MSU Baseball Opens Big Ten Play This Weekend At Iowa

March 31, 2005

Michigan State-Iowa Big Ten Series Notes
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EAST LANSING, Mich. -

Iowa (4-11, 0-0 Big Ten)Friday, April 1 - 6 p.m.Saturday, April 2 (DH) - 2 p.m.Sunday, April 3 - 1 p.m.Duane Banks Field - Iowa City, Iowa
Series History: Michigan State leads 60-53-1Mahan vs. Iowa: 14-12Last Meeting: MSU won 12-1 (April 4, 2004)

This weekend's series will have live stats via Gametracker at www.msuspartans.com.

This Week: Michigan State kicks off the 2005 Big Ten season this weekend with a four-game series at Iowa. The Spartans are looking to snap a two-game losing skid after falling to Toledo (9-7) and Wayne State (9-4) earlier this week. State will open Big Ten play on the road for the third time in the past five seasons. This weekend also marks MSU's first trip to Iowa City since the 2002 season when the Spartans captured two out of three games from the Hawkeyes.

Scouting The Spartans: The Spartans enter this weekend's Big Ten season opener sporting a record of 8-11 and have won two of their last four road contests. Sophomore outfielder Ryan Basham continues on his offenisve tear to lead Michigan State's offense with a .355 batting average, five home runs and 16 RBI. On the mound, juniors Tim Day and Chris Malec have each tallied a 2-2 record this season. Junior RHP Jeff Gerbe has posted two saves, while freshman RHP Drew Mahan has recorded a team-best 1.42 ERA from the Spartan bullpen.

Scouting The Hawkeyes: Iowa opens its home schedule this weekend against the Spartans with a record of 4-11 on the season. The Hawkeyes extended their losing streak to seven after dropping a 5-2 decision at Illinois State on Wednesday, March 30.

Leading the way for the Hawkeyes offensively is senior infielder Andy Lytle, who is hitting .413 with 26 hits, 15 runs scored and 15 RBI. On the mound, sophomore RHP Casey O'Rourke paces Iowa with a 2-0 record, while junior LHP Tim Gudex has recorded a team-best 16 strikeouts.

Series History: MSU holds a 60-53-1 advantage over Iowa in the all-time series between the two schools. The Spartans have captured six of the last eight contests with the Hawkeyes, including a four-game sweep at Kobs Field last season.

Spartans Picked Fourth In Big Ten Preseason Rankings: Baseball America and Collegiate Baseball have projected MSU to finish fourth in the Big Ten this upcoming season in both publications' college preview editions. Last season, the Spartans tied Michigan for third place in the league with a 19-13 mark.

Spartans In Big Ten Openers Under Mahan: The Spartans have compiled a 1-8 record in Big Ten season-opening games in the Ted Mahan era. State snapped its eight-game losing streak in conference openers under Mahan with last season's 1-0 win over Iowa in 11 innings at Kobs Field.

Day Close To MSU Career Wins Leaderboard: Red-shirt junior RHP Tim Day is one victory away from placing his name among the school's career win leaders. The native of West Chester, Ohio, enters this weekend with 16 wins, while eight former Spartans hold down the sixth-place spot with 17. Former MSU standouts Bryan Gale (2001-04) and Stuart Hirschman (1990-93) are tied for first on the list with 28 career wins.

Trausch Holding His Own: Freshman LHP Matt Trausch has held his own in his first season of NCAA competition. The Charlotte, Mich., native struck out a season-best five batters in MSU's home opening game against Wayne State March 30. He eclipsed his previous season-best total of three strikeouts at Bradley on March 19.

Bashing The Long Ball: Sophomore outfielder Ryan Basham continued to live up to his name in the Spartans' home opener on March 30. Basham blasted a home run and tallied two RBI in the Spartans' 9-4 loss to Wayne State. The Lowell, Ind., native currently leads MSU with five home runs, which places him in a tie for top honors among the Big Ten long-ball leaders this week.

Big Ten Leader: Junior RHP Jeff Gerbe is flourishing in his first season out of the MSU bullpen. Gerbe leads the Big Ten this week in several categories, including appearances (10) and games finished (nine). The Shelby Township, Mich., native is tied for third in the league with two saves, and has recorded eight strikeouts with a 1.68 ERA this season.

