Game Notes -- Penn State

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THIS WEEK
The University of Iowa baseball team closes out the regular season, hosting Penn State for Alumni Weekend at Duane Banks Field from May 17-19.  Thursday’s and Friday’s games will begin at 6:05 p.m. (CT), while Saturday’s series finale will start at 6:32 p.m.

FOLLOW ALONG
• Thursday and Friday’s games will be streamed live on BTN Plus on BTN2Go.  It is a paid subscription service.  Saturday’s game will be televised on ESPNU with Steve Lenox and Nick Belmonte on the call.
• All Iowa games will also be available via the Hawkeye Radio Network with Zach Mackey and Steve Duncan on the call.  The games can be heard on Hawkeye All-Access and on select stations across the state or by searching Iowa Hawkeyes on the Tune In Radio app.
Thursday: WDBQ-FM 107.5 (Dubuque), KDEC-AM 1240 (Decorah), KKFD-FM 95.9 (Fairfield), KMJM AM 1360 (Cedar Rapids)
Friday: WDBQ-FM 107.5 (Dubuque), KDEC-AM 1240 (Decorah), KKFD-FM 95.9 (Fairfield), KMJM AM 1360 (Cedar Rapids)
Saturday: WDBQ-FM 107.5 (Dubuque), KKFD-FM 95.9 (Fairfield)

WEEKEND PROMOTIONS
• Alumni Weekend
• Thursday: Baseball Bingo
• Friday: “Have a Catch” Day
• Saturday: Sunday Runday, Senior Night

LEADING OFF
• Iowa’s 5-4 victory over Western Illinois on May 15 was the Hawkeyes’ 30th win of the season.  Iowa has won 30 or more games in each of Rick Heller’s five seasons — the longest stretch since posting seven straight 30-win seasons from 1979-85
• The Hawkeyes have won 140 games from 2015 to 2018, matching the best four-year stretch (2014-17) in school history.  With one more win, the current four-year stretch is the best all-time.  Iowa can also extend its school-record Big Ten Tournament streak to five consecutive years.
• This weekend is Alumni and Senior Weekend.  The Hawkeyes will recognize Nick Allgeyer, Tyler Cropley, Austin Guzzo, Matt Hoeg, and Nick Nelsen prior to Saturday’s game.
• The Hawkeyes’ road series loss at Northwestern was just their second Big Ten series loss in their last nine series dating back to the 2017 season.  
•  The Hawkeyes have three series wins against ranked foes — at No. 22 Illinois, No. 7 Michigan, and No. 12 Oklahoma State. The win over Michigan was Iowa’s first over a top-10 opponent since 2008.  
• Iowa is 8-9 against ranked opponents this season with wins over No. 11 Indiana, No. 22 Illinois (2), No. 25 Minnesota, No. 7 Michigan (2), and No. 12 Oklahoma State (2). 
• Junior Nick Allgeyer has twice been named the Big Ten Pitcher of the Week during the 2018 season.  He was honored following a road win at Nebraska and a victory over No. 7 Michigan.
• Allgeyer is second in the Big Ten in strikeouts (80) and innings pitched (83.0), and fourth in ERA (2.71).
• Senior Tyler Cropley has reached base safely in 19 straight games dating back to April 11.  He is hitting .389 with nine doubles, six home runs, 22 runs, and 20 RBIs during the stretch.  Cropley is tied for the Big Ten lead with 19 doubles.
• The Hawkeyes hit a season-high and Big Ten-best seven home runs in the May 1 loss to Missouri.  The seven home runs are the second-most in a single game in school history.  
• Iowa’s pitching staff leads the Big Ten in strikeouts with 447 — 49 more than second place Ohio State.  
• Sophomore Lorenzo Elion became the second Hawkeye in the last decade to hit for the cycle, finishing 5-for-6 with two home runs, six RBIs, and four runs on April 11 against Coe College. The five hits tied a single-game school record.
• Iowa is 17-6 at Duane Banks Field this season, running its record to 69-20 at home since the start of the 2015 season.  The Hawkeyes have won 10 of their last 11 home series.
• Iowa is fifth in the Big Ten with 41 home runs coming from 10 different Hawkeyes.  Iowa has seven players with 20 or more RBIs.

