Friday, April 12
Bloomington, Ind.
6:00 PM
Indiana University
vs
Penn State
Baseball Central: Penn State
4/11/2024 10:00:00 AM | Baseball
BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – After picking up three top-35 RPI wins last week, including a series victory at Maryland, the Indiana Baseball team (18-15, 3-3 B1G) returns home with three opportunities at Bart Kaufman Field against Big Ten foe Penn State. The Hoosiers' Tuesday game against Ball State was canceled, allowing its pitching staff to rest ahead of the crucial conference weekend.
IU received an offensive explosion (51 runs in four games) and held opponents to seven-or-fewer runs in all four games last week. Sophomore shortstop Tyler Cerny (Big Ten Player of the Week) and redshirt freshman Joey Brenczewski (Big Ten Freshman of the Week) were instrumental in helping the Hoosiers get back on track.
The Hoosiers are two wins away from 200 all-time victories at Bart Kaufman Field (opened in 2013). IU could accomplish that this week as it attempts to keep stacking wins towards a potential at-large bid. The Big Ten race is also wide open with Nebraska (5-1) and Illinois (7-2) leading a long list of contenders so far.
Friday's contest against Penn State will be the first in Bloomington since the COVID-19 season in 2021. It will be the first with fans since the 2019 season, Jeff Mercer's first at the helm of the Hoosiers. IU is 8-2 in its past 10 contests with the Nittany Lions.
Gameday Info
vs. Penn State (Friday, April 12th – 6:00 PM)
Live Video: t.ly/_fMBQ
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: t.ly/DSDfX
vs. Penn State (Saturday, April 13th – 2:00 PM)
Live Video: t.ly/_fMBQ
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: t.ly/DSDfX
vs. Penn State (Sunday, April 14th – 1:00 PM)
Live Video: t.ly/_fMBQ
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: t.ly/DSDfX
Probable Starters
Indiana vs. Penn State
• Friday – Ty Bothwell, LHP (IU) vs. Travis Luensmann, RHP (PSU)
• Saturday – Connor Foley, RHP (IU) vs. Jaden Henline, RHP (PSU)
• Sunday – TBD (IU) vs. Frankie Sanchez (PSU)
Player and Stat Trends
Closing in on 200
• Josh Pyne (188) is closing on 200 hits through his time in Bloomington. He just needs 12 more to join the club. 23 players in program history, which dates back to the 1890's, have recorded 200-career hits. Only nine players have ever reached 200 hits in their first three years on campus.
200 of His Own
• Ty Bothwell is also searching for 200 … strikeouts. He is 11 away from becoming the 10th member of the 200-strikeout club at IU. He is currently second on the team with 40 punchies, behind only Connor Foley's 64.
Racking Up Hits
• Tyler Cerny (50) is one of just two players, along with Rutgers' Josh Kuroda-Grauer, in the Big Ten with 50 hits this season (as of Monday). The only player in program with 100+ hits in a season was Alex Smith (1985). Phillip Glasser was close with 95 in 2023.
Notable
Big Week Gets IU Back on Track
• Heading into the month of April, IU needed anything to go its way. It got that and more with three top-35 RPI wins including a win over top-20 RPI team Indiana State and a series victory over Maryland.
• That helped the Hoosiers climb into the top-60 of the RPI (56) and back into the Big Ten race, just two games off the leaders Nebraska. The Hoosiers still have seven home games remaining in April including three this week.
Cerny Heating Up
• Tyler Cerny went on a tear this week, hitting .450 across four games enroute to Big Ten Player of the Week honors. He had six-straight multi-hit games across the past two weeks and hit a game-tying grand slam against Indiana State
• On the week, he had nine hits, 11 runs scored, six RBIs, three doubles and one home run. He didn't make a single error in the field and hit cleanup in the absence of slugger Brock Tibbitts. Cerny is among the top-10 in multiple Big Ten categories including hits (2nd), runs scored (3rd), RBIs (2nd) and doubles (2nd).
The Path Ahead
• The journey to the NCAA and Big Ten Tournament is straight forward: get hot in the month of April. IU got back on track and now needs to continue to play well over the final six weeks of the regular season to put itself in a prime spot for an at-large bid.
• With a more settled rotation and an offense that's starting to figure it out, IU will look to start stacking wins with important Big Ten series looming over the next few weeks.
