UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. -- Penn State baseball returns to Big Ten play with a crucial three-game series at Minnesota opening Friday at 7:05 p.m. ET. The series will continue Saturday at 3:05 p.m. ET, and conclude Sunday at with a 2:05 p.m. ET game.COVERAGETVNoneRadioNoneInternetVideo: BTN PlusAudio: N/ATwitter: @PennStateBASEFacebook: PennState BaseballInstagram: @PennStateBASE
On the Mound:FRI., April 17 - 7:05 p.m. ET(M) RHP Ben Meyer (1-1, 3.31) vs. (PSU) LHP Nick Hedge (1-4, 4.84)
SAT., April 18 - 3:05 p.m. ET(M) RHP Tim Shannon (1-4, 7.05) vs. (PSU) LHP Taylor Lehman (1-3, 7.39)
SUN., April 19 - 2:05 p.m. ET(M) RHP Fred Manke (0-0, 4.50) vs. (PSU) RHP Nick Distasio (1-4, 3.78)
All-Time Series vs. Minnesota: Penn State and Minnesota have met a total of 52 times on the diamond in program history. The Golden Gophers hold the edge in the all-time series with a record of 40-25 against. Minnesota swept last season's series, recording shutouts in the first two games and outscoring PSU 18-1 for the weekend. The Lions have just one win in the last seven meetings. PSU is 13-25 all-time when playing at Minnesota.
Minnesota at a Glance: Minnesota is one game into a season-long 13-game homestand and has played just six home games so far. The Golden Gophers have not won any of their four Big Ten series so far, as they were swept by Maryland and took one each from Northwestern, Rutgers and No. 23 Nebraska. CF Dan Motl has a 15-game hitting streak.
Last Time Out: James Coates scored twice and drove in one run and RHP Jack Anderson pitched 3 2/3 innings to earn the save, as Penn State defeated West Virginia, 5-3 Tuesday evening in Monongalia County Ballpark. RHP Dakota Forsyth made his first start of the season, pitching four-plus innings and allowing just one run on three hits and two walks with two strikeouts. Coates (3-for-4) and left fielder Greg Guers 2-for-4 accounted for five of Penn State's eight hits in the game. Penn State scored eight runs in the first two innings in an 11-2 victory over Bucknell Wednesday night. RHP Tom Mullin (3-0) was solid in his first career start, allowing just an unearned run on four hits in a career-high five innings pitched.
Dominate the State: Penn State is 4-0 against in-state foes this season. Greg Guers was the hero in the first two, as he drove in the go-ahead runs in the eighth against Villanova, and the deciding runs at Pitt, tying it in the third with an RBI-double, and then singling with runners on the corners in the 12th. The Lions swept Bucknell in a two-games series, with RHP Tom Mullin earning the win in both, once in relief and once with the start.
On Deck: Penn State will travel to Kent State Tuesday, and then the Lions will then open their final home stand of the season (7 games) against No. 11 Illinois Friday, April 24.
Super Novak: Aaron Novak has been Penn State's top hitter, ranking fourth in the conference in batting (.362). He has two four hit games. At Charleston Southern (3/8), Novak became the fourth Nittany Lion to tally eight RBIs in a game (first since 1984), as he tallied two home runs and doubled as part of a 4-for-5 day at the plate. The totals were career highs, and his eight RBIs matched a team record. He also went 4-for-4 in the series opener with CCSU (3/27).
Streaking: Novak has tallied the longest hitting streaks on the team. From Mar. 27-Apr. 12, he tallied hits in 11-straight games, going 17-for-46 (.370) with three doubles and five RBIs, a .420 on-base percentage and .500 slugging percentage. From Feb. 14 (Game 2) at Elon to Mar. 11 at No. 7 South Carolina, Novak assembled a nine-game hitting streak, batting .548 (17-for-31) with three homers, three doubles and 10 RBIs. His on-base percentage was .611 and his slugging percentage was .935.
Powering Up: Penn State hit just four home runs in its first 22 games, but with four home runs from Greg Guers and another from Aaron Novak, PSU has totaled totaled five in April. The Lions only sent five out of the park last season. Guers homered twice in 2014 and was the only Nittany Lion to go deep in spacious Medlar Field, doing so once. His three homers at home are the only PSU homers in Medlar this season. The opposition has just one homer in Medlar, a grand slam from Indiana`s Craig Dedelow, but Penn State rallied from a 7-0 deficit in that game to win 13-7
Flipping the Script: Before midweek contests against West Virginia (4/14) and Bucknell (4/15), PSU had been outscored 56-12 in the first two innings. In those two games, the Lions outscored the opposition, 11-0.
For the season, Penn State still has a negative scoring margin each of the first three innings, but it's neutral in the fourth and positive in each inning after.f
Rookies on the Mound: Penn State has used nine first-year pitchers so far this season, and they have combined to account for just under half of the innings pitched this season. The Lion rotation includes two true freshmen: LHP Taylor Lehman and RHP Nick Distasio. Both are from head coach Rob Cooper's first recruiting class. Lehman was drafted in the 34th round of the MLB draft in June by the Florida Marlins, but did not sign. He stands at a towering 6-8.
Back of the Bullpen: Sal Biasi and Jack Anderson have emerged as Penn State's most reliable late-inning arms. Biasi leads with a 2.22 ERA, Anderson follows with a 2,93 ERA. Anderson leads the team with 18 appearances and three wins. He tallied his first save of the season against Bucknell (4/7) and his second in 3 2/3 innings against West Virginia. Biasi is off to a strong start in his young career, and earned the save in three consecutive games (4/25-29). He is second on the team with 13 appearances and his 23 strikeouts rank third on the team.
Turn It!: Led by the stellar middle infield duo of SS Jim Haley and 2B Taylor Skerpon, the Nittany Lions lead the nation with 1.28 double plays per game, turning a total of 41 They turned four in a 12-inning win at Pittsburgh (3/17).