QUICK HITTERS
• Minnesota, Michigan, Purdue, Ohio State, and Indiana have all clinched Big Ten Tournament berths.  Iowa is looking to extend its tournament streak to a school-record five straight years.
• Iowa currently has an RPI of 64 and is 10-9 against current top-50 RPI teams and 10-12 against top-100.
• Iowa has five wins against top-12 ranked teams this season (No. 7 Michigan (2), No. 11 Indiana (1), No. 12 Oklahoma State (2).
• The Hawkeyes will be using its third different starting rotation of the season this weekend against Penn State.  Iowa used the same starting rotation for the first 11 weeks of the season.
• Mitchell Boe stole home with two outs and the bases loaded in the top of the ninth inning in Iowa’s 5-4 road victory at Western Illinois on Wednesday.  
• Iowa stole a season-high seven bases in the road win at Western Illinois, including three from Robert Neustrom and two from Boe.
• Iowa has played four doubleheaders this spring where it has posted a 5-3 record. The Hawkeyes swept their twin bill against Evansville on March 17 and split doubleheaders against No. 11 Indiana, Ohio State and Nebraska. 
• The Hawkeyes put up eight runs in the first inning in their 16-1 victory over Coe College on April 11 in Iowa City.  It was Iowa’s biggest scoring inning of the season.  
• Iowa is 7-5 against left-handed starters this season and 23-13 against right-handers.  
• The Hawkeyes are 27-10 when scoring three or more runs this season.
• Iowa is 14-8 in games decided by two runs or less  this season.  
 
ABOUT PENN STATE
• Penn State is 15-31 overall and 3-18 in Big Ten play, which is 13th in the league standings.  The Nittany Lions have won three straight and four of their last five games heading into Iowa City.
• The Nittany Lions won their last Big Ten series, taking two of three games from Michigan State from May 4-6 in University Park.  Penn State’s only other Big Ten win came March 25 at Rutgers.
• Penn State is hitting .236 as a team with two players — Ryan Sloniger and Parker Hendershot — hitting over .300.  Sloniger has a team-high 12 doubles, five home runs, and 30 RBIs.
• The Nittany Lions have a 5.50 team ERA, allowing 292 runs over 397 2/3 innings.  Opponents are hitting .273.  Penn State will start RHP Bailey Dees (1-2, 6.26 ERA) on Thursday, RHP Justin Hagenman (3-6, 4.26 ERA) on Friday, and LHP Dante Biasi (3-5, 4.89 ERA) on Saturday.  Hagenman is tied for fourth in the Big Ten with 72 strikeouts.

SERIES RESULTS
• Penn State leads the all-time series over Iowa, 39-33.  
• The Hawkeyes have won the last two series over the Nittany Lions, taking two of three games in Happy Valley in 2016 to clinch a berth into the Big Ten Tournament, and sweeping Penn State last season in Iowa City.
• Iowa outscored the Nittany Lions, 21-5, in three games.

30 X 5
Iowa has won 30 or more games in each of head coach Rick Heller’s five seasons. It is the program’s longest such stretch since posting seven straight 30-win seasons from 1979-85.

2014: 30-23
2015: 41-18 (2nd-most wins all-time)
2016: 30-26
2017: 39-22 (5th-most wins all-time)
2018: 30-18

SIT ‘EM DOWN
The Hawkeyes are leading the Big Ten with 447 strikeouts — 49 more than Ohio State.  Iowa’s 170 strikeouts in Big Ten action also lead the league.
• The 447 strikeouts are the second-most in a single season in school history.  Iowa had 470 strikeouts in 61 games last season.

A-HOEG
Senior Matt Hoeg broke out of a 4-for-32 month-long slump with a double against Milwaukee on April 25 in Iowa City.  In the 11 games since:
• Hoeg is hitting .378 (17-of-45) with nine extra base hits, including six doubles, one triple, and two home runs.  He has 15 RBIs in the 11 games.
• The Waukee, Iowa, native has seven multi-hit games during the stretch.  He went 2-for-6 with a career-high six RBIs in Iowa’s 16-14 slugfest victory over Oklahoma State on May 5 before going 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs in the series-clinching victory.  Hoeg had three straight two-hit games at Northwestern (May 11-13).

