HOLLY SPRINGS, N.C. – A 10-run fifth inning was all Purdue Baseball needed Sunday afternoon, breaking a 1-1 tie to run-rule the George Mason Patriots in seven innings and improve to 6-2 through the first two weeks of the 2024 campaign.
The Boilermaker bats were on fire all series long. Purdue finished the weekend with 39 runs from 47 hits, collecting three victories during the four-game set. The 10-run inning was the program's first since recording 13 runs in the fourth inning against Akron a season ago, also at Ting Park in Holly Springs, North Carolina.
Connor Caskenette went 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBI, while Luke Gaffney produced another multi-hit, multi-RBI game by driving in Purdue's first two runs and sparking the big fifth inning. Camden Gasser reached base all four times he stepped to the dish, smacking a single in his first plate appearance and drawing three walks. The Purdue shortstop scored a team-high three runs in the win. Off the bench, Jo Stevens belted a two-run blast for his first home run of the season.
After a difficult first inning, Luke Wagner (1-0) settled in and pitched five innings, allowing only one run on six hits to collect his first win of 2024. Aaron Suval's two scoreless frames sealed the deal and the run-rule victory.
The Purdue offense made George Mason starter Chad Gartland work throughout his time on the mound, recording four runs on six hits and six walks through four innings. As part of the monster fifth frame, the Boilermakers delivered seven runs on six hits off reliever Owen Stewart.
Something they did the entire series, the Patriots scored in the opening inning. However, Wagner prevented the big inning by getting out of a bases-loaded jam. Falling behind 3-0 against Connor Dykstra, the senior worked the count full with back-to-back strikes before forcing the George Mason catcher into a 6-4-3 double play to end the frame and limit the damage to a single run.
Leading off the bottom of the third, a walk by Gasser and a single by Caskenette put runners on the corners for Gaffney. Continuing to swing a hot bat, the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week drove the first pitch he saw through the left side of the infield, plating Gasser to tie the game at 1-1.
The game remained tied until the Boilermakers exploded in the bottom of the fifth. Just like the third, Gasser and Caskenette started it off with a walk and a single. Once again, Gaffney delivered with an RBI double to give Purdue its first lead of the game. The Boilermakers were just getting started. Three straight singles by Logan Sutter, Keenan Taylor and Keenan Spence led to four more runs across the dish. Batting for the second time in the inning, Caskenette smashed a 2-RBI double for his third hit of the contest. Coming off the bench to replace Gaffney, who was ejected from the game alongside George Mason's Gartland after the two exchanged words on his double, Stevens went opposite field and cleared the tall, right field wall for a two-run homer that gave the Purdue the double-digit inning and 10-run advantage.
Following the lengthy inning at the plate, Suval came out of the bullpen and put up a pair of zeros to end the game after seven frames.
Next weekend, the Boilermakers return to North Carolina for three games in the Keith LeClair Classic. Purdue faces host East Carolina (March 1) before battling Southeastern Louisiana (March 2) and Cal State Fullerton (March 3) to close out the weekend.
The Boilermaker bats were on fire all series long. Purdue finished the weekend with 39 runs from 47 hits, collecting three victories during the four-game set. The 10-run inning was the program's first since recording 13 runs in the fourth inning against Akron a season ago, also at Ting Park in Holly Springs, North Carolina.
Connor Caskenette went 3-for-4 with two runs and two RBI, while Luke Gaffney produced another multi-hit, multi-RBI game by driving in Purdue's first two runs and sparking the big fifth inning. Camden Gasser reached base all four times he stepped to the dish, smacking a single in his first plate appearance and drawing three walks. The Purdue shortstop scored a team-high three runs in the win. Off the bench, Jo Stevens belted a two-run blast for his first home run of the season.
After a difficult first inning, Luke Wagner (1-0) settled in and pitched five innings, allowing only one run on six hits to collect his first win of 2024. Aaron Suval's two scoreless frames sealed the deal and the run-rule victory.
The Purdue offense made George Mason starter Chad Gartland work throughout his time on the mound, recording four runs on six hits and six walks through four innings. As part of the monster fifth frame, the Boilermakers delivered seven runs on six hits off reliever Owen Stewart.
Something they did the entire series, the Patriots scored in the opening inning. However, Wagner prevented the big inning by getting out of a bases-loaded jam. Falling behind 3-0 against Connor Dykstra, the senior worked the count full with back-to-back strikes before forcing the George Mason catcher into a 6-4-3 double play to end the frame and limit the damage to a single run.
Leading off the bottom of the third, a walk by Gasser and a single by Caskenette put runners on the corners for Gaffney. Continuing to swing a hot bat, the reigning Big Ten Freshman of the Week drove the first pitch he saw through the left side of the infield, plating Gasser to tie the game at 1-1.
The game remained tied until the Boilermakers exploded in the bottom of the fifth. Just like the third, Gasser and Caskenette started it off with a walk and a single. Once again, Gaffney delivered with an RBI double to give Purdue its first lead of the game. The Boilermakers were just getting started. Three straight singles by Logan Sutter, Keenan Taylor and Keenan Spence led to four more runs across the dish. Batting for the second time in the inning, Caskenette smashed a 2-RBI double for his third hit of the contest. Coming off the bench to replace Gaffney, who was ejected from the game alongside George Mason's Gartland after the two exchanged words on his double, Stevens went opposite field and cleared the tall, right field wall for a two-run homer that gave the Purdue the double-digit inning and 10-run advantage.
Following the lengthy inning at the plate, Suval came out of the bullpen and put up a pair of zeros to end the game after seven frames.
Next weekend, the Boilermakers return to North Carolina for three games in the Keith LeClair Classic. Purdue faces host East Carolina (March 1) before battling Southeastern Louisiana (March 2) and Cal State Fullerton (March 3) to close out the weekend.