Ohio State Enters Big Ten Tournament As Sixth Seed, Faces Penn State In First Game Wednesday – Ohio State Buckeyes
5/22/2007 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
May 22, 2007
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NO. 6 SEED OHIO STATE BUCKEYES
33-22, 15-15 Big Ten
at
BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
May 23-27, 2007
Ray Fisher Stadium (2,500)
Ann Arbor, Michigan
First Game: vs. No. 3 Seed Penn State
Wednesday, May 23, 3:35 p.m.
TOURNAMENT APPEARANCES (21)
1982, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990, 1991, 1992,
1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1998,1999, 2000,
2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007
TOURNAMENT CHAMPIONSHIPS (7)
1991, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2002, 2003, 2005
RADIO
AM 920 WMNI
OHIOSTATEBUCKEYES.COM
GameTracker and Streaming Audio
A Tony Kennedy sacrifice fly in the eighth inning snapped a 2-all tie and Ohio State held on for a 3-2 win over Penn State Sunday at Medlar Field in University Park, Pa., qualifying OSU for the Big Ten tournament Wednesday-Sunday at Ray Fisher Stadium in Ann Arbor, Mich.
The Buckeyes entered Sunday’s game needing a win to finish sixth in the Big Ten and qualify for the conference tournament. Sunday’s win gave OSU a 15-15 conference record, finishing a half game ahead of Michigan State (15-16) for the last conference tournament berth. Ohio State dropped the first three games of the series, 3-2 in 10 innings Friday, and 4-2 and 3-2 on Saturday before the win Sunday.
The Buckeyes will face third-seed Penn State for the fifth straight game on Wednesday at approximately 3:35 p.m. ET. If Ohio State wins Wednesday, they will face No. 1 seed Michigan at 7:05 p.m. Thursday. If OSU loses its first game it will play at 12:05 p.m. Thursday against the loser of the Iowa (No. 4 seed)-Illinois (5) game. The Buckeyes ended the regular season at 33-22 overall.
All OSU’s Big Ten Tournament games will be broadcast on radio on AM 920 WMNI. All the games will also have audio available on ohiostatebuckeyes.com and will be on Gametracker at ohiostatebuckeyes.com.
ABOUT OHIO STATE
J.B. Shuck finished the regular season as Ohio State’s top hitter with a .361 average. He has 60 hits and 34 RBI. Justin Miller leads OSU with 72 hits and 46 RBI. He is second on the team in batting at .356. Matt Angle is third at the plate with a .355 average and second in hits with 70. He leads the team with 22 stolen bases and 48 runs. Jason Zoeller leads the team with nine home runs. Eric Fryer is second in RBI with 44.
On the mound, Cory Luebke is 7-1 with a 1.94 ERA and a team-high 83 strikeouts in 93 innings. Shuck is 4-3 with a 4.11 ERA and is second on the team with 53 strikeouts. Josh Barrera is 4-1 with a 4.59 ERA and Eric Best is 3-1 with a 3.75 ERA. Jake Hale has a team-high 10 saves on the year with 40 strikeouts in 47.2 innings. Hale made his second start of the year in the Penn State series, giving up three runs while pitching a four-hit complete game (6 innings) in a losing effort (3-2). He is 2-3 on the year.
For the year, Ohio State has a .315 batting average and 304 RBI. The Buckeyes have 66 stolen bases in 87 attempts. On the mound, OSU has a 4.45 ERA and is holding opponents to a .276 average.
COACH TODD HITS 32 WINS FOR 20TH CONSECUTIVE SEASON
Since becoming Ohio State head coach in 1988, Bob Todd has at least 32 wins in all 20 seasons. The Buckeyes are 33-22 on the year. Coach Todd also has at least 33 wins in 17 straight seasons. He won 32 games in 1990, his third year at OSU.