DREYER DAZZLES
Freshman Jack Dreyer has given the Iowa pitching staff a spark.  The southpaw is 2-0 with a 0.90 ERA in two weekend starts, pitching the Hawkeyes to victories over No. 12 Oklahoma State and at Northwestern.
• In his first career weekend start (and second career start overall), Dreyer scattered two hits and allowed one run in five innings against No. 12 Oklahoma State to pick up his third victory of the season.  He tied a career-high with six strikeouts.
• Dreyer went five innings, allowing three unearned runs on four hits and fanned six in a road victory at Northwestern on May 13.

7 BOMBS
Iowa hit a season and Big Ten-high seven home runs in its 17-16 loss to Missouri on May 1.  The seven home runs are the second-most in a game in school history, behind the eight home runs in 1986 against Murray State.
• The seven jacks are tied for the third-most in a single game in the nation this season.  Tennessee Tech hit 11 home runs in February against Illinois State.
• It is the first time Iowa has even hit five home runs in a game since the 2009 season.
• Six different Hawkeyes hit a home run in the game… the most notable? Mitchell Boe, who hit his first career shot to tie the game in the bottom of the ninth.

JOINING THE RECORD BOOKS
• Junior Robert Neustrom has 128 career singles, which are 12th all-time in school history.
• Junior Zach Daniels has appeared in 62 career games, which are the sixth-most all-time, while Nick Nelsen’s 51 appearances are tied for 13th.  Daniels also has 11 career saves, which are eighth-most all-time.
• Senior Tyler Cropley has 19 doubles in 2018, which are tied for the third-most in a single-season in school history.

• Junior Nick Allgeyer has 80 strikeouts this season, which are seventh-most in a single season.

B1G SUCCESS
Iowa has won 20 of 29 (69 percent) of its Big Ten Conference series dating back to the 2015 season.  The Hawkeyes have won six of their last eight Big Ten series. 

WHELAN: THE CATALYST 
Redshirt junior Chris Whelan has been instant offense for the Hawkeyes since making his season debut on March 17 against Evansville.  The Illinois native missed the first month (14 games) recovering from Tommy John surgery. He was cleared to throw and play in the field April 24. 
• He played in his first game in the field May 4 against No. 12 Oklahoma State, starting at first base, and he started the final two games in left field.
• The Hawkeyes averaged 5.0 runs per game in the 14 games before Whelan was cleared. Since inserting Whelan into the lineup, Iowa is averaging 6.6 runs per contest.
• Whelan has hit safely in 27-of-33 games with 12 multi-hit contests.  He is hitting .309 with 33 runs and 15 walks as Iowa’s leadoff hitter.
• Whelan had a career-high four hits, finishing 4-for-5 with a career-best four runs in Iowa’s 13-9 come-from-behind victory over Bradley on March 28.  He hit is second home run of the season on April 22 in the win at Minnesota, finishing 2-for-4 with two RBIs.
• Whelan homered in back-to-back games, hitting the game-tying home run in the come-from-behind win over No. 7 Michigan on April 29 and hitting a solo shot in the slugfest loss against Missouri.

CROPLEY PRODUCES
Senior Tyler Cropley is leading the team with a .367 average with team-highs in RBIs (45) and doubles (19) and ranking second in home runs (9).  He is currently riding a career-best 19-game reached base streak. 
• The South Dakota native ranks in top-11 in Big Ten in 11 categories… tied for first in doubles (19), third in on-base percentage (.480), fourth in slugging (.627), tied for fourth in hit by pitch (11), sixth in total bases (111) and home runs (9), seventh in batting average (.367), eighth in RBIs (45), ninth in hits (65) and walks (30), and 11th in runs (42) 
• Cropley tied a school record in the 16-1 win over Coe College on April 11, finishing 3-for-5 with two RBIs and two runs.  All three of his hits were doubles, as he became the ninth Hawkeye — first since Nate Yoho in 2004 — to hit three in a single game.
• Cropley has two walk-off home runs this season.  He hit a walk-off grand slam to give Iowa a 13-9 victory over Bradley on March 28.  He finished with a career-high five RBIs in the game.  He hit is second walk-off — a two-runs hot — to give the Hawkeyes a 7-5 win over No. 7 Michigan on April 29.
• Cropley homered in consecutive at-bats — a walk-of two-run home run to give Iowa a 7-5 win over No. 7 Michigan on April 29 and a first-inning solo shot against Missouri on May 1.
• Cropley hit two home runs against Mizzou for his second career two-home run game.  He also did it against Minnesota last season in the Big Ten Tournament.
• Cropley is currently hitting .471 (24-of-51) with runners in scoring position.  He has a .778 average with a runner on third base with less than two outs.
• Cropley is on the Johnny Bench Award Watch List. The honor is given to the top catcher in Division I baseball.  

