1-3)
2018: San Antonio – Irish Alamo Classic (3-1); was also scheduled to play opening weekend at Baylor
2017: San Marcos – 4-game series at Texas State (2-2)

ANDERSON’S 16-GAME HIT STREAK TOTALS (Streak Began April 25)
2025: 22-for-48, 2B, 12 RBI, HBP, 6 R, 11 SB
2026: 3-for-11, BB, 2 SB
Combined: 25-for-59 (.424), 2B, 12 RBI, BB, HBP, 6 R, 13 SB

PURDUE’S LONGEST HIT STREAKS (Since 2001)

20+ Games
Ryne White – 24 in 2007
Cameron Perkins – 20 in 2011
Brandon Haveman – 20 in 2009
15-19 Games
David Blomberg – 19 in 2001
Connor Caskenette – 18 in 2023
Eli Anderson – 16 in 2025-26 (Active)
Zac Fascia – 15 in 2019
Eric Charles – 15 in 2011

14 Games
Skyler Hunter – 14 in 2019
Eric Charles – 14 in 2009
Jon Moore – 14 in 2008
Ryne White – 14 in 2008
Jordan Comadena – 14 in 2007
John Hunter – 14 in 2007
Nate Sickler – 14 in 2001
Adam Fazio – 14 in 2002

 

TRUE FRESHMEN TO START A SEASON OPENER (Since 2001)

Season

Boilermaker

Position

Opponent

4-Year Starter?

2026

Westin Boyle

SS

vs Portland

TBD

2018

Ben Nisle

RF

vs Western Michigan

Yes

2016

Jacson McGowan

3B

at Georgia Tech

No – Drafted after Junior Year

2016

Nick Dalesandro

LF

at Georgia Tech

No – Drafted after Junior Year

2015

Harry Shipley

SS

at Western Carolina

Yes

2013

Jack Picchiotti

C

vs Connecticut

Yes

2013

Kyle Johnson

RF

vs Connecticut

Yes

2013

Josh Estill

DH

vs Connecticut

No

2010

Cameron Perkins

1B

vs Villanova

No – Drafted after Junior Year

2010

Kevin Plawecki

C

vs Villanova

No – Drafted after Junior Year

2009

Tyler Spillner

DH

vs Cincinnati

Yes

2004

Eric Osborn

2B

at Belmont

Yes

2003

Eric Wolfe

1B

vs Pitt

Yes

2001

Mitch Koester

3B

at Rice

No

 

4-HIT GAMES BY PURDUE FRESHMEN (Since 2001)

Date

Boilermaker

Full Line

Opponent

2/15/2026

Westin Boyle

4-for-4, 2B, 3B, 3 RBI, 3 R

vs Portland
(Sugar Land, Texas)

4/26/2024

Luke Gaffney*

4-for-5, 3 RBI, 2 R

at Northwestern
(Wrigley Field)

2/17/2024

Luke Gaffney*

4-for-5, 2 2B, 4 R

vs Stony Brook
(Sugar Land, Texas)

6/02/2018

Ben Nisle

4-for-5, 2B, 4 RBI, R

vs North Carolina A&T
(NCAA Regional in Chapel Hill, N.C.)

4/07/2017

Mike Madej

4-for-4, RBI

Indiana

3/16/2017

Mike Madej

4-for-5, 2B, 3B, 2 RBI, 4 R

at Santa Clara

3/09/2013

Jack Picchiotti

4-for-6, 2B, 3 RBI, 2 R

at UIC

3/26/2010

Cameron Perkins

4-for-4, 2 2B, 2 RBI, R

Chicago State

5/16/2009

Eric Charles*

4-for-5, 2 2B, 4 R

Illinois

4/22/2009

Barrett Serrato

4-for-5, 2B, RBI, 2 R

Butler

4/16/2006

Ryne White

4-for-5, 2 HR, BB, 5 RBI, 3 R

at Indiana

3/20/2004

Mitch Hilligoss

5-for-6, 2 2B, 2 RBI, 2 R

at Jacksonville State

4/20/2003

John Hunter

4-for-4, 2 2B, 7 RBI, 2 R

at Iowa

*Redshirt Freshman

 

8+ SHUTOUT INNINGS IN AN OUTING (Since 2001)

Date

Pitcher

Opponent

Scoreless Innings

Game Result

2/14/2026

Zach Erdman

vs Portland

8

W, 2-1

4/09/2022

Jackson Smeltz

Indiana

8

W, 17-0

4/25/2021

Cory Brooks

Illinois

8

L, 1-0

4/22/2017

Gareth Stroh

Illinois

8 2/3

W, 4-1

3/03/2017

Tanner Andrews

at SE Missouri

9

W, 5-0

5/20/2016

Matt Frawley

Cal State Northridge

8 1/3

W, 1-0 (10)