FAUSNAUGH AND EDGIN PITCH BUCKEYES INTO BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
The Buckeyes and Nittany Lions will square off for the fifth straight time when they meet in the Big Ten Tournament Wednesday. Penn State took three of four from OSU last weekend in Happy Valley but Ohio State got the one win it needed to get into the conference tournament. Freshman Josh Edgin and senior Trey Fausnaugh combined to hold PSU to just two runs on six hits in a 3-2 win Sunday. Edgin started and went 6.1 innings, giving up two earned runs, striking out four and walking none. Fausnaugh threw the final 2.2 innings to pick up the win. He did not allow a hit, walking one and striking out two. Jason Zoeller led the Buckeyes at the plate in the four game series hitting .385. Eric Fryer was .308 batting. Penn State is 28-24 overall and finished 20-10 in the Big Ten.
11TH STRAIGHT AND 21ST OVERALL APPEARANCE IN BIG TEN TOURNAMENT
The Buckeyes are making their 21st overall appearance at the Big Ten Tournament and the 19th under 20th-year head coach Bob Todd. The only year Ohio State has not qualified for the tournament under Todd was in 1996 when Penn State played host to a four-team championship. The appearances by the Buckeyes trail only the 24 made by Minnesota. Michigan is making its 19th Big Ten Tournament appearance. Those three programs are the winningest programs in the history of the event. Minnesota has won eight tournament championships while Ohio State and Michigan have won seven, with the Wolverines winning their seventh last year in Ann Arbor, Mich.
By going 2-2 last year in the tournament, Ohio State has a .603 (44-29) winning percentage in the tournament, which is second best of any team in the league, trailing only Minnestoa (52-33, .612). Ohio State is making its 11th straight appearance at the conference tournament, the longest current streak of any school in the Big Ten and the longest in conference history. The Buckeyes tied Michigan’s record nine appearances (1981-89) in 2005.
AGAINST THE TOURNAMENT FIELD
Ohio State had a combined 7-11 record against the other five teams that qualified for the Big Ten Tournament. The Buckeyes were swept in a four game series by Michigan, went 2-2 at Minnesota, 1-3 at Penn State, 3-1 vs. Iowa and 1-1 at Illinois after two games were lost because of cold weather.
In Big Ten tournament play, only Illinois and Penn State have winning records against Ohio State. Illinois is 4-2 against OSU and Penn State is 2-1. The Buckeyes are 44-29 and their winning percentage of .603 is second best in the history of the event.
Ohio State vs. the Big Ten in the Tournament
| Illinois | 2-4 | .333 |
| Indiana | 3-0 | 1.000 |
| Iowa | 2-1 | .667 |
| Michigan | 9-7 | .563 |
| Michigan State | 2-1 | .667 |
| Minnesota | 14-13 | .519 |
| Northwestern | 5-0 | 1.000 |
| Penn State | 1-2 | .333 |
| Purdue | 6-1 | .857 |
| Total | 44-29 | .603 |
Ohio State Against the Field All-Time
| School | Overall | Bob Todd |
| No. 1 Michigan | 88-154-2 | 49-42 |
| No. 2 Minnesota | 73-75-2 | 39-39-1 |
| No. 3 Penn State | 48-25 | 43-22 |
| No. 4 Iowa | 64-41-1 | 33-18 |
| No. 5 Illinois | 93-85-2 | 38-30 |
| Ohio State vs. | Overall/Big Ten | ’07 Series |
| No. 1 Michigan | 39-14/21-7 | 0-4 |
| No. 2 Minnesota | 38-14/18-9 | 2-2 |
| No. 3 Penn State | 28-24/20-10 | 1-3 |
| No. 4 Iowa | 31-21/17-13 | 3-1 |
| No. 5 Illinois | 30-25/16-14 | 1-1 |
| Total | 7-11 |
LAST YEAR IN THE BIG TEN TOURNEY
The Buckeyes were the No. 3 seed and opened tournament play by beating Purdue, 2-1 in 12 innings. Ohio State then knocked off No. 2 seed Northwestern, 9-0. But OSU dropped its next two games, 7-4 to Minnesota and 3-2 to Michigan, and were eliminated from the tournament.
SHUCK LEADS OSU AT THE PLATE, HITTING .361 ON THE YEAR
J.B. Shuck leads OSU with a .361 average. Justin Miller is second at .356 and Matt Angle is third at 355.
