Baseball Readies for 2011 BIG EAST Championship
5/23/2011 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 23, 2011
Tournament Notes
PITTSBURGH—Pitt baseball begins its quest to win the BIG EAST Championship this Wednesday at 10 a.m. when it squares off against Louisville at Bright House Field in Clearwater, Fla.
This season, the Panthers (32-21, 16-11 BIG EAST) placed third in the regular season conference standings.
Kevan Smith, one of 11 seniors on the Pitt roster, led the conference in runs (56) while sharing the batting title. Smith batted .396, accumulated 78 hits and drove in 52 runs in 51 games played.
Fellow senior David Chester hit 14 home runs - tops among BIG EAST hitters - while complimenting his power with a .339 average. Chester, who finished the season with round-trippers in three of his last five games, will be the Panthers' representative in the conference home run derby. The contest will kick-off the championship, beginning Tuesday at 6 p.m.
On the mound, junior Matt Iannazzo looks to continue his season success. The Norwalk, Conn. native led the Panthers in wins (7), innings pitched (93.1), and strikeouts (58). The southpaw pitched four complete games this season and garnered the BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week award on May 16.
Senior Corey Baker and the freshmen tandem of Matt Wotherspoon and Ethan Mildren give Head Coach Joe Jordano a deep starting rotation. Sophomore Alex Caravella highlights a bullpen staff that contributed an 11-5 record.
In the opening contest, Pitt faces a sixth-seeded Louisville team that is 15-6 all-time in the conference championships.
The Cardinals (29-27, 14-13) look to find success at the tournament after finishing the 2010 season with 50 wins and a national seed in the NCAA Championships.
Louisville leads the all-time series, 7-6. Last year the Panthers took two of three games in Pittsburgh.
Pitt is 6-15 all-time in the BIG EAST Championships. The Panthers won their lone title in 1995.
Following the Louisville contest, the Panthers will play Thursday at either 10 a.m. or 1 p.m. against the winner/loser of the St John's/Cincinnati opening day matchup.
The Championship will be played on Sunday and will be nationally televised on ESPNU at noon. All games leading to the championship will be streamed live for free on the BIG EAST website.
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