Stepping Up
• Without the services of start catcher/first baseman Brock Tibbitts and sophomore AJ Shepard, IU is stretched thin at those two positions. Redshirt freshman Joey Brenczewski (1B) and redshirt junior Jake Stadler (C) have stepped up massively to fill the void. Their offensive production has been great and have both settled in nice defensively.
Foley's Big Year
• No one's draft stock is rising more than the draft-eligible sophomore from Jasper. Foley, the Big Ten leader in strikeouts, has begun his conference campaign with 13 scoreless innings, three hits allowed and 20 punchouts. He has been a force on Saturday's, IU is 7-1 in his starts, and continues to make a case for All-Conference and All-American honors.
Play the Kids
• No one has been more known to play his talented freshmen than Jeff Mercer. Since he's arrived to Bloomington in 2019, nine different players have earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors. Jasen Oliver and Joey Brenczewski have done so in back-to-back weeks and Andrew Wiggins has become a talented option at DH for the Hoosiers.
Scouting the Opponent
Penn State (17-12, 4-5 B1G)
• Winners of four straight, first-year head coach Mike Gambino and Penn State arrive in Bloomington boasting one of the most talented offenses in the country. Gambino was previously the head coach at Boston College and coached IU junior reliever Julian Tonghini for two years.
• J.T. Marr leads the conference with a .421 batting average and supplements that with 27 runs, four home runs and 30 RBIs. Six everyday starters bat above .300 including Bobby Marsh (.380) and Adam Cecere (.347).
• Much like IU, Penn State's pitching has been a sore spot at time. Its staff boasts a collective 6.42 earned run average. Both teams are top four in the Big Ten in batting average but are bottom five in both earned run average and team fielding percentage.
• IU and Penn State both played Illinois already this year. The Hoosiers salvaged the middle game of the series but Penn State was swept, giving up 43 runs in three contests.
Inside the Series
Indiana vs. Penn State
• The all-time series between the two teams is relatively even with IU holding a 47-43 edge in 90 total contests. However, the recent streak has favored the Hoosiers, winning 8 of the past 10 matchups.
• IU is 8-2 during the Jeff Mercer era against Penn State but he was unavailable to coach in the four-game series in 2021 due to a positive COVID-19 test.
• The Hoosiers won the series in Happy Valley last year, winning the last two games of the series by a combined scored of 26-15.
IU received an offensive explosion (51 runs in four games) and held opponents to seven-or-fewer runs in all four games last week. Sophomore shortstop Tyler Cerny (Big Ten Player of the Week) and redshirt freshman Joey Brenczewski (Big Ten Freshman of the Week) were instrumental in helping the Hoosiers get back on track.
The Hoosiers are two wins away from 200 all-time victories at Bart Kaufman Field (opened in 2013). IU could accomplish that this week as it attempts to keep stacking wins towards a potential at-large bid. The Big Ten race is also wide open with Nebraska (5-1) and Illinois (7-2) leading a long list of contenders so far.
Friday's contest against Penn State will be the first in Bloomington since the COVID-19 season in 2021. It will be the first with fans since the 2019 season, Jeff Mercer's first at the helm of the Hoosiers. IU is 8-2 in its past 10 contests with the Nittany Lions.
Gameday Info
vs. Penn State (Friday, April 12th – 6:00 PM)
Live Video: t.ly/_fMBQ
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: t.ly/DSDfX
vs. Penn State (Saturday, April 13th – 2:00 PM)
Live Video: t.ly/_fMBQ
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: t.ly/DSDfX
vs. Penn State (Sunday, April 14th – 1:00 PM)
Live Video: t.ly/_fMBQ
Live Audio: bit.ly/IUAudio
Live Stats: t.ly/DSDfX
Probable Starters
Indiana vs. Penn State
• Friday – Ty Bothwell, LHP (IU) vs. Travis Luensmann, RHP (PSU)
• Saturday – Connor Foley, RHP (IU) vs. Jaden Henline, RHP (PSU)
• Sunday – TBD (IU) vs. Frankie Sanchez (PSU)
Player and Stat Trends
Closing in on 200
• Josh Pyne (188) is closing on 200 hits through his time in Bloomington. He just needs 12 more to join the club. 23 players in program history, which dates back to the 1890's, have recorded 200-career hits. Only nine players have ever reached 200 hits in their first three years on campus.