CROWL STEADY AT SHORT
Sophomore Kyle Crowl had a career-best 14-game reached base streak from March 11-April 4.  He has reached safely in 38 games this season.
• Crowl has 10 multi-hit games and eight multi-RBI games.
• The Council Bluffs, Iowa, native missed his first game of the season May 15 at Western Illinois with the flu.
• Crowl is third on the team with six home runs this season and 33 RBIs.  
• Went a perfect 4-for-4 with one double, three runs, and two RBIs in Iowa’s 16-14 victory over No. 12 Oklahoma State on May 5.  The four hits were a career-high.

HAVE YOURSELF A DAY ZO
Sophomore Lorenzo Elion became the second Hawkeye in the last decade to hit for the cycle when he finished 5-of-6 with two home runs, six RBIs, and four runs scored in a 16-1 win over Coe College on April 11.  The two home runs were the first of his career.
• Elion tripled in the first, homered in the second, doubled in the fifth,  singled in the sixth, and capped the night with a first-pitch, three-run home run in the eighth.
• The five hits tied a school record that has happened now 18 times.  It was last done by Joel Booker in 2016 at the Big Ten Tournament.  The five hits are tied for the most in the Big Ten this season.
• Mason McCoy was the last Hawkeye to hit for the cycle against Air Force in 2016.

#SCTOP10
Sophomore Lorenzo Elion appeared in SportsCenter’s Top 10 plays on April 8 after making a spectacular defensive play, diving to his right and throwing a dart to first to rob Ohio State of extra bases.  The play was No. 8.

COMEBACK KIDS
The Hawkeyes have posted 15 come-from-behind victories in 2018, which includes five walk-off victories.
• Iowa trailed 9-8 through 7 1/2 innings before rallying for a 13-9 win.  Lorenzo Elion’s pinch-hit RBI single tied the game in the eighth before Iowa posted its fourth walk-off win in the ninth courtesy of a Tyler Cropley grand slam. 
• The Hawkeyes trailed 4-1 through 7 1/2 innings before Matt Hoeg tied the game with a two-out, three-run double in the eighth.  Iowa then posted its third walk-off victory of the season when Austin Guzzo connected on a two-run home run to right field, giving the team a 6-4 win.
• Ben Norman had the game-winning RBI single in the ninth, sending the Hawkeyes to a 4-3 win over Toledo in the season opener.  Norman also reached via error in the win over Virginia Tech, allowing the go-ahead run to score in the 2-1 walk-off victory.
• Iowa trailed 5-0 through 1 1/2 innings and 5-4 through 6 1/2 before Chris Whelan’s solo home run tied the game at 5.  In the bottom of the ninth, Cropley hit a two-run home run to left field, giving Iowa a 7-5 series-clinching victory over No. 7 Michigan.
• Iowa has overcome deficits to win 33 games since the start of the 2017 season and posted nine walk-off victories.
• Twenty of those victories have come with Iowa trailing or being tied entering or through seven innings and 14 have come in the final at-bat.

BANKS MAGIC
• The Hawkeyes are 17-6 at Duane Banks Field this season, running their record to 69-20 at home since the start of the 2015 season.  
• Iowa went 19-4 at home last season, the most wins by the team since 1989 (19-2). 
• Iowa has 13 walk-off victories at Duane Banks Field since the start of 2015.

ON THE OFFENSE
• The Hawkeyes have had 10 or more hits in 20 games this season.  Iowa’s has scored 16 runs in a game three times, including twice in the last four games.  (Coe College, 4/11; Mizzou, 5/1; Oklahoma State, 5/5).  
• Iowa has scored 10 or more runs in 11 games this season.  
• The Hawkeyes are 23-3 when out-hitting their opposition.

