Friday, March 30
Pittsburgh, Pa.
3 PM
Pitt
vs
Virginia
Pitt to Face Virginia in Pivotal ACC Series
3/29/2018 3:53:00 PM | Baseball
Panthers, Cavaliers Set for Three-Game Stretch at Cost Field
PITTSBURGH – The University of Pittsburgh baseball team continues its ACC homestand, welcoming Coastal Division rival Virginia for a three-game tilt at Charles L. Cost Field.
The Panthers and Cavaliers will get the weekend started at 3 p.m. on Friday, with game two set for 3 p.m. Saturday and the finale at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
HOW TO FOLLOW
The Panthers and Cavaliers will get the weekend started at 3 p.m. on Friday, with game two set for 3 p.m. Saturday and the finale at 1 p.m. on Sunday.
HOW TO FOLLOW
- Live stats for all three games are available here.
- All three games can be seen live on the ACC Network Extra via WatchESPN and the WatchESPN app.
- Fans can also follow @Pitt_BASE on Twitter and Instagram.
- Tickets can be purchased here.
- Friday
- The first 200 fans receive a Pitt baseball schedule magnet
- Student Organization Contest: the groups with the top three attendance will earn money for their group
- Saturday
- Egg Hunt with Pitt softball: 3,000 eggs filled with candy and Pitt prizes; free for kids 10 and under
- Pitt (12-9, 2-7 ACC) continues its ACC homestand, welcoming national powerhouse Virginia to Charles L. Cost Field for a crucial three-game tilt. The Panthers saw their third consecutive mid-week game canceled Tuesday due to inclement weather.
- Pitt enters the game after dropping an ACC series with No. 19 Duke, 2-1, at Charles L. Cost Field over the weekend. The Panthers were downed by the Blue Devils 12-6 in the opener, bouncing back for a resounding 8-7 victory in game two. In the rubber match, Duke scored a wild run in the ninth inning to walk away with a 6-5 victory and the series.
- Liam Sabino has led the Panther offense all season, hitting at a .368 clip with eight doubles, six homers and 18 RBI. He's tallied a .711 slug percentage and a .485 on base mark and is a perfect 12-of-12 in stolen base attempts. David Yanni (.304) is also hitting above the .300 mark and leads the team with 20 RBI.
- Righty RJ Freure will earn the first start of his career on Friday, taking the hill after a season and a half of stellar relief work. Freure enters the game with a record of 2-1 and a 3.75 ERA. He's allowed 10 earned runs off 17 hits and 11 walks in 24.0 innings, fanning a team-best 40 batters. Redshirt senior Matt Pidich will continue to hold down the Saturday spot, entering the weekend with a 3.12 ERA and a record of 3-1. He's surrendered 12 earned runs off 32 hits and seven walks in 34.2 innings, whiffing 37 batters. Sunday's starter is TBD.
- Virginia (14-11, 3-6 ACC) has struggled of late, falling out of the national rankings in recent weeks. The Cavaliers split a pair of mid-week games this week, taking a 6-0 victory over Longwood on Tuesday before falling to VCU 11-3 on Wednesday. In the Cavaliers' last ACC outing, they were swept by Miami in Coral Gables, Fla. Virginia's three ACC wins came in a 2-1 series win over Boston College and a Saturday afternoon shutout of nationally-ranked Duke.
- Andy Weber has been the fire of the Virginia offense, hitting at a .356 clip with six doubles, one triple and two homers in 25 games. He leads the team with 19 RBI and owns a slug percentage of .495 and an on base mark of .420. Weber is the only Cavalier hitting at or above the .300 mark as Nate Eikhoff, who also boasts 19 RBI, follows with a .279 average.
- On the mound, righty Derek Casey is set to get the ball in game one, bringing in a record of 2-2 with a 3.83 ERA. Casey has allowed 17 earned runs off 47 hits and nine walks in 40.0 innings, fanning a team-best 54. Southpaw Daniel Lynch will get the call in game two, owning a record of 2-3 with a 3.18 ERA. He's surrendered 14 earned runs off 35 hits and 10 walks, whiffing 46 in 39.2 innings. Sunday's starter is TBD.
- Virginia holds a 15-3 record over the Panthers all-time in a series dating back to the 1940 season. Virginia is 10-2 in ACC play and has won eight straight. Pitt's last victory over the Cavaliers came on March 7, 2015 as the Panthers down then No. 1 Virginia as the Cavaliers would go on to win the College World Series that season.
- Last season, the Panthers were swept by the Cavaliers in Charlottesville, Va.
- Liam Sabino brings in Pitt's longest hit streak, dating back five games. Alex Amos sits at three, while David Yanni and Ron Washington Jr. have both tallied at least one hit in two straight.
- Yanni's 31-game reached base streak, which dates back to the 2016 season, is the team's longest. Sabino sits at five, while Cole MacLaren, Amos and Nico Popa are at three.
- The Panthers have been a solid defensive force this season, boasting the third best fielding percentage in the ACC. Pitt owns a .977 mark, tallying a league-low 17 errors with 549 putouts and 187 assists.
- In conference play, the Panthers have put up the top defensive numbers in the ACC, owning a .987 percentage. In ACC action, Pitt has committed just four errors, a league-best, while tallying 228 putouts and 79 assists.
- Since joining the Pitt offense after sitting out the entirety of the 2017 season due to NCAA transfer rules, redshirt junior Liam Sabino has been a force to be reckoned with for the Panthers. Sabino is hitting at a .368 clip, leading the team with eight doubles and six homers as well as 18 RBI, behind only David Yanni (20). Sabino owns a .711 slugging percentage, which currently ranks 24th in the nation and second in the ACC.
- Sabino is also a perfect 12-of-12 in stolen bases on the season, swiping 0.57 per game, a mark that ranks 24th in the NCAA.
- Since the start of ACC play, Ron Washington Jr. has been one of Pitt's top hitters in league action.
- The corner infielder/designated hitter is hitting at a .346 clip in ACC action, second only to Liam Sabino (.355), tallying nine hits, two doubles and one homer for four RBI and a .538 slugging mark.
- Frank Maldonado has made his at bats count this season, quickly tallying his way to 12 RBI on the season, the third best mark on the squad.
- Maldonado owns a .364 (8-22) mark with runners in scoring position, boasting a .800 (8-10) percentage with a runner on third and less than two outs, both of which pace the starting group.
- Fan nominations are now open for the Golden Spikes Award, annually awarded to the top NCAA Division 1 baseball player. The Panthers are making a push for redshirt junior Liam Sabino for consideration, as the Vanderbilt transfer has been dominant since returning to the lineup.
- On the season, Sabino is at a .368 average to lead the team, boasting a stellar .711 slugging percentage. He's tallied eight doubles and six homers, both tops on the squad, adding 18 RBI and a 12-of-12 mark in stolen bases. His average is seventh best in the league, while his slugging percentage sits at third and his on base mark ranks seventh.
- Fans can cast their vote for Sabino at USABaseball.com/golden-spikes-award.
- It will be a busy week for the Panthers, as back-to-back mid-week outings with Youngstown State kick things off. The Panthers will head to Youngstown, Ohio on Tuesday for a 6 p.m. first pitch before returning to Pittsburgh to face off with the Penguins in a makeup game at 3 p.m.
- Pitt returns to ACC play the following weekend, heading to Boston College for three games in Chestnut Hill, Mass. with the Eagles. Play will get underway at 4 p.m. on Friday, with Saturday's game set for 2 p.m. and Sunday's finale at 1 p.m.
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