Malec Mows Down Braves: In MSU's 5-1 win March 19 at Bradley, junior LHP Chris Malec recorded a season-high eight strikeouts in eight innings of work. Malec, a native of Lindenhurst, Ill., currently ranks among the team leaders in starts, wins, innings pitched and strikeouts. His previous season-best mark for strikeouts was four against Campbell on March 8.

Stealin' Spartans: Michigan State has been effective on the base paths this season, going 23-for-33 in stolen base attempts. Leading the theft brigade for State is sophomore Troy Krider and Adam Tripp, who each have a team-best five steals. Sophomore Ryan Basham and junior Oliver Wolcott are tied for third on the team with three thefts apiece.

Tripp Excels In Leadoff Spot: Sophomore outfielder Adam Tripp has thrived in the leadoff spot this season for the Spartans, batting .317 with a team-best 20 hits, four doubles and 13 RBI. Tripp batted .361 for the Florida trip with eight RBI and went 2-for-4 with two doubles in the Spartans' series finale at No. 6 Florida on March 13. Tripp is currently tied for first in the Big Ten in sacrifice flies (three).

Clausen Slams First Collegiate Homers Against Campbell: Freshman outfielder/LHP Tony Clausen lit up Campbell for his first two collegiate home runs, including a grand slam in the sixth inning on March 8. Clausen finished the game 2-for-3 with a season-best five RBI, and became the first Spartan to hit a grand slam since E.J. Daws hit one against Western Michigan on March 5, 2004.

The Magnificent Seven: In its 12-4 loss at North Florida on March 5, State threw seven freshmen pitchers against the Ospreys. Mark Sorensen, making his first collegiate start, struck out two UNF batters in three and two-thirds innings. Mike Takashima took the loss after recording three strikeouts in one and two-thirds innings, while Mike Monterey tallied a strikeout in one inning of work. Tony Clausen, Drew Mahan and Chris Cullen each threw one-third of an inning in their NCAA pitching debuts, while Matt Trausch completed the game with a strikeout in two-thirds of an inning pitched.

Back In The Saddle Again: After sitting out of the season-opening Centenary series, senior utility player Erik Morris returned to the Michigan State lineup with vengeance during the Kennel Club Classic. He batted .545 in the final two games in the KCC for the Spartans. Morris had a career-high four hits against Brown (March 6) and belted a career-best two doubles against Campbell (March 8).

Erik Morris Earns Preseason All-Big Ten Honors From Baseball America: Morris was named to the Baseball America Preseason All-Big Ten team in the publication's annual college preview edition released in early January. The 6-3, 220-pounder from Orchard Lake, Mich., earned league honors at the designated hitter position after batting .321 with 10 home runs and 44 RBI last season.

Cattrysse Gets Preseason Recognition: Junior utility player Alan Cattrysse was named the Big Ten's outfielder with the "Best Arm" by Baseball America. The Chatham, Ontario, native batted .306 with 31 RBI in 2004. He recorded 15 assists as a starter at third base and right field last season.

MSU Baseball Names 2005 Captains: Senior Erik Morris and red-shirt junior Tim Day were selected by MSU Baseball as captains for the 2005 season.

"I think the 2005 Spartan team chose two outstanding young men to lead their team, in Tim Day and Erik Morris," said Mahan. "Both Tim and Erik are proven quality Big Ten players and outstanding students. We look forward to these two players providing leadership and direction for the team in 2005."

Design Of A Decade: Ted Mahan enters his 10th season as the Spartans head coach and his 14th season with Michigan State after serving four years (1992-1995) as an assistant coach. The Davison, Mich., native continues to coach winning teams at MSU as three of his last four Spartan teams have produced winning records.

Last season, Mahan coached four players to All-Big Ten honors (Bryan Gale, Adam White, James Moreno and Travis Gulick) and had one player receive second-team All-Mideast Region honors (White). His 2004 squad posted 33 victories, finished in a tie for third place in the Big Ten, and won a game at the Big Ten Tournament. During Mahan's tenure, over 55 Michigan State players have signed professional baseball contracts, with eight advancing to the Major Leagues. He has coached four Louisville Slugger Freshman All-Americans (Sean Walker- 2004, Tim Day- 2002, Bryan Gale- 2001 and Bob Malek- 2000) over the past five seasons at MSU.

On Deck: Michigan State begins a five-game homestand at Kobs Field, beginning with a mid-week game April 5 against Saginaw Valley State at 3 p.m. The Spartans then battle Illinois in the first of a four-game Big Ten home-opening series on April 8 at 3 p.m.