Friday, May 21
Piscataway, N.J.
2 PM ET
Michigan State University
16-23, 16-23
12
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Rutgers
18-21, 18-21
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3
4
5
6
7
8
9
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H
E
Michigan State
6
0
0
1
2
0
0
2
1
12
15
0
Rutgers
0
0
0
0
1
0
0
0
0
1
5
3
Photo by: Quinn Bezenah
Spartans Scorch Scarlet Knights, 12-1, In Friday’s Series Opener
5/21/2021 6:41:00 PM | Baseball
MSU ties season-high runs while bashing season-best three home runs.
PISCATAWAY, N.J. -- Michigan State erupted with a six-run first inning, including two home runs, and never looked back, as the offense kept rolling and the bats stayed as hot as the Piscataway temperatures. Meanwhile, the MSU pitching was dealing, as the Spartans beat Rutgers, 12-1, Friday afternoon in the series opener at RU's Bainton Field.
"Today was a good win all the way around," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "It was huge to jump out to a big lead like that."
Sophomore outfielder Zaid Walker and senior designated hitter Andrew Morrow blasted home runs in the first inning as the Spartans bolted out to a big lead in the opener inning. Walker was the second batter up after leadoff hitter freshman infielder Trent Farquhar opened the game with a single, and blasted a shot to left. Later in the inning, Morrow came to bat with two Spartans on the bases and belted a home run to almost the same spot, and MSU later added another run for a 6-0 lead in the first half of a frame. Michigan State added a run in the fourth, two in the fifth, two more in the eighth on senior outfielder Joe Stewart's two-run home run, and tacked on a run in the ninth.
"The thing that was really important was even after the six runs in the first, it was a consistent offensive approach and we stayed consistent throughout the game," Boss said. "We just kept grinding and kept scoring, one in the fourth, a couple in the fifth, two in the eighth and one in the ninth. Guys didn't pack it in, they just kept competing and we ended up being fortunate to put a big number on the board."
Redshirt-junior pitcher Mason Erla was again dealing, going 6.0 IP, ringing up six strikeouts, yielding just four hits and one run, stymieing the Scarlet Knights bats, and getting solid defensive play behind him, including a pair of double plays and nice catches in the outfield from Walker in right and senior Bryce Kelley in left. MSU's two DPs in the game pad its B1G lead in double plays, now with 36 on the season.
"On the mound, I thought Mason really competed, and while he probably didn't have his best stuff today, I thought he really gave us a great effort today," Boss said. "It's interesting because it certainly sometime changes the approach when you put up six runs early and try to get ahead in the count. I think Mason really grinded through it a lot today, without some of his best stuff, and so we tried to stay with the fastball more there and get him a good feel for it. Maybe sometimes with the lead you try to do too much, and instead of attacking all the time, you can get a little passive. He threw a lot of pitches in six innings, but at the end of the day, he only gave up one run and while he walked four guys, he struck out six and got deep enough into the game where we felt comfortable at that point taking him out."
The Spartans have won four of their last five, in moving to 16-23 on the season, while the Scarlet Knights suffered their second-straight loss and have lost eight of the last nine, and are now 18-21. MSU's win also snapped a three-game loss in the series with RU, as the Spartans now lead the all-time series, 15-7, and take a 4-3 lead in games played in Piscataway.
With the game time temp at 85, MSU's bats were equally hot, as the Spartans' 12 runs tied a season-high, matching a 12-3 win vs. Northwestern at Fluor Field in Greenville, S.C. on March 13. Michigan State's 15 hits Friday afternoon were its third-highest of the season.
Six Spartans had multiple hits, led by Farquhar going 3-for-5 with two runs scored, while Walker was 2-for-5 with three RBI and Morrow was 2-for-3 with three RBI and a run scored. Freshman infielder Reese Trahey was 2-for-3 with a career-high four RBI, junior catcher Adam Proctor was 2-for-5 with a run scored, knocking a triple, while freshman infielder Mitch Jebb was 2-for-5 with two runs scored. Stewart ended 1-for-4, while Kelley was also 1-for-4 with two runs scored.
