Game Notes -- at No. 16 Maryland

April 9, 2015

• Read the April issue of Hawk Talk Monthly
• Download your Iowa Hawkeye iPhone/iPad app!
• Download your Iowa Hawkeye Android app!
• Big Ten Network: Free Hawkeye Video
• 24 Hawkeyes to Watch

No. 15 Iowa (21-8, 6-0) at No. 16 Maryland (23-8, 7-2)
Dates	April 10-12, 2015
Location	College Park, Md. | Bob “Turtle” Smith Stadium
Game Notes	Iowa
Statistics	Maryland | IOWA

THIS WEEK
The 15th-ranked University of Iowa baseball team heads to College Park for a three-game weekend series at No. 16 Maryland from April 10-12 at Bob “Turtle” Smith Stadium. Game times are set for 5:30 p.m. (CT) Friday, 1 p.m. Saturday, and 11 a.m. Sunday.

GAME COVERAGE
? The final two games of the series will be available on BTN Plus on BTN2Go.
? The series will be broadcast on AM-800 KXIC and AM-1360 KMJM (joined in progress Friday) and Saturday with Brent Balbinot on the call. All three games of the series will also be available via the subscription-based service Hawkeye All-Access on hawkeyesports.com.
? Fans can also follow every game with live stats (GameTracker) on hawkeyesports.com and live updates are also available on Twitter: @UIBaseball.

QUICK HITTERS
? Iowa is off to its best start since 1990 when it was 22-7 through 29 games. The Hawkeyes are 6-0 in Big Ten play for the first time in program history.
? This weekend is Iowa’s first series as a ranked team against a ranked opponent since 1990 — a four-game sweep over No. 12 Illinois.
? The Hawkeyes have won five-straight series heading to College Park, including three three-game sweeps. Iowa hasn’t had a losing weekend in 2015 — it went 2-2 during a four-game series at Houston Baptist.
? Iowa has won three-straight Big Ten series dating back to last season. The Hawkeyes took 2-of-3 at Purdue in the final regular season series in 2014 before sweeping No. 17 Indiana and Purdue this season.
? The Hawkeyes have a real-time RPI of 37 on D1Baseball.com through games played on April 8.
? Iowa had a breakout weekend offensively at Purdue, hitting a season-best .324 during the three-game sweep. The Hawkeyes scored 23 runs and had 36 hits in three games.
? Iowa posted its fifth come-from-behind victory in the middle game at Purdue, rallying from a 4-2 seventh-inning deficit. The Hawkeyes erupted for eight runs — a season-high inning output — in an eventual 10-5 victory.
? Senior Eric Toole became the ninth player in school history to join the 200-hit club in the series opener at Purdue (4/3). Toole ranks ninth in school history with 205 hits and is just 17 hits shy of moving into the top five all-time.
? Toole has a Big Ten-leading 18 steals this season. He stole 12-straight bases from March 11-April 5 before being caught stealing April 8 against Milwaukee.
? Ten Hawkeye games have been decided two runs or less. Iowa is 6-4 in such contests.
? Iowa is 11-3 when playing error-free baseball and 17-5 when committing one or fewer errors. Iowa is 4-3 when committing two or more errors.
? The Hawkeyes are 18-0 when out-hitting their opponents and 16-3 when scoring first. Conversely, Iowa is 5-5 when the opponent scores first.
? Iowa has outscored opponents 25-7 in the first inning, and 44-20 over the first three innings.

SCOUTING MARYLAND
? The Terrapins are ranked in six polls, ranging from No. 16 on D1Baseball.com to 21st by Collegiate Baseball and NCBWA.
? Maryland was the preseason favorite in the Big Ten following an NCAA Super Regional run in 2014.
? Maryland is 23-8 overall and 7-2 in the Big Ten, tied for third place. The Terrapins have swept league series against Minnesota and No. 18 Nebraska, while dropping 2-of-3 at Michigan.
? The Terrapins are 11-1 at Bob “Turtle” Smith Stadium, dropping their first game April 8 — a 12-1 setback to George Washington.
? Maryland is third in the Big Ten with a .289 team batting average with a conference-best 31 home runs and 145 RBIs. The Terrapins average 7.4 runs per game.
? Seven different players have hit home runs, five players have 22 or more RBIs, and four regulars are hitting above .319.
? Brandon Lowe has a Big Ten-leading .385 batting average with eight home runs, 40 runs, and 26 RBIs. Lowe has 22 extra base hits and 47 total hits. Kevin Martir (.376, 5 HR, 28 R, 25 RBIs), Nick Cieri (.327, 26 RBIs), and Anthony Papio (.319, 4 HR) are hitting above .300.
? The Terrapins are seventh in the Big Ten with a 3.82 team ERA and are averaging nearly one strikeout per inning (269 in 273 IP). Maryland has a stout bullpen with four relievers posting a 2.25 ERA or better in 10-plus appearances apiece.
? Iowa will face sophomore RHP Mike Shawaryn (7-0, 2.00 ERA) on Friday, sophomore LHP Tayler Stiles (3-2, 3.27 ERA) on Saturday, and junior RHP Kevin Mooney (0-0, 1.64 ERA) on Sunday. Shawaryn has a Big Ten-leading seven wins and 60 strikeouts (21 looking) and is second with 54 innings pitched.

