University of Pittsburgh Athletics
Panthers Open Long Week at Akron
3/23/2009 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 23, 2009
Complete Release in PDF Format 
PITTSBURGH - Fresh off its series win over Cincinnati, the University of Pittsburgh baseball team will open up action this week at Akron on Tuesday at 3 p.m. before returning to Trees Field for a Wednesday afternoon game against Youngstown State.
REMATCH WEEK
Fresh off its series win over Cincinnati in the opening weekend of Big East play, the University of Pittsburgh baseball team will play two midweek games before hosting Notre Dame March 27-29 at Trees Field. Pitt will travel to Akron on Tuesday, March 24th before hosting Youngstown State Wednesday, March 25th. The Panthers have defeated both the Zips and Penguins this season already, downing Akron 8-5 at the Papa John's Classic on March 8th in West Palm Beach, Fla. Pitt played the spoiler role against YSU, dropping the Penguins 7-6 on March 17th in YSU's home opener at Eastwood Field.
A LOOK BACK
The Panthers travel to Akron, Ohio Tuesday to play the Zips for the second time this season. The Panthers and Zips met earlier on March 8, during the Papa John's Classic in West Palm Beach, Fla., where the Panthers were able to grab their second win of the tournament by a score of 8-5. Chris Sedon went 4-for-5 from the plate with a game-high four RBI and two runs scored. Pitcher Corey Baker went seven innings, striking out six while only allowing three runs off three hits.
SERIES HISTORY
The Panthers will look to even the overall series between the two schools, where the Zips hold the lead, 19-18. Since 2002 the Panthers hold a 9-4 advantage over the Zips, however the games have been tight with the Panthers winning by an average score of 9-7.
SCOUTING THE ZIPS
The Zips were able to grab their first conference victory this past weekend during the second game of a three-game road set with Ball State by a score of 10-8. Junior Outfielder Brian Kordal went 3-for-5 with three RBI. Frank Turocy earned the win for the Zips allowing nine hits and six earned runs in six and two thirds innings of work. The first game was a 3-2 loss in which Akron senior Tom Farmer pitched a strong game, going eight innings allowing three runs on four hits while striking out seven. The series closed with the Cardinals taking a 5-1 game in which the Akron offense was non-existent.
YSU RECAP
The Panthers extended their winning streak to four games with a 7-6 win over the Youngstown State Penguins on Tuesday, March 17th. Pitt took an early 3-0 lead in the top half of the second inning when Matt Litzinger crushed a 2-2 pitch over the right-field wall.
The Panthers increased their lead to 7-0 with a four-run fourth inning. Ryan Dunford collected his second win of the season, taking a no-no into the fifth inning before giving up his first hit of the game. YSU tallied one in the fifth and remained hot in the sixth, putting up four runs to cut the lead to 7-5.
A solo home run from Eric Marzec brought the Penguins to within one in the seventh, but Pitt was able to hold on for the 7-6 win.
SERIES HISTORY
The Panthers hold a series lead of 11-6-1 with the Penguins, and are 11-2 since 1998 when Head Coach Joe Jordano began his career with the Panthers. Since then the Panthers have been able to manufacture an average of nine runs per game.
SCOUTING THE PENGUINS
The Penguins opened conference play last Friday with a three-game road series against in-state rival Wright State University. The Penguins were able to win the first game thanks to the strong pitching of junior Pitcher Aaron Swenson who pitched all nine innings, allowing 11 hits while recording seven strikeouts. The Penguins failed to continue their success by dropping the next two of the series. The first was a 5-4 loss in which Wright State scored in the bottom of the eighth to break a 4-4 tie. A one out bottom of the 10th triple to right field lost the final game 7-6 and series for the Penguins.
BIG EAST HONORS BAKER
Sophomore right-hander Corey Baker was named the Big East Conference Pitcher of the Week for the period ending March 23rd for his performance in the Panthers' 5-0 win over Cincinnati on Saturday, March 21.
Baker (3-0) picked up his team-leading third win of the season, throwing a complete-game six hitter. The New York City native struck out five Bearcat batters while walking just one.