LUEBKE PACES OSU PITCHING STAFF AT 7-1
Junior pitcher Cory Luebke leads the OSU pitching staff with a 7-1 record, 1.94 ERA and a team-high 83 strikeouts. In Big Ten play, he is 3-1 with a 2.24 ERA in eight starts. In his 13 starts, Luebke has not gone fewer than 5.2 innings. The Maria Stein, Ohio native fired his second complete game of the year April 27 in a 6-2 win at Purdue. His other complete game was March 10 in a 10-1 win over Western Michigan. He had a season-high 11 strikeouts in a 7-2 win over Lehigh March 4.
HALE TIED FOR 2ND IN BIG TEN WITH 10 SAVES, TIED FOR 2ND ON OSU SINGLE-SEASON LIST
Closer Jake Hale is tied for second in the Big Ten with 10 saves. The sophomore has a team-high 23 appearances on the year and a 4.72 earned run average. He has 40 strikeouts in 47.2 innings of work. His 10 saves rank tied for second with Cory Cox (2001) on the Ohio State single season list, four behind Matt Davis’ 14 in 2003.
MILLER THIRD IN BIG TEN PLAY WITH A .417 AVERAGE
Justin Miller’s .417 average in Big Ten games ranks third in the league. Purdue’s Ryne White is hitting .463 in conference action.
LUEBKE, SHUCK AND HALE ALL PITCH WELL IN PSU SERIES DESPITE NOT WINNING
Despite not picking up any wins, OSU starting pitchers Cory Luebke, J.B. Shuck and Jake Hale were all solid in their starts at Penn State over the weekend. Luebke went seven innings and didnt allow an earned run in a no decision. He gave up seven hits, walking one and striking out nine. Shuck pitched a complete game, giving up four earned runs on eight hits in six innings. He walked none and struck out five. Hale also pitched a six-inning complete game, giving up three earned runs on four hits. He walked three and struck out four. Both Shuck and Hale lost.
LUEBKE OVER 200 CAREER STRIKEOUTS
With nine strikeouts at Penn State on Friday, Cory Luebke topped the 200 career strikeout mark. He has 202 which ranks 22nd all-time on the OSU career list.
ANGLE NOTCHES 200TH CAREER HIT, FRYER JUST TWO SHORT OF 200
With a hit Sunday in the final game of the Penn State series, Matt Angle notched his 200th career hit. His 200 hits rank tied for 21st on the OSU career list. Eric Fryer had two hits Sunday and is now just two hits shy of the 200 career hit mark at 198.
SHUCK GARNERS 100 CAREER HITS
Sophomore J.B. Shuck tallied career hit No. 100 in Friday’s game at Penn State.
SWEEPING THE OSPREYS
The Buckeyes wrapped up their 2007 home schedule with a pair of non-conference wins over North Florida, winning 8-7 Tuesday and 9-3 Wednesday. Against UNF, Trey Fausnaugh and Taylor Barnes picked up the wins. It was the first career win for Barnes. Matt Angle hit .500 in the two games, Jacob Howell .429 and J.B. Shuck .400. Cory Kovanda led the way with three RBI, including the game-winning RBI Tuesday after getting hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the bottom of the ninth. Eric Fryer hit his third home run of the year in the first game of the series. Ohio State also beat the Ospreys back on March 9, 3-2 in 11 innings, at North Florida.
RECORD AT BILL DAVIS STADIUM
The Buckeyes are 197-86 (.696) through the first 11 seasons in Bill Davis Stadium, which opened in 1997. The venue has played host to two Big Ten tournament championships (1999 and 2001), two regional championships (1999 and 2001) and two super regional championships (1999 and 2003). Ohio State finished the 2007 season 13-12 at Bill Davis Stadium in 2007.
IN THE BIG TEN RANKINGS
In all games played, Ohio State ranks fourth in the Big Ten inbatting with a .315 average. On the mound, OSU is fourth in theconference with a 4.45 earned run average. The Buckeyes rankseventh in the league in fielding. In all games, Jason Zoeller istied for fourth with nine home runs and fifth in sluggingpercentage at .582. Matt Angle tied for second with four triplesand fifth in stolen bases with 22. Jacob Howell is second with 14sacrifice bunts and Eric Fryer ranks tied for third with 17 caughtstealing by.