THE SERIES
? Iowa has never met Maryland in baseball in its 124-year history.

EARNING HIS KEEP ON FRIDAYS
Since Big Ten play commenced, junior Tyler Peyton has been hitting and pitching for himself on Friday nights… and quite well. Peyton is 2-0 with a 0.53 ERA in two conference starts, allowing one run on 12 hits over 17 innings. He opened Big Ten play with 14 1/3 innings of shutout ball. Offensively, Peyton is hitting .444 (4-of-9) with one run and one RBI when playing both ways. He drove in the go-head run against No. 17 Indiana and went 3-for-5 in the opener at Purdue.

IOWA PITCHING SHINES
? The Hawkeyes have allowed two earned runs or fewer in 17-of-29 games this season.
? Iowa’s pitching staff has two shutouts this season (Cincinnati, Indiana) — the most for the program since 2007 (four shutouts).
? Juniors Tyler Peyton and Blake Hickman combined to hold Indiana scoreless through the first 16 innings of its three-game series from March 27-29. The Hoosiers scored three earned runs in three games.
? Iowa is fourth in the Big Ten in ERA (2.80), first in opposing batting average (.229), and tied for second in saves (10). The Hawkeyes have allowed the fewest hits (217) and fewest runs (96) in the conference.
? The Hawkeyes’ starting pitchers are 11-3 with a 2.39 ERA in 29 starts. Iowa’s weekend starters have logged 127 2/3 innings and have 97 strikeouts to 49 walks.
? The UI bullpen is 10-5 with a 3.27 ERA with 10 saves — tied for the second-most in the Big Ten. Iowa’s relievers are holding batters to a .229 average and have 87 strikeouts.
? Senior Nick Hibbing has emerged as one of Iowa’s top relief options, allowing zero runs in seven of his 10 appearances. He is 1-0 with two saves in his last three outings.
? Junior Luke Vandermaten didn’t allow a run in his first 10 appearances before surrendering a run on three hits in two innings at Purdue (4/4). The right-hander has allowed 14 hits over 17 2/3 innings, fanning five batters. He tallied his first career victory in Iowa’s 6-4 victory over Kansas on March 21, throwing 2 1/3 shutout innings.
? Junior reliever Connor Grant is 1-1 with a 3.86 ERA with two saves. He is holding opposing hitters to a .169 batting average, giving up 13 hits in 23 1/3 innings.
? Junior southpaw Ryan Erickson is 1-0 with a 2.45 ERA with one save and has 18 strikeouts — the most by a Hawkeye reliever — to eight walks. He threw a season-high 4 2/3 innings at Houston Baptist on March 14.
? Five pitchers combined to shutout Cincinnati, 5-0, in 13 innings on March 1. The five-some scattered seven hits and stuck out 12. It is the fifth-longest shutout game in the nation this season.

HOT HAWKEYES
? Junior Nick Roscetti hit .545 (6-of-11) with six RBIs and five runs scored at Purdue. He went 3-for-4 with three RBIs and three runs scored in game two, tying or setting career highs in all three categories. He has four multi-hit games in his last six contests, where he’s hitting .455 with eight RBIs. Roscetti has 10 RBIs over his last 10 games (he had three RBIs over his first 18 games).
? Senior Nick Day is hitting .524 (11-for-21) with six runs and seven RBIs over his last 10 games. Day has three multi-hit games during the stretch, including a three-hit, two-RBI output in the opener at Purdue. Day his hit safely in seven-straight and nine of his last 10 games. Since seeing his average dip to .174 on March 20, Day’s average has climbed 150 points to .324.
? Senior Eric Toole is hitting .436 (17-of-39) and Tyler Peyton .419 (18-of-43) over their last 10 games.

