Box Score: PDF / XML /// Series Stats
MARION, N.C. – Ryan Beard worked 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball in his finest performance as a Boilermaker and Trent Johnson struck out the side with the tying run at third base to close out the game, leading Purdue baseball to a 3-2 rubber game win vs. NJIT on Sunday.
The Boilermakers (3-10) strung together four singles over five at-bats in the eighth inning, scoring twice to break a 1-1 tie. Skyler Hunter and Cole McKenzie scored on the RBI singles from Zac Fascia and Johnny Sage.
Matt Moore escaped a bases-loaded jam in the top of the eighth by retiring NJIT's top hitter, Julio Marcano, on a fly ball to the warning track in right field. Marcano had homered to left field for the second time in the series on the first pitch of previous inning, accounting for the only run Beard allowed in the longest outing of the season by a Purdue pitcher.
A leadoff single, walk and error helped the Highlanders (6-4-1) to load the bases with no outs in the ninth inning. A wild pitch by Johnson allowed a runner to score from third and put the tying run just 90 feet away. But Johnson trusted his slider and Fascia behind the plate for the remainder of the inning, leaning on the outpitch as he struck out Michael Anastasia, Brett Helmkamp and Nick Hussey in order to close out the game. He got both Helmkamp and Hussey to expand their zones with two strikes. The nine-pitch battle with Hussey featured a string of foul balls before the first baseman chased a full-count offering in the opposite batter's box. The sophomore earned his first career save.
SUNDAY NOTABLES
• The victorious team scored the decisive run in its last at-bat in all three games this weekend. The Boilermakers won consecutive one-run games against the same opponent for the first time since a March 2011 series at Tennessee-Martin.
• Purdue won its first rubber game since April 2017 at Ohio State, which also marked the last time it rallied to win a series after dropping the series opener.
• For only the fourth time this decade, the Boilermakers came back to win a three-game weekend series after losing the opener.
• Purdue pitchers recorded 37 strikeouts in 28 innings pitched in the series. They struck out the side four different times over the course of the weekend. Austin Peterson (9), Patrick J. Smith (7), Beard (6), Johnson (6) and Andrew Bohm (5) all finished with at least 5 Ks.
• Sage (4-for-10) hit safely in all three games of a series for the second weekend in a row. He's 10-for-30 with only one strikeout during his eight-game hit streak, which is Purdue's longest this season. Ben Nisle (4-for-11), Fascia (5-for-10) and Hunter (5-for-15) also hit safely in all three games.
Leadoff singles led to runs for Purdue in the sixth and eighth innings. Nisle opened the bottom of the sixth with a base hit, stole second and scored on a line drive sacrifice fly to left field from Sage.
Fascia delivered the go-ahead RBI in a win for the second time this season, with his third single of the day plating Hunter in the bottom of the eighth. Sage followed with another RBI single.
The Boilermakers are back in action Tuesday for their home and midweek opener vs. Milwaukee at Alexander Field. The March 12 date will mark the earliest home opener in program history. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. ET.
MARION, N.C. – Ryan Beard worked 7 2/3 innings of one-run ball in his finest performance as a Boilermaker and Trent Johnson struck out the side with the tying run at third base to close out the game, leading Purdue baseball to a 3-2 rubber game win vs. NJIT on Sunday.
The Boilermakers (3-10) strung together four singles over five at-bats in the eighth inning, scoring twice to break a 1-1 tie. Skyler Hunter and Cole McKenzie scored on the RBI singles from Zac Fascia and Johnny Sage.
Matt Moore escaped a bases-loaded jam in the top of the eighth by retiring NJIT's top hitter, Julio Marcano, on a fly ball to the warning track in right field. Marcano had homered to left field for the second time in the series on the first pitch of previous inning, accounting for the only run Beard allowed in the longest outing of the season by a Purdue pitcher.
A leadoff single, walk and error helped the Highlanders (6-4-1) to load the bases with no outs in the ninth inning. A wild pitch by Johnson allowed a runner to score from third and put the tying run just 90 feet away. But Johnson trusted his slider and Fascia behind the plate for the remainder of the inning, leaning on the outpitch as he struck out Michael Anastasia, Brett Helmkamp and Nick Hussey in order to close out the game. He got both Helmkamp and Hussey to expand their zones with two strikes. The nine-pitch battle with Hussey featured a string of foul balls before the first baseman chased a full-count offering in the opposite batter's box. The sophomore earned his first career save.
SUNDAY NOTABLES
• The victorious team scored the decisive run in its last at-bat in all three games this weekend. The Boilermakers won consecutive one-run games against the same opponent for the first time since a March 2011 series at Tennessee-Martin.
• Purdue won its first rubber game since April 2017 at Ohio State, which also marked the last time it rallied to win a series after dropping the series opener.
• For only the fourth time this decade, the Boilermakers came back to win a three-game weekend series after losing the opener.
• Purdue pitchers recorded 37 strikeouts in 28 innings pitched in the series. They struck out the side four different times over the course of the weekend. Austin Peterson (9), Patrick J. Smith (7), Beard (6), Johnson (6) and Andrew Bohm (5) all finished with at least 5 Ks.
• Sage (4-for-10) hit safely in all three games of a series for the second weekend in a row. He's 10-for-30 with only one strikeout during his eight-game hit streak, which is Purdue's longest this season. Ben Nisle (4-for-11), Fascia (5-for-10) and Hunter (5-for-15) also hit safely in all three games.
Beard induced a pair of ground ball plays vs. the top half of the NJIT lineup and 11 ground ball outs total. The left-hander also picked off a runner at first base, allowing him to face only three batters in five consecutive innings. He faced 14 consecutive batters without surrendering a hit from the first through sixth innings, retiring all but one hitter during that stretch.Coach @Waz4412 enjoyed watching Ryan Beard command the fastball in Sunday's win. "Our players are giving all they've got. We love those guys & they're absolutely grinding for us. It shows when they're coming from behind & winning ballgames." pic.twitter.com/hpiteN5ey3
— Purdue Baseball (@PurdueBaseball) March 10, 2019
Leadoff singles led to runs for Purdue in the sixth and eighth innings. Nisle opened the bottom of the sixth with a base hit, stole second and scored on a line drive sacrifice fly to left field from Sage.
Fascia delivered the go-ahead RBI in a win for the second time this season, with his third single of the day plating Hunter in the bottom of the eighth. Sage followed with another RBI single.
The Boilermakers are back in action Tuesday for their home and midweek opener vs. Milwaukee at Alexander Field. The March 12 date will mark the earliest home opener in program history. First pitch is set for 4 p.m. ET.