5/19/2016

Gavin Downs

Cal State Northridge

9

W, 5-0

4/22/2015

Shane Bryant

Ball State

8

W, 6-0

5/11/2012

Joe Haase

Michigan

9

W, 4-0

4/06/2012

Joe Haase

at Northwestern

9

W, 7-0

3/31/2012

Lance Breedlove

Penn State

9

W, 2-0

3/24/2012

Lance Breedlove

at Ohio State

8 2/3

W, 8-1

4/02/2011

Joe Haase

at Minnesota

9

W, 7-0

3/04/2011

Matt Morgan

at Lipscomb

9

W, 1-0

4/24/2010

Matt Bischoff

Northwestern

8

W, 2-1

3/12/2010

Matt Bischoff

Le Moyne

8

W, 3-0

3/15/2009

Matt Morgan

vs Purdue Fort Wayne

8 2/3

L, 1-0

3/14/2009

Matt Jansen

at Evansville

8 2/3

W, 3-1

4/18/2007

Matt Bischoff

at Notre Dame

9

L, 1-0

3/24/2007

Ricky Heines

at Western Illinois

9

W, 7-0

2/24/2007

Ricky Heines

at Georgia

9

W, 5-0

5/19/2006

Dan Sattler

Northwestern

8

W, 11-3

4/21/2006

Andrew Groves*

Michigan

8

L, 4-3

3/10/2006

Jay Buente

at Missouri

8

W, 7-0

5/20/2005

Scott Byrnes

at Indiana

8 1/3

W, 5-1

4/23/2004

Scott Byrnes

Michigan State

8 1/3

W, 3-2

3/24/2002

Mitch Pruemer

at Miami (Ohio)

9

W, 8-0

3/17/2002

Mitch Pruemer

at Coastal Carolina

9

W, 4-0

*Relief Outing

 

WALK-OFF WINS UNDER GREG GOFF (Since 2020)

Date

Opponent

Location

Score (Innings)

GW RBI

GW Run

2/14/2026

Portland

Sugar Land, Texas

2-1 (9)

Aaron Manias

Zach Zychowski

5/16/2025

Nebraska

Alexander Field

5-4 (9)

Brandon Anderson (HR)

Brandon Anderson

4/14/2025

Arizona State

Alexander Field

8-6 (9)

CJ Richmond (HR)

Keenan Spence

3/16/2024

Samford

Alexander Field

13-12 (10)

Ty Gill

Jo Stevens

5/07/2023

South Dakota St.

Alexander Field

3-2 (9)

Jake Parr

Couper Cornblum

4/02/2023

Northwestern

Alexander Field

4-3 (10)

Lukas Cook (HR)

Lukas Cook

2/24/2023

NJIT

Holly Springs, N.C.

6-5 (9)

Jake Parr

Paul Toetz

4/26/2022

Valparaiso

Alexander Field

6-5 (10)

Troy Viola

Jack Firestone

3/20/2022

Illinois State

Alexander Field

7-6 (10)

Evan Albrecht

Troy Viola

3/06/2022

Longwood

Holly Springs, N.C.

6-5 (11)

Cam Thompson (HR)

Cam Thompson

3/05/2022

Longwood

Holly Springs, N.C.

6-5 (13)

Jake Stadler

Jake Jarvis

2/26/2022

Princeton (G2)

Holly Springs, N.C.

5-4 (9)

Cam Thompson

Curtis Washington Jr.

2/26/2022

Princeton (G1)

Holly Springs, N.C.

4-3 (9)

CJ Valdez

Curtis Washington Jr.

3/27/2021

Rutgers

Alexander Field

7-4 (9)

Mason Gavre (HR)

Ben Nisle

4/18/2021

Michigan State

Champaign, Ill.

2-1 (11)

Evan Albrecht

Ben Nisle

3/05/2021

Nebraska

Round Rock, Texas

6-5 (9)

Zac Fascia

Ben Nisle

EARLIEST MIDWEEK OPENERS
In many years from 1979-1994, Purdue would open its season with a spring break trip during the first week of March, playing daily during the trip
2026: Feb. 18 at Rice (L, 5-2)
2022: March 2 at Charlotte (W, 6-2)
2025: March 4 at Indiana State (W, 14-4)
2024: March 5 at Notre Dame (L, 11-2)
2011: March 8 at #20 Louisville (W, 6-4)