OFFENSIVE TIDBITS
? Iowa went 12-5 in the month of March and hit .281 as a team. Senior Eric Toole hit .400 (28-of-70) with 15 runs scored and 10 steals, while senior Jake Mangler hit .373 with 15 RBIs.
? Junior Daniel Aaron Moriel has started six of the last 10 games behind the plate, and he has hit safely in 5-of-6 starts. Moriel has a .333 (7-for-21) average with six runs and three RBIs.
? Mangler is hitting .340 (18-of-53) with runners in scoring position and has 13 two-out RBIs. Booker has a .317 (13-of-41) average in the same situation. Iowa is hitting .267 with runners in scoring position as a team.
? Joel Booker, Nick Day, and Kris Goodman are tied for the team with two home runs apiece. Goodman has a team-best four triples, the second-most in the Big Ten.
? Junior Tyler Peyton is leading the team and ranks fifth in the league with a .364 batting average. Peyton has two or more hits in six of the last seven games and has hit safely in 22-of-26 games.

IN THE BIG TEN…
? Iowa is leading the Big Ten with 48 steals. Senior Eric Toole leads the league individually with 18 steals in 21 attempts.
? Toole also ranks in the top-13 in hits (third, 43), on-base percentage (sixth, .450), batting average (seventh, .358), and runs (13th, 25).
? Offensively, junior Tyler Peyton ranks fifth in the Big Ten in batting average (.364). On the mound, he ranks sixth in strikeouts (42), 11th in ERA (2.17), and 12th in innings pitched (45 2/3).
? In Big Ten only games, Iowa is second in the conference in hitting (.313) and on-base percentage (.395)

100 X 4
Iowa has more than 500 career starts among four regulars. Seniors Eric Toole (161), Jake Manglers (151), Kris Goodman (144), and Nick Day (115) have combined to start 572 games in their Hawkeye careers. Mangler has started 66 consecutive games at second base.

JUNIOR Tyler Peyton…
? shines as a two-way player for the Hawkeyes, going 4-2 with a 2.17 ERA with 42 strikeouts on the mound, while hitting .364 with 16 RBIs and 14 runs scored.
? has hit for himself his last two times pitching for the first time in his career against Indiana on March 27. He starts at first base when he is not pitching.
? has pitched at least five innings in seven of his eight starts, allowing one or fewer runs in his first four and 6-of-8 starts.
? has 21 strikeouts, while issuing two walks over his last three starts.
? has gone at least eight innings in back-to-back starts, posing a 2-0 record with a 0.53 ERA in two Big Ten starts… opened Big Ten play with 14 1/3 shutout innings.
? Threw his first career complete game shutout against No. 19 Indiana, scattering five hits, striking out five, and not walking a batter in a 2-0 victory on March 27, which resulted in him being selected as Big Ten Player of the Week by College Sports Madness on March 31. He threw eight innings, allowing one run on seven hits with seven strikeouts in a win at Purdue.
? notched a quality start, throwing 6 1/3 innings at Kansas, giving up three runs on nine hits in a 4-3 loss. He finished with a season high nine strikeouts and didn’t walk a batter.
? posted wins over UALR (2/20) and at Middle Tennessee State (3/7). He struck out six batters in a no-decision in opener against Kansas State (2/13) and threw five shutout innings against Cincinnati (2/27).
? is 9-3 in his Iowa career with a 3.85 ERA in 22 starts. Peyton has eight quality starts and has pitched into the seventh inning eight times in his career.

JUNIOR Blake Hickman…
? is 4-1 with a 3.13 ERA in eight starts. He has 32 strikeouts against 22 walks.
? has three quality starts and has thrown at least six innings in five of his last six starts. Hickman went seven innings in two of his last three starts.
? notched fourth win at Purdue, allowing four runs on five hits over seven innings… tallied his third win with a career-best outing, holding No. 19 Indiana to one run on three hits over eight innings in a 5-1 victory on March 28. He finished the game with six strikeouts against three walks.
? pitched six innings in victories over Cincinnati (2/28) and Middle Tennessee (3/7).
? notched his first win of season in 5-1 victory over Cincinnati. He was perfect through three innings, striking out 7-of-10 batters to start the game, and had a no-hitter through six innings. He tied a career-high with nine strikeouts in the contest.
? has a 6-3 career record with a 3.47 ERA over 80 1/3 innings in 25 appearances, including 13 starts. He has 66 strikeouts against 45 walks.
? is focusing solely on pitching for the first time in his baseball career. He transitioned to the mound midway through 2014 season.
? pitched in the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2014, posting a 3-4 record with a 4.91 ERA in nine starts.

