Pitt Baseball to Play Three-Game Series at Rutgers
5/3/2012 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 3, 2012
PITTSBURGH—The University of Pittsburgh baseball team travels to Piscataway, N.J. this weekend to take on Rutgers in a three-game conference series. The Panthers have won three of their last four games and enter the series after taking two out of three games against Georgetown last weekend and posting a non-conference win over Ohio on Tuesday. Now just two games behind the eight-seed Villanova Wildcats in the conference standings, Pitt looks to put together a strong showing against the Scarlet Knights to ensure all hope for qualifying for the Big East Tournament.
The series begins on Saturday, May 5 with a daytime doubleheader. Game one will start at 1 p.m., and will be followed by a 3 p.m. contest. On Sunday, the Panthers wrap up the series in a game scheduled for 1 p.m.
Last season, Pitt hosted Rutgers in a three-game series at Charles L. Cost Field at the Petersen Sports Complex. The Panthers, who put together two shutout victories, swept the Scarlet Knights that weekend, outscoring them 15-3.
Probable Pitching
GAME 1: PITT—LHP Matt Iannazzo (6-2, 4.44 ERA) vs. RUTGERS—RHP Tyler Gebler (1-3, 5.07 ERA)
GAME 2: PITT—RHP Ethan Mildren (4-4, 3.69 ERA) vs. RUTGERS—LHP Rob Smorol (6-2, 3.72 ERA)
GAME 3: PITT—RHP Matt Wotherspoon (3-2, 4.73 ERA) vs. RUTGERS—RHP Ryan Fasano (5-3, 3.30 ERA)
Pittsburgh Panthers (22-21, 6-12 Big East)
Matt Iannazzo, who enters the weekend coming off of back-to-back winning decisions, is 6-2 this season with a 4.44 ERA. The program’s all-time leader in wins has sat down 52 batters on strikes in 71 innings pitched and has walked just 11. Last season, Iannazzo pitched a five-hit complete game shutout against the Scarlet Knights in a 4-0 win. He is 1-1 with a 1.59 ERA against Rutgers in his career, with 10 strikeouts in 17 innings and a .183 batting average against. The senior southpaw is among the top-10 in innings pitched in the conference this season.
Sophomore right-handed pitcher Ethan Mildren has logged an extensive amount of work this season, as well, and is also ranked among the Big East’s top-10 in innings pitched (70 2/3). Mildren, who is just one game removed from an outing in which he pitched eight scoreless innings in a 5-0 win over Georgetown, is 4-4 with 58 strikeouts and a rotation-best 3.69 ERA. Last season, he pitched seven innings and struck out four in an 8-3 victory over the Scarlet Knights at home.
Matt Wotherspoon, a sophomore, is 3-2 this season with a 4.73 ERA. In 66 2/3 innings, he has 63 strikeouts and has held opponents to a .267 batting average against. Wotherspoon is tied for fifth in the Big East in strikeouts and ranks second in the conference in batters struck out looking (26).
Supporting the Panthers pitching staff is one of the leading offensive units in the Big East. Pitt is in the top-five in the conference in batting average (.291), slugging percentage (.407), on-base percentage (.385), and home runs (22).
Rick Devereaux, the season’s top offensive producer for the Panthers, is batting .352 with seven home runs, 48 RBI, and a .553 slugging percentage. Devereaux is leading the Big East in RBI and is 10th overall in batting average.
Senior designated hitter Anthony Defabio has been stellar at the plate lately, and has put together a seven-game hitting streak. DeFabio is batting .342 with 45 runs scored, 15 doubles, four home runs, 27 RBI, and has an outstanding .474 on-base percentage. He is currently third in both runs scored and on-base percentage in the Big East. On Tuesday, DeFabio went 2-3 with a home run and 3 RBI in Pitt’s 5-1 win over Ohio.
Casey Roche has been seeing the ball well lately, and has put together a solid string of performances at the plate. On the season, Roche is batting .322 with three home runs and is second on the team in both RBI (37) and on-base percentage (.427). Roche, who was 2-3 with a RBI in his last game, has also jumped into the top-10 in walks (25) in the conference.
Stephen Vranka and Evan Oswald also both enter this weekend’s series against Rutgers with hitting streaks. Vranka, third in the Big East in triples (4), has an eight-game hitting streak and is batting .284 with 34 runs and 13 RBI. Oswald has a .315 batting average to go along with 15 RBI and a .424 on-base percentage, and looks to extend his seven-game hitting streak on Saturday.
Rutgers Scarlet Knights (26-18, 11-7 Big East)
Rutgers, fifth in the Big East standings, has won seven of its last 10 games. On Tuesday, the Scarlet Knights saw their five-game winning streak come to an end in a 7-0 loss to Hofstra. Despite the shutout loss, Rutgers is also one of the top hitting teams in the conference. The Scarlet Knights are ranked second in batting average (.302), slugging percentage (.415), and on-base percentage (.389), and they are fourth in runs scored (289, 6.57 per game).
Junior Patrick Kivlehan and sophomore Nick Favatella have been constant run producers for Rutgers this season. Kivlehan is batting .395 with 38 runs scored, 10 home runs, 36 RBI, and has a .480 on-base percentage. He leads the conference in batting average and home runs, and is third in stolen bases (21/23, 91.3%). Favatella, fifth in the Big East in runs scored (43), is batting .299 with four home runs and 34 RBI.
Also, junior Jeff Melillo and sophomore Brian O’Grady have been standouts at the plate. Melillo currently holds a .347 batting average and has four home runs and 28 RBI, in addition to a .446 on-base percentage. O’Grady, second in the Big East in walks (28), is batting .331 with 37 runs and 25 RBI.
Senior Ryan Fasano and junior Rob Smorol have guided the Scarlet Knights all season on the mound. Fasano is 5-3 with a 3.30 ERA and has 43 strikeouts in 73 2/3 innings pitched. He has thrown two complete games this season and has held his opponents to a .256 batting average against. Smorol has a 6-2 record and 3.72 ERA, and has kept his batting average against at .245 in 67 2/3 innings of work this season.