200 of His Own
• Ty Bothwell is also searching for 200 … strikeouts. He is 11 away from becoming the 10th member of the 200-strikeout club at IU. He is currently second on the team with 40 punchies, behind only Connor Foley's 64.
Racking Up Hits
• Tyler Cerny (50) is one of just two players, along with Rutgers' Josh Kuroda-Grauer, in the Big Ten with 50 hits this season (as of Monday). The only player in program with 100+ hits in a season was Alex Smith (1985). Phillip Glasser was close with 95 in 2023.
Notable
Big Week Gets IU Back on Track
• Heading into the month of April, IU needed anything to go its way. It got that and more with three top-35 RPI wins including a win over top-20 RPI team Indiana State and a series victory over Maryland.
• That helped the Hoosiers climb into the top-60 of the RPI (56) and back into the Big Ten race, just two games off the leaders Nebraska. The Hoosiers still have seven home games remaining in April including three this week.
Cerny Heating Up
• Tyler Cerny went on a tear this week, hitting .450 across four games enroute to Big Ten Player of the Week honors. He had six-straight multi-hit games across the past two weeks and hit a game-tying grand slam against Indiana State
• On the week, he had nine hits, 11 runs scored, six RBIs, three doubles and one home run. He didn't make a single error in the field and hit cleanup in the absence of slugger Brock Tibbitts. Cerny is among the top-10 in multiple Big Ten categories including hits (2nd), runs scored (3rd), RBIs (2nd) and doubles (2nd).
The Path Ahead
• The journey to the NCAA and Big Ten Tournament is straight forward: get hot in the month of April. IU got back on track and now needs to continue to play well over the final six weeks of the regular season to put itself in a prime spot for an at-large bid.
• With a more settled rotation and an offense that's starting to figure it out, IU will look to start stacking wins with important Big Ten series looming over the next few weeks.
Stepping Up
• Without the services of start catcher/first baseman Brock Tibbitts and sophomore AJ Shepard, IU is stretched thin at those two positions. Redshirt freshman Joey Brenczewski (1B) and redshirt junior Jake Stadler (C) have stepped up massively to fill the void. Their offensive production has been great and have both settled in nice defensively.
Foley's Big Year
• No one's draft stock is rising more than the draft-eligible sophomore from Jasper. Foley, the Big Ten leader in strikeouts, has begun his conference campaign with 13 scoreless innings, three hits allowed and 20 punchouts. He has been a force on Saturday's, IU is 7-1 in his starts, and continues to make a case for All-Conference and All-American honors.
Play the Kids
• No one has been more known to play his talented freshmen than Jeff Mercer. Since he's arrived to Bloomington in 2019, nine different players have earned Big Ten Freshman of the Week honors. Jasen Oliver and Joey Brenczewski have done so in back-to-back weeks and Andrew Wiggins has become a talented option at DH for the Hoosiers.
Scouting the Opponent
Penn State (17-12, 4-5 B1G)
• Winners of four straight, first-year head coach Mike Gambino and Penn State arrive in Bloomington boasting one of the most talented offenses in the country. Gambino was previously the head coach at Boston College and coached IU junior reliever Julian Tonghini for two years.
• J.T. Marr leads the conference with a .421 batting average and supplements that with 27 runs, four home runs and 30 RBIs. Six everyday starters bat above .300 including Bobby Marsh (.380) and Adam Cecere (.347).
• Much like IU, Penn State's pitching has been a sore spot at time. Its staff boasts a collective 6.42 earned run average. Both teams are top four in the Big Ten in batting average but are bottom five in both earned run average and team fielding percentage.
• IU and Penn State both played Illinois already this year. The Hoosiers salvaged the middle game of the series but Penn State was swept, giving up 43 runs in three contests.
Inside the Series
Indiana vs. Penn State
• The all-time series between the two teams is relatively even with IU holding a 47-43 edge in 90 total contests. However, the recent streak has favored the Hoosiers, winning 8 of the past 10 matchups.
• IU is 8-2 during the Jeff Mercer era against Penn State but he was unavailable to coach in the four-game series in 2021 due to a positive COVID-19 test.
• The Hoosiers won the series in Happy Valley last year, winning the last two games of the series by a combined scored of 26-15.
Players Mentioned
LHP
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INF
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INF
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RHP
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IF
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INF
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C
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C
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C
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RHP
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OF
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