JUNIOR Calvin Mathews…
? is Iowa’s Sunday starter. He is 3-0 with a 1.25 ERA in eight appearances (seven starts). Mathews didn’t allow an earned run in his first five starts and has allowed four earned runs in seven starts.
? Hasn’t allowed more than five hits in any of his seven starts.
? Threw a season-high six innings to tally his third victory, allowing one run on five hits with five strikeouts at Purdue (4/5).
? picked up his first win against George Mason (2/15), allowing one run on three hits over five innings.
? pitched 5 1/3 shutout innings, scattering four hits, in his second victory of the season at Houston Baptist (3/16).
? was 1-of-5 pitchers to combine for a 13-inning shutout in Iowa’s 5-0 victory over Cincinnati on March 1. He scattered three hits over five innings and had five strikeouts.
? was the Hawkeyes’ Friday starter in 2014 before going down with a shoulder injury. He went 3-3 with a 2.72 ERA with 60 strikeouts to 20 walks. Six of his 11 starts were “quality” starts, and he allowed three or fewer runs in 10-of-11 starts.
? is 8-8 with a 2.96 ERA in 31 appearances (27 starts). He has logged 149 innings, allowing 127 hits, striking out 110 strikeouts to 45 walks.

MOVING UP THE RECORD BOOKS
? Junior Eric Toole has 61 career steals, which are tied for the sixth-most in program history. Kurtis Muller (2008-10) is fifth with 63 steals.
? Toole is tied for third in UI history with 178 career singles (Keith Noreen is second with 183), and he is ninth all-time with 205 hits. Toole also ranks eighth in career at-bats (644).
? Junior Nick Hibbing has made 67 career appearances as a Hawkeye — the third-most in school history. Tim Gudex (81, 2004-07) and Kurt Belger (76, 1993-97) are 1-2 in program history. He is also sixth all-time with 11 career saves.

IN-SEASON HONORS
? Senior Eric Toole was selected as the Big Ten Player of the Week — his first career honor — on March 31 after hitting .500 and posting a .529 on-base and .563 slugging percentage in a 3-1 week. Toole scored four runs and had two RBIs.
? Junior Tyler Peyton was tabbed as the Big Ten Player of the Week by College Sports Madness on March 31 after tossing a complete game shutout in Iowa’s 2-0 victory over No. 19 Indiana. Peyton also hit .353 with three RBIs and scored twice in four games. Peyton was also named a CB360 Week 7 Primetime Performer.
? Freshman Austin Guzzo was named the Big Ten Freshman of the Week on Feb. 16 after having a strong collegiate debut in Iowa’s 4-1 win over George Mason. The Canadian went 2-for-4 with a run and RBI and caught a pitching staff that limited the Patriots to four hits. He is the first Hawkeye to earn the honor since Sasha Kuebel in 2012.

#HELLERBALL
? The Hawkeyes debuted in the national rankings on March 30, coming in at No. 24 by Collegiate Baseball. It was Iowa’s first ranking since 1990.
? Iowa climbed to as high as No. 15 on April 6 by Collegiate Baseball and was ranked in five polls.
? Iowa posted its first victory over a ranked opponent since 2012 and swept a ranked opponent (No. 19 Indiana) for the first time since 1990.
? The Hawkeyes opened Big Ten play with consecutive sweeps, starting 6-0 for the first time in school history.
? Iowa won 30 games in UI head coach Rick Heller‘s first season in 2014 — the most wins by a first-year head coach in program history and the third 30-win campaign since 1993.
? The Hawkeyes advanced to and won a game in the Big Ten Tournament in 2014 — the program’s first tournament victory since 2010.
? Iowa has posted winning streaks of nine games (in 2015) and seven games (in 2014) — the longest streaks for the program since 2012.
? Under Heller, Duane Banks Field has been undergoing a transformation with AstroTurf installed in the infield and outfield, new outfield fences and the addition of a new video scoreboard.
? Iowa had five All-Big Ten selections, including the first first-team honoree since 2009. The Hawkeyes also had two first-team all-region selections.

B1G TITLE – 25-YEAR ANNIVERSARY
The 2015 season is the 25th anniversary of the 1990 Iowa baseball team that posted a 22-6 league record en route to the Big Ten regular season championship. Iowa will hold a reunion and recognize the 1990 team during the final home stand May 8-10 at Duane Banks Field.

FOLLOW THE HAWKEYES
Iowa baseball fans can follow the Hawkeyes on Facebook by going to facebook.com/iowabaseball. Fans can also follow on Twitter @UIBaseball.

UP NEXT
The Hawkeyes will play two midweek games — at Bradley (April 14) and hosting Cornell College (April 15) — before hosting Northwestern for a three-game series from April 17-19.