Wednesday, March 20
Pittsburgh, Pa.
3 PM
Pitt
vs
Kent State
Panthers Close Out Homestand with Kent State
3/19/2019 5:15:00 PM | Baseball
Pitt Hosts Golden Flashes Wednesday at Cost Field
PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh baseball team will wrap up its six-game homestand, hosting Kent State at Charles L. Cost Field Wednesday afternoon.
The Panthers and Golden Flashes are set for a 3 p.m. first pitch.
HOW TO FOLLOW
LEADING OFF
SCOUTING KENT STATE
SERIES WITH KENT STATE
WHO'S STREAKING
PITT ON MARCH 20
RON REMAINS HOT
SMITH NAMED TO STOPPER WATCHLIST
MALVERN CONNECTION
BRING IN BELL
SUMMER CATCH
ALL SIGNS POINT WEST
UP NEXT
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram
The Panthers and Golden Flashes are set for a 3 p.m. first pitch.
HOW TO FOLLOW
- The game can be seen live on the ACC Network Extra via WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app.
- Live stats will be available here.
- Fans can follow @Pitt_BASE on Twitter and Instagram.
LEADING OFF
- Pitt (7-11, 1-5 ACC) looks to close out its six-game homestand with its second consecutive win as the Panthers host Kent State at Cost Field. Pitt is fresh off a 1-0 victory over a strong Virginia Tech team, as the Panthers took one of three to capture their first ACC win on the season.
- Sophomore Ron Washington Jr. paces the Panther offense, hitting at a .328 clip with nine doubles and a homer. He owns a team-best .516 slugging percentage and a .456 on base mark. Senior Connor Perry is hitting at a .323 mark, followed by Nico Popa at .313. Redshirt junior David Yanni leads the team with 11 RBI, followed by Sky Duff with 10.
- Redshirt junior Derek West will earn his first start of the season, appearing in his eighth contest. The hard-throwing righty owns a 3.14 ERA, having allowed 11 runs (five earned) off 18 hits and nine walks, striking out 16.
SCOUTING KENT STATE
- Kent State (7-10, 0-0 MAC) enters the contest riding a three-game win streak, taking both games of a weather shortened series with Northwestern and capturing a mid-week win over Youngstown State.
- The Golden Flashes are hitting .271 as a team, led by Ben Carew, who owns an impressive .390 average, tallying four doubles and 12 RBI. Pete Schuler is hitting at a .350 clip to rank second on the team, while Pavin Parks owns a team-best 14 RBI.
- Kent State will start left-hander John Schreiber, as he makes his fifth start of the season. On the year, he owns a 4.24 ERA, having let up 10 runs (eight earned) off 13 hits and 10 walks, fanning 12.
SERIES WITH KENT STATE
- This will be the 68th all-time meeting between the two squads in a series dating back to the 1951 season. Kent State owns a 40-27 all-time advantage, including four straight.
- The series is tied at 11-11 in games played in Pittsburgh, but the Golden Flashes own a 4-3 mark at Cost Field.
- Pitt's last win came on March 30, 2016 in a 13-5 decision at home.
WHO'S STREAKING
- Sophomore Ron Washington Jr. owns the team's longest hit streak, sitting at three games. Both Connor Perry and Kyle Hess have tallied at least one hit in back-to-back games, while Nico Popa and JC Mendez sit at one.
- Washington Jr.'s 16-game reached base streak paces the group, followed by Andres Antonini at eight and Hess at five.
PITT ON MARCH 20
- Pitt owns a mark of 7-6 all-time in games played on March 20.
- The Panthers have faced Kent State twice on that date, dropping both contests.
RON REMAINS HOT
- There's been no slump for sophomore Ron Washington Jr. as the outfielder/designated hitter has continued to shine in the Panther offense.
- Washington Jr. has tallied nine doubles in 18 games this season, ranking second in the ACC and 13th in the nation.
- On the season, he's hitting at a .328 clip, tallying 10 extra base hits with eight RBI and a .516 slugging percentage.
SMITH NAMED TO STOPPER WATCHLIST
- Sophomore reliever Chase Smith was named to the NCBWA Stopper of the Year Preseason Watchlist, an award annually given to the top relief pitcher in NCAA Division I baseball.
- The Georgia native made 22 appearances as a true freshman, third most on the team. He held opponents to just a .191 average, competing to a record of 1-1 with one save and a 3.16 ERA.
- Smith is one of five ACC pitchers to garner the recognition and marks the second straight season in which a Pitt reliever has earned the preseason distinction (Yasin Chentouf).
MALVERN CONNECTION
- Freshman pitchers Billy Corcoran and Brady Devereux are no strangers to one another, as the duo comes to Pitt after stellar careers at Malvern Prep in Malvern, Pa.
- The pair won three state championships at Malvern, collecting the state title in 2015, 2016 and 2018.
- Both nationally touted recruits and highly sought after Pennsylvania player, both ranked in the top five amongst right handed pitchers and in the top 20 in the state of Pennsylvania by Perfect Game.
BRING IN BELL
- Mike Bell is in his first season as head coach at Pitt after a seven-year stint as the associate head coach for ACC powerhouse Florida State. He brings 14 years of Division I coaching experience to the program and has coached 47 MLB draft picks, including 2006's No. 1 overall pick Luke Hochevar.
- In 2012, he was named the Perfect Game Assistant Coach of the Year and before the 2017 season, was named the No. 13 recruiter in the country by D1Baseball.com. In the last 13 years, Bell has also helped lead three teams to four College World Series appearances - Tennessee (2005), Oklahoma (2010), and Florida State (2012 & 2017). In his time at Florida State, the program won three ACC titles in 2015, 2017, and 2018 and his pitchers have recorded 500 or more strikeouts.
SUMMER CATCH
- Junior pitcher Dan Hammer had a summer to remember in the prestigious Cape Cod League, earning national recognition in his second stint with the Chatham Anglers. The hard-throwing righty was the East Division's starting pitcher in the 2018 Cape Cod League All-Star game and put up impressive numbers splitting time between the bullpen and the starting rotation.
- The Panthers' righty was one of the best in the nation's top collegiate summer league, posting a 2-0 record and a 2.16 ERA in 25.0 innings for the Anglers, striking out 20 in the process.
- The Chatham Anglers are no stranger to Pitt pitchers, having hosted 2016 First Round Draft pick T.J. Zeuch, as well as 2017 19th round pick Isaac Mattson and 2018 Sixth Round pick RJ Freure.
ALL SIGNS POINT WEST
- Redshirt junior pitcher Derek West had a solid season in the Cape Cod League, pitching with the league champion Wareham Gatemen. After joining the Gatemen in July, West made four appearances, including two starts, competing to a 1.10 ERA in 16.1 innings. He allowed just two runs off eight hits and six walks, striking out 15 and holding opponents to a .143 average.
UP NEXT
- Pitt returns to ACC play this weekend, traveling to Virginia for a three-game slate in Charlottesville.
#H2P | Twitter | Instagram
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