IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Hawkeyes scored five times in an extended third-inning rally and Iowa ace Adam Mazur kept the visitors off the scoreboard until the top of the ninth in a 5-2 victory vs. Purdue baseball Friday in the opener of the weekend series.
Mazur (6-2) came up one out shy of pitching his second straight complete-game shutout. Evan Albrecht's leadoff double in the ninth help set the stage for Troy Viola's two-out, two-run single that chased Mazur. Viola extended his on-base streak to 21 consecutive games with his base hit up the middle.
The second time through the Iowa lineup proved to be the key stretch in the game. The Hawkeyes (27-14, 11-5 B1G) recorded five of their 10 hits in the third inning as seven consecutive batters had a productive plate appearance during the five-run rally. With two runs already on the board and the bases still loaded, CJ Backer induced a ground ball to shortstop. Second baseman Paul Toetz was unable to make a quick transfer from his glove to throwing hand on the turn, allowing Brendan Sher to beat the throw to first to stay out of the inning-ending double play. Ben Wilmes followed with a two-run single. That sequence turned a potential two-run inning into a five-run frame.
Cam Thompson and Curtis Washington Jr. extended their lengthy on-base streaks with singles vs. Mazur. Thompson singled to open the seventh inning, ending Mazur's streak of 11 consecutive batters retired while extending his streak to 40 consecutive games. Washington singled with one out in the third inning, extending his streak to 28 consecutive games.
Thompson's streak is believed to be the fourth longest active streak in the country. It's also just the third 40-game streak by a Boilermaker in the last 20 years.
Mazur did not record his first strikeout until the second out of the sixth inning. The first 19 Boilermakers to bat all put the ball in play. Mazur finished the day with three strikeouts and did not issue a free pass, throwing 96 pitches.
CJ Valdez singled and walked as the only Boilermaker to reach base safely twice against Mazur.
Ricky Castro pitched well in relief, working 3 1/3 innings of two-hit ball, highlighted by a 1-2-3 seventh inning vs. Iowa's 3-4-5 hitters. He also came back from a 3-0 count to strand inherited runners on second and third in the fifth inning.
Purdue (25-15, 6-8 B1G) lost on a Friday for just the third time in 10 games this season.
Game 2 of the series is set for Saturday at noon ET and will be televised live by the Big Ten Network.
Mazur (6-2) came up one out shy of pitching his second straight complete-game shutout. Evan Albrecht's leadoff double in the ninth help set the stage for Troy Viola's two-out, two-run single that chased Mazur. Viola extended his on-base streak to 21 consecutive games with his base hit up the middle.
The second time through the Iowa lineup proved to be the key stretch in the game. The Hawkeyes (27-14, 11-5 B1G) recorded five of their 10 hits in the third inning as seven consecutive batters had a productive plate appearance during the five-run rally. With two runs already on the board and the bases still loaded, CJ Backer induced a ground ball to shortstop. Second baseman Paul Toetz was unable to make a quick transfer from his glove to throwing hand on the turn, allowing Brendan Sher to beat the throw to first to stay out of the inning-ending double play. Ben Wilmes followed with a two-run single. That sequence turned a potential two-run inning into a five-run frame.
Cam Thompson and Curtis Washington Jr. extended their lengthy on-base streaks with singles vs. Mazur. Thompson singled to open the seventh inning, ending Mazur's streak of 11 consecutive batters retired while extending his streak to 40 consecutive games. Washington singled with one out in the third inning, extending his streak to 28 consecutive games.
Thompson's streak is believed to be the fourth longest active streak in the country. It's also just the third 40-game streak by a Boilermaker in the last 20 years.
Mazur did not record his first strikeout until the second out of the sixth inning. The first 19 Boilermakers to bat all put the ball in play. Mazur finished the day with three strikeouts and did not issue a free pass, throwing 96 pitches.
CJ Valdez singled and walked as the only Boilermaker to reach base safely twice against Mazur.
Ricky Castro pitched well in relief, working 3 1/3 innings of two-hit ball, highlighted by a 1-2-3 seventh inning vs. Iowa's 3-4-5 hitters. He also came back from a 3-0 count to strand inherited runners on second and third in the fifth inning.
Purdue (25-15, 6-8 B1G) lost on a Friday for just the third time in 10 games this season.
Game 2 of the series is set for Saturday at noon ET and will be televised live by the Big Ten Network.