MINNEAPOLIS – Cory Brooks kept Minnesota off the scoreboard until the sixth inning and Mike Bolton Jr. scored four times as the Boilermakers' leadoff man, leading Purdue baseball to a 17-4 victory Saturday.
The Boilermakers (14-24) pounded out a season-high 19 hits and scored in eight of the nine innings, plating multiple runs in seven of those frames. Purdue was victorious for the third day in a row to clinch a series win, its first of the year in a traditional head-to-head matchup. With a win Sunday, the Boilermakers can post their second flawless 4-0 weekend of the season.
Brooks (3-3) retired the first 10 batters he faced and 15 of the first 16. He struck out six, one shy of his career high, and did not walk a batter over seven innings of four-hit ball. Brooks worked five 1-2-3 innings and put together his longest career outing without issuing a walk. The Golden Gophers (4-29) broke up the shutout bid with a home run to lead off the sixth inning.
Bolton reached base safely four times and came around to score all four times. He was 2-for-3 with a pair of hit by pitch and has now reached base safely at least twice in 13 of his last 15 starts. Bolton remained perfect for the season while stealing his 16th base of the season in the first inning. He also became the first Boilermaker to score four times in a game this year.
Cam Thompson connected for a long home run in the ninth inning, a three-run blast off the roof of the building past the left field wall.
Tyler Powers had six productive trips to the dish, finishing the day 3-for-3 with three singles, two walks and a sacrifice bunt.
Purdue's 2-3-4 hitters – Skyler Hunter, Ben Nisle and Miles Simington – all had two RBI. Hunter recorded hits from both sides of the plate, an RBI double into the left field corner in the sixth inning and an RBI infield hit the following frame. Nisle's two-out, two-run single extended his hit streak to 10 consecutive games, matching the longest streak of his career. Simington has five hits and six RBI in the series. He reached base safely three times Saturday and has been on base nine times in the series.
Ryan Howe singled and knocked in a run with a sac fly. He has registered 11 productive plate appearances in 14 trips to the dish in the series. Bolton has been on base nine times in the series. The Boilermakers had a season-high three sacrifice flies Saturday.
Jake Parr, Mason Gavre and Kyle LaPlante joined Bolton and Hunter with two hits. Gavre and LaPlante both went 2-for-2 to make the most of their opportunities late in the game.
With its three runs in the ninth inning Saturday, Purdue pushed its season total in the ninth to 41. That's a program high over the last 20 years. The Boilermakers have done it in just 38 games, batting in the ninth 34 times. The 2012 scored 39 ninth-inning runs while batting in the ninth 42 times.
Purdue has outscored the Gophers 38-12 in the series and has an opportunity to sweep a series in Minneapolis for the first time since taking both games of a two-game set in 1947.
The Boilermakers (14-24) pounded out a season-high 19 hits and scored in eight of the nine innings, plating multiple runs in seven of those frames. Purdue was victorious for the third day in a row to clinch a series win, its first of the year in a traditional head-to-head matchup. With a win Sunday, the Boilermakers can post their second flawless 4-0 weekend of the season.
Brooks (3-3) retired the first 10 batters he faced and 15 of the first 16. He struck out six, one shy of his career high, and did not walk a batter over seven innings of four-hit ball. Brooks worked five 1-2-3 innings and put together his longest career outing without issuing a walk. The Golden Gophers (4-29) broke up the shutout bid with a home run to lead off the sixth inning.
Bolton reached base safely four times and came around to score all four times. He was 2-for-3 with a pair of hit by pitch and has now reached base safely at least twice in 13 of his last 15 starts. Bolton remained perfect for the season while stealing his 16th base of the season in the first inning. He also became the first Boilermaker to score four times in a game this year.
Cam Thompson connected for a long home run in the ninth inning, a three-run blast off the roof of the building past the left field wall.
Tyler Powers had six productive trips to the dish, finishing the day 3-for-3 with three singles, two walks and a sacrifice bunt.
Purdue's 2-3-4 hitters – Skyler Hunter, Ben Nisle and Miles Simington – all had two RBI. Hunter recorded hits from both sides of the plate, an RBI double into the left field corner in the sixth inning and an RBI infield hit the following frame. Nisle's two-out, two-run single extended his hit streak to 10 consecutive games, matching the longest streak of his career. Simington has five hits and six RBI in the series. He reached base safely three times Saturday and has been on base nine times in the series.
Ryan Howe singled and knocked in a run with a sac fly. He has registered 11 productive plate appearances in 14 trips to the dish in the series. Bolton has been on base nine times in the series. The Boilermakers had a season-high three sacrifice flies Saturday.
Jake Parr, Mason Gavre and Kyle LaPlante joined Bolton and Hunter with two hits. Gavre and LaPlante both went 2-for-2 to make the most of their opportunities late in the game.
With its three runs in the ninth inning Saturday, Purdue pushed its season total in the ninth to 41. That's a program high over the last 20 years. The Boilermakers have done it in just 38 games, batting in the ninth 34 times. The 2012 scored 39 ninth-inning runs while batting in the ninth 42 times.
Purdue has outscored the Gophers 38-12 in the series and has an opportunity to sweep a series in Minneapolis for the first time since taking both games of a two-game set in 1947.