STARTING & FINISHING
The Hawkeyes are out-scoring opponents, 55-26, in the first inning and 120-85 over the first three innings.  Iowa is also out-scoring the opposition, 59-46, in the eighth and ninth innings.
• Iowa is 13-5 when it scores in the first inning and 19-7 when it scores the game’s first run.   
• The Hawkeyes are 22-1 when leading after six innings, 22-1 after seven, and 24-1 after eight this season.  

JUNIOR ROBERT NEUSTROM…
• has hit safely in 39-of-48 games this season and he has reached safely in 43-of-48 contests.  Neustrom has had hitting streaks of nine games and 10 games this season.
• has started 111 consecutive games dating back to the 2016 season. 
• is hitting .325 with 19 multi-hit games.  Neustrom has 11 home runs, which are the fourth-most in the Big Ten this season. He had his second career two-homer game May 5 against Oklahoma State.  He finished the contest 3-for-5 with five RBIs and three runs scored. 
• Ranks in the top 11 in the Big Ten in six categories — fourth in home runs (11), seventh in total bases (110), eighth in doubles (14), 10th in slugging (.567), and 11th in runs (42) and hits (63)
• was the Preseason Big Ten Player of the Year by Baseball America and Perfect Game. 

ON THE BUMP
• The Hawkeyes’ starting pitchers are 16-13 with a 3.68 ERA in 48 games. Iowa starters have 225 strikeouts to 92 walks and opponents are hitting .267.
• Iowa’s pitching staff has three games where it has allowed two or fewer hits.  The Hawkeyes one-hit Northern Illinois on April 17 and had a pair of two hitters against Evansville on March 17 and No. 11 Indiana on March 23.
• Iowa’s pitching staff is leading the Big Ten with 447 strikeouts, averaging 9.5 per game to ranked 22nd nationally. 
• Iowa has 23 games with 10 or more strikeouts this season, including a stretch of eight straight games from April 25-May 6. The Hawkeyes had a season-high 15 strikeouts in a win over Milwaukee on April 25.
• Iowa’s bullpen is 14-5 with a 4.98 ERA this season.  The relievers have logged 208 innings, where they average more than a strikeout an inning (222).
• Senior Nick Nelsen has appeared in nine of Iowa’s last 10 games, including all three games of the series against No. 12 Oklahoma State.  Nelsen is 2-1 with three saves and a 3.54 ERA in 25 appearances. He has 28 strikeouts over 28 innings.

DANIELS DOES IT
Junior Zach Daniels is Iowa’s most important piece in its relieving corps.  The right-hander is 5-1 with a 2.23 ERA in 22 appearances, striking out 42 over 40 1/3 innings.  He has five saves.
• Daniels is 2-0 with a 2.11 ERA in 11 Big Ten appearances, allowing five runs on 14 hits over 21 1/3 innings.  He has 22 strikeouts and is limiting hitters to a .189 average.
• Daniels made two appearances against No. 7 Michigan, earning a save and a win in the series.  He pitched four shutout frames, scattering two hits and fanning a season-high six in Iowa’s series-clinching victory.
• He has made multiple weekend appearances five times this season.

REDSHIRT JUNIOR NICK ALLGEYER…
• is 5-4 with a 2.71 ERA in 13 starts. Allgeyer has 80 strikeouts, which are second-most in the Big Ten and seventh-most in a single season in school history.
• ranks among the top-five in the Big Ten in four categories — second in strikeouts (80) and innings (83), fourth in ERA (2.71), tied for fifth in strikeouts looking (22).
• is leading the Big Ten in conference games in strikeouts (43), fourth in innings (46 1/3), and seventh in ERA (2.71).
• has been named the Big Ten Pitcher of the Week twice this season — April 16 following a road win at Nebraska and April 30 following a win over No. 7 Michigan.
• has allowed six hits or fewer in  10 of 13 starts… has allowed one or fewer earned runs in seven starts.
• has 11 quality starts, including a stretch of 10 consecutive quality starts from Week 2-12… had a career-high nine strikeouts against No. 12 Oklahoma State — his fifth game with eight or more strikeouts.
• recorded his fifth win against No. 7 Michigan, allowing one run on five hits over seven innings and fanning eight… notched his fourth win at Nebraska, allowing one unearned run over seven innings and fanning four… earned his fifth win, allowing one run on five hits over seven innings against No. 7 Michigan.
• notched his third victory — first Big Ten win — allowing five runs (three earned) on seven hits over 6 1/3 innings at No. 22 Illinois… finished with eight strikeouts.
•  recorded his first career win as a starter (third of his career), allowing one run on four hits at UAB (3/2)… had four strikeouts against one walk over 6 2/3 innings… went six innings, allowing one run on four hits in the win over Evansville (3/17).
• made his first career Friday start — his second career start — against Toledo (2/16) — allowing three unearned runs over five innings and fanning seven.
• is 7-4 with a 2.98 ERA in 45 career appearances, including 14 starts… has 118 strikeouts in 130 innings.
• missed the 2017 season recovering from Tommy John surgery suffered during the fall of 2016.