In Big Ten games, Justin Miller is third in batting at .417, tied for fourth in hits (43) and fifth in RBI (28). Fryer is ninth in batting at .380, third in caught stealing by (11) and fifth for on base percentage (.472). Zoeller is tied for second in home runs at six.
On the mound, Cory Luebke ranks first in ERA (1.94), strikeouts(83) and innings pitched (93), tied for first in wins (7) andsecond in opposing batting average (.215). Jake Hale is tied forsecond with 10 saves and Shuck is eighth in ERA at 4.11.
In Big Ten games, Luebke is first in ERA (2.24), strikeouts (50) and innings pitched (56.1) and fourth in opposing batting average (.254). Hale is tied for fifth with five saves.
FRESHMEN MAKING CONTRIBUTIONS, 12 HAVE SEEN ACTION
In 55 games this season, a total of 12 Buckeye freshmen have played.
Outfielder Ryan Dew and second baseman Cory Kovanda have seen the most action. Kovanda has appeared in 48 games with 44 starts and is hitting .307. Dew has played in 47 games with 35 starts. Infielder Cory Rupert has played in 30 games, with 24 starts. The other freshman field players to see action are Brian DeLucia, Ben Toussant, Zach Hurley, Chris Griffin and Nick Steponovich.
Rookie pitchers to appear are Theron Minium, Josh Edgin, Eric Best and Taylor Barnes. Best is 3-1 on the year with a 3.75 ERA and Edgin is 2-2 with a 6.33 ERA. Best has thrown 36.0 innings and Edgin 42.2. Minium is 1-2 with a 6.68 ERA in 32.1 innings and Barnes is 1-0 with a 6.48 ERA.
CAREER RECORD BOOK
Three Buckeyes ranks in the top 20 on the school’s all-timecareer batting average list. Outfielder Matt Angle ranks 15th at.347, outfielder/pitcher J.B. Shuck ranks tied for 16th at .346,and Eric Fryer tied for 20th at .344. Jacob Howell hit a triple ingame four of the MSU series to tie Steve Caravati (2001-05) andDrew Anderson (2002-04) for the school record at 13. Junior JasonZoeller is tied for 11th all-time for triples with eight. MattAngle has four triples this season, which ranks tied for 15th onthe single-season list. Angle is third all-time for stolen baseswith 60, and Howell sits tied for 7th at 44. Angle’s 200 hits ranktied for 21st and his 146 runs 18th. His 22 stolen bases rank tiedfor 8th on the single-season OSU list. Angle also has 33 walks thisyear which ranks tied for 25th on the single-season chart. Howellhas moved into the top-20 all-time for career hits, tied for 16that 213. Howell has 657 career at bats, tied for 14th all-time.Fryer has 198 career hits, ranking tied for 24th all-time. Zoellerhas 20 career home runs which ranks tied for 23rd all-time. SeniorDan DeLucia’s 21 wins are tied for 15th, while his 265.2 careerinnings pitched ranks 10th. Junior Cory Luebke ranks in numerouspitching categories. For his career, he has pitched 249.1 innings(15th all-time). His 66 issued walks ranks tied for 4th, while his119 runs rank 11th fewest. Of that total, 80 have been earned andthat ranks sixth. Luebke’s 2.89 career ERA is fifth and his winningpercentage is tied for 30th (.667, 18-9). He is also closing in onthe top-20 (205) all-time for strikeouts with 202. On thesingle-season list, Luebke ranks 18th in ERA at 1.94 and tied for23rd in innings pitched at 93. Jake Hale’s 10 saves ranks tied forsecond on the single-season OSU saves list and his 23 appearanacesrank tied for 20th. Trey Fausnaugh ranks 2nd all-time inappearances with 85 and Rory Meister is 4th with 75.
TODD EARNS CAREER VICTORY 900
With a 5-3 win over Harvard on March 23 in Bradenton, Fla., Ohio State head coach Bob Todd earned his 900th career victory. The Buckeye skipper is 920-489-2 all-time, including 796-407-2 at OSU. His 920 wins rank 17th among active coaches in NCAA Division I and 47th all-time. He needs four victories to earn his 800th win at Ohio State.
Dan DeLucia OUT AFTER ELBOW SURGERY
Senior pitching ace Dan DeLucia will miss the remainder of the season after left elbow surgery April 10.
