WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. – Logan Sutter connected for a go-ahead grand slam to open the scoring in an eight-run eighth inning as Purdue Baseball rallied for a 9-3 series-clinching victory vs. UIC on Saturday at Alexander Field.
March 16 at 10 a.m. Update: The series finale vs. UIC has been officially canceled. Due to RealFeel temperatures in West Lafayette not projected to hit the NCAA-required 28 degrees until 9 p.m., game 3 of the series will not resume. It's officially a cancellation after five innings were not completed. UIC led 4-0 in the bottom of the fourth. The game will not be made up. Fans with tickets for Sunday, which were not already used Saturday, can exchange the tickets for general admission seats to any future home game this season.
The nightcap of the doubleheader was suspended due to rain in the bottom of the fourth inning with UIC leading 4-0. The teams will attempt to finish the game Sunday at 1 p.m. Tickets for either Saturday or Sunday this weekend are valid for admission to Alexander on Sunday.
Jackson Bessette's home runs to left field in the first and eighth innings gave the Flames (3-15) a 3-1 lead entering the bottom of the eighth. Albert Choi's one-out walk ignited the rally and he later delivered a two-out RBI single to cap the scoring in the eight-run inning, which saw the Boilermakers (17-2) send 13 men to the plate.
Sutter hit Purdue's fourth grand slam of the season and his second as a Boilermaker. It marked the second Saturday in a row a Purdue player hit a go-ahead grand slam in a comeback win, with Aaron Manias delivering the game-changing swing last weekend in the seventh inning at Minnesota.
Sutter increased his RBI total to 33 with his team-leading sixth home run of the season. He became the fastest Boilermaker ever (by date on the calendar) to reach the 30-RBI mark, eclipsing the previous standard by six days.
Entering the at-bat, Sutter was hitless in his last 12 plate appearances dating back to March 9. However, he was robbed of a two-out RBI double when left fielder Luke Nowak made a nice running catch on the warning track to end the bottom of the seventh.
STREAKS EXTENDED
• Albert Choi – 19-game on-base (as a Boilermaker), 7-game hit
• Brandon Anderson – 18-game on-base
• Lukas Cook: 9-game hit
• Brandon Rogers – 6-game on-base
On the mound, Easton Storey (5+ IP, 2 R, 4 K), Gavin Beuter (2 IP, R, K, 2 Pickoffs) and Isaac Milburn (2 IP, 0 R, 2 K) teamed up for nine innings of three-run ball. Storey pitched the majority of his five innings from the stretch after giving up eight hits (seven singles), but he kept the visitors off the scoreboard after Bessette's first-inning home run.
Purdue threw out runners at third base and home plate to end the fourth and fifth innings, helping Storey's cause and staying within striking distance on a day in which the lineup produced just two hits through seven innings. Beuter also canceled out a pair of leadoff singles with pickoffs at first base in consecutive innings.
Keenan Spence threw the runner out at third base from right field, preventing UIC from having runners on the corners in the top of the fourth. Lukas Cook easily cut down a runner at the plate after the Flames got aggressive on a two-out infield single the following frame.
The Boilermakers squandered Manias' leadoff double in the seventh inning when it was still a one-run game. But the fourth time through the lineup proved fruitful. Choi's one-out walk kept his on-base streak alive at 19 consecutive games and Cook followed with a base hit to extend his hit streak to nine straight games. Brandon Anderson walked in front of Sutter, extending his on-base streak to 18 games in the process.
The bottom of the lineup kept the rally rolling. Houston Russell scored on a wild pitch, Brandon Rogers delivered an RBI single, Rogers and Breck Nowik teamed up for a successful double steal with runners on the corners, and Choi singled home Nowik.
Cook turned a game-ending 6-3 double play. He made his first start of the season at second base -- moving to shortstop for the final inning – and made a diving stop to take away a two-out base hit in the second inning. UIC likely would have had runners on the corners for the top of the lineup if not for the play.
Russell reached base safely in three of his four plate appearances. His opposite-field single and some quality first-to-third base running by Manias set the stage for quite possibly the longest sacrifice fly in the history of Alexander Field. Terrick Thompson-Allen made a nice leaping catch at the center field wall in front of the 408 (distance marker) on a ball hit by Spence.
Purdue's now 12-game homestand continues Tuesday with a $3 midweek matchup vs. Milwaukee. First pitch is set for 4 p.m.
March 16 at 10 a.m. Update: The series finale vs. UIC has been officially canceled. Due to RealFeel temperatures in West Lafayette not projected to hit the NCAA-required 28 degrees until 9 p.m., game 3 of the series will not resume. It's officially a cancellation after five innings were not completed. UIC led 4-0 in the bottom of the fourth. The game will not be made up. Fans with tickets for Sunday, which were not already used Saturday, can exchange the tickets for general admission seats to any future home game this season.
The nightcap of the doubleheader was suspended due to rain in the bottom of the fourth inning with UIC leading 4-0. The teams will attempt to finish the game Sunday at 1 p.m. Tickets for either Saturday or Sunday this weekend are valid for admission to Alexander on Sunday.