JUNIOR BRADY SCHANUEL…
•is 5-7 with a 6.06 ERA in 13 starts with 64 strikeouts over 52 innings.
• notched his fifth win, allowing three runs on six hits against Ohio State (4/7)… had seven strikeouts — his fourth game with six or more strikeouts.
• was named the Big Ten Co-Pitcher of the Week on March 25 after going a career-best seven innings, allowing one hit and fanning 11 in a 5-1 victory over No. 11 Indiana (3/23)… retired the final 10 batters he faced.  The 11 strikeouts were the most by a Hawkeye pitcher since Nathan Johnson’s 14 at Indiana in 2004.
• allowed a single hit over five shutout innings in a win against Evansville, where he fanned six… went a five innings in the road win at UAB — his second win of the season…allowed one hit and fanned a career-high seven.   
• earned his first career victory against Old Dominion (2/18), allowing two hits and fanning four in 3 2/3 innings… was on a predetermined 60-pitch pitch count.
• Two-time MLB Draft pick — selected in 20th round by Philadelphia in 2017 and 36th round by Oakland in 2015.
• Two-time All-American at Parkland College in Illinois… went 20-4 with 161 strikeouts in 164 innings.

JUNIOR COLE MCDONALD… 
• is 3-1 with a 3.61 ERA in nine starts  — eight coming as the Sunday starter… has missed two starts because of weather cancellations (Indiana, Nebraska) and two more because of injury.
• departed after 3+ innings in his April 29 start against Michigan with elbow tightness.
• tallied his third win, allowing one run on four hits over seven innings in a road win at No. 25 Minnesota… had six strikeouts to two walks for his third straight quality start.
• recorded his second straight quality start in a no-decision against Ohio State (4/8)… allowed one run on three hits over six innings and had a career-high eight strikeouts.
• notched his first Big Ten victory — second of the season — allowing two runs on five hits over 6 1/3 innings at No. 22 Illinois… finished with six strikeouts… it was his second quality start of the season.
• recorded his first career quality start and first win of the season, scattering three hits and allowing two unearned runs in seven innings in a victory over New Orleans.  McDonald had four strikeouts to one walk.
• is 9-6 with a 4.80 ERA in 32 appearances, including 28 starts.

HAWKEYES IN PROFESSIONAL BASEBALL
Jake Adams – Quad Cities River Bandits — Class A (Astros)
Joel Booker – Winston-Salem Dash – Class A Advanced (White Sox)
Matt Dermody – Buffalo Bison – Triple-A (Blue Jays)
Ryan Erickson – Great Falls Voyagers – Rookie (White Sox)
Nick Gallagher – Lake County Captains – Class A (Indians)
Blake Hickman – Winson Salem Dash – Class A Advanced (White Sox)
Mason McCoy – Delmarva Shorebirds – Class A (Orioles)
Tyler Peyton – Myrtle Beach Pelicans – Class A Advanced (Cubs)
Nick Roscetti – Wisconsin Timber Rattlers – Class A (Brewers)
Jake Yacinich – Indland Empire 66ers – Class A Advanced (Angels)

TEAM CAPTAINS
Iowa’s team captains for the 2018 season are senior Tyler Cropley, redshirt junior Nick Allgeyer, junior Robert Neustrom, and redshirt sophomore Kyle Shimp. 

FOLLOW THE HAWKEYES
Iowa baseball fans can follow the Hawkeyes on Facebook/iowabaseball, Twitter: @UIBaseball, and Instagram/UIBaseball in addition to coverage on hawkeyesports.com.