Jackson Bessette's home runs to left field in the first and eighth innings gave the Flames (3-15) a 3-1 lead entering the bottom of the eighth. Albert Choi's one-out walk ignited the rally and he later delivered a two-out RBI single to cap the scoring in the eight-run inning, which saw the Boilermakers (17-2) send 13 men to the plate.
Sutter hit Purdue's fourth grand slam of the season and his second as a Boilermaker. It marked the second Saturday in a row a Purdue player hit a go-ahead grand slam in a comeback win, with Aaron Manias delivering the game-changing swing last weekend in the seventh inning at Minnesota.
Sutter increased his RBI total to 33 with his team-leading sixth home run of the season. He became the fastest Boilermaker ever (by date on the calendar) to reach the 30-RBI mark, eclipsing the previous standard by six days.
Entering the at-bat, Sutter was hitless in his last 12 plate appearances dating back to March 9. However, he was robbed of a two-out RBI double when left fielder Luke Nowak made a nice running catch on the warning track to end the bottom of the seventh.
STREAKS EXTENDED
• Albert Choi – 19-game on-base (as a Boilermaker), 7-game hit
• Brandon Anderson – 18-game on-base
• Lukas Cook: 9-game hit
• Brandon Rogers – 6-game on-base
On the mound, Easton Storey (5+ IP, 2 R, 4 K), Gavin Beuter (2 IP, R, K, 2 Pickoffs) and Isaac Milburn (2 IP, 0 R, 2 K) teamed up for nine innings of three-run ball. Storey pitched the majority of his five innings from the stretch after giving up eight hits (seven singles), but he kept the visitors off the scoreboard after Bessette's first-inning home run.
Purdue threw out runners at third base and home plate to end the fourth and fifth innings, helping Storey's cause and staying within striking distance on a day in which the lineup produced just two hits through seven innings. Beuter also canceled out a pair of leadoff singles with pickoffs at first base in consecutive innings.
Keenan Spence threw the runner out at third base from right field, preventing UIC from having runners on the corners in the top of the fourth. Lukas Cook easily cut down a runner at the plate after the Flames got aggressive on a two-out infield single the following frame.
The Boilermakers squandered Manias' leadoff double in the seventh inning when it was still a one-run game. But the fourth time through the lineup proved fruitful. Choi's one-out walk kept his on-base streak alive at 19 consecutive games and Cook followed with a base hit to extend his hit streak to nine straight games. Brandon Anderson walked in front of Sutter, extending his on-base streak to 18 games in the process.
The bottom of the lineup kept the rally rolling. Houston Russell scored on a wild pitch, Brandon Rogers delivered an RBI single, Rogers and Breck Nowik teamed up for a successful double steal with runners on the corners, and Choi singled home Nowik.
Cook turned a game-ending 6-3 double play. He made his first start of the season at second base -- moving to shortstop for the final inning – and made a diving stop to take away a two-out base hit in the second inning. UIC likely would have had runners on the corners for the top of the lineup if not for the play.
Russell reached base safely in three of his four plate appearances. His opposite-field single and some quality first-to-third base running by Manias set the stage for quite possibly the longest sacrifice fly in the history of Alexander Field. Terrick Thompson-Allen made a nice leaping catch at the center field wall in front of the 408 (distance marker) on a ball hit by Spence.
Purdue's now 12-game homestand continues Tuesday with a $3 midweek matchup vs. Milwaukee. First pitch is set for 4 p.m.
| PURDUE GRAND SLAMS (Since Start of 2024 Season) | |||||
| Date | Boilermaker | Opponent | Location | Inning | Game Result |
| 3/15/2025 | Logan Sutter | UIC | Alexander Field | B-8th | W, 9-3 |
| 3/08/2025 | Aaron Manias | Minnesota | Minneapolis, Minn. | T-7th | W, 11-6 |
| 3/02/2025 | Breck Nowik | Akron | Holly Springs, N.C. | B-1st | W, 14-4 |
| 2/21/2025 | Brandon Anderson | Niagara | Holly Springs, N.C. | B-5th | W, 16-4 |
| 5/01/2024 | Logan Sutter | DePauw | Alexander Field | B-3rd | W, 15-0 |
| 4/20/2024 | Luke Gaffney | East Tennessee St. | Alexander Field | B-4th | W, 18-7 |
| 4/16/2024 | Connor Caskenette | Ball State | Alexander Field | B-7th | W, 13-3 |
| 2/18/2024 | Connor Caskenette | Stony Brook | Sugar Land, Texas | B-6th | W, 13-6 |
| FASTEST TO 30 RBI (Since 2001) | |||
| Season | Boilermaker | Date of 30th RBI | Season Total |
| 2025 | Logan Sutter | March 15 | 33 (as of March 15) |
| 2023 | Paul Toetz | March 21 | 53 |
| 2024 | Connor Caskenette | March 22 | 69 |
| 2024 | Luke Gaffney | March 24 | 64 |
| 2022 | Cam Thompson | March 25 | 56 |
| 2018 | Jacson McGowan | March 31 | 59 |