Along with Erla's solid outing on the mound, sophomore reliever Burrell Jones took over and pitched 2.0 IP with only one hit and two strikeouts, before freshman reliever Adam Burghorst pitched a scoreless, hitless ninth.
Michigan State erupted out of the gates, hanging a six-spot on the board before Rutgers even had a chance to bat.
Farquhar led off the game with a single and Walker followed by bashing a home run to left for an early 2-0 lead. Two batters later, Jebb singled and advanced to second on an error, then senior infielder Bailey Peterson reached on a fielder's choice, as Jebb beat the throw the third. Two batters later, Morrow mashed his first HR of the season to almost the same spot in left as Walker's round-tripper. The Spartans weren't done as Proctor knocked a triple to center and Trahey singled to drive in Proctor and stake Erla to a 6-0 lead after the first frame.
It was the first time this season that the Spartans homered in the same inning and just the second time they have two home runs in the same game, joining April 18 vs. Purdue when Peterson pummeled a pair of round trippers.
Erla got solid help from his defense all game, starting off in the first inning, turning a 4-6-3 double play to end the frame, as the Spartans added to their B1G lead in turning two.
MSU added to its lead in the top of the fourth, as Trahey drew a one-out walk and after Farquhar reached on an error, Walker knocked a single up the middle the Spartans had a 7-0 advantage.
In the visitor's fifth, Jebb sparked the rally with a leadoff single, and Kelley later followed with a single, chasing RU starter Harry Rutkowski. Morrow greeted RU reliever Ben Gorski with a walk to load the bases. Two batters later, Trehay knocked a laser back up the middle, buzzing the tower on Gorski, and driving in Jebb and Kelley for a 9-0 Spartan lead.
The Scarlet Knights scattered the shutout thoughts by plating a run in the bottom of the fifth, with a walk and single, before Erla slammed the door on any more of a rally with a strikeout.
MSU went up 11-1 in the eighth on a two-run home run by Stewart, his team-leading fourth of the season, with a no-doubter off the bat to left field, nearly the same spot at Walker and Morrow home runs in the opening frame.
The Spartans tacked on a run in the top of the ninth on a sac fly by Trahey, driving in Kelley.
Game two of the series is on Saturday, May 22 with a 1 p.m. first pitch, and the series wraps up on Sunday, May 23 at 12 p.m.
The weekend schedule is subject to change based on weather.
Along with any schedule updates, fans can follow the games with links for live stats, live audio (when available) and live streaming from Big Ten Network+ at MSUSpartans.com.
"Today was a good win all the way around," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "It was huge to jump out to a big lead like that."
Sophomore outfielder Zaid Walker and senior designated hitter Andrew Morrow blasted home runs in the first inning as the Spartans bolted out to a big lead in the opener inning. Walker was the second batter up after leadoff hitter freshman infielder Trent Farquhar opened the game with a single, and blasted a shot to left. Later in the inning, Morrow came to bat with two Spartans on the bases and belted a home run to almost the same spot, and MSU later added another run for a 6-0 lead in the first half of a frame. Michigan State added a run in the fourth, two in the fifth, two more in the eighth on senior outfielder Joe Stewart's two-run home run, and tacked on a run in the ninth.
"The thing that was really important was even after the six runs in the first, it was a consistent offensive approach and we stayed consistent throughout the game," Boss said. "We just kept grinding and kept scoring, one in the fourth, a couple in the fifth, two in the eighth and one in the ninth. Guys didn't pack it in, they just kept competing and we ended up being fortunate to put a big number on the board."
Redshirt-junior pitcher Mason Erla was again dealing, going 6.0 IP, ringing up six strikeouts, yielding just four hits and one run, stymieing the Scarlet Knights bats, and getting solid defensive play behind him, including a pair of double plays and nice catches in the outfield from Walker in right and senior Bryce Kelley in left. MSU's two DPs in the game pad its B1G lead in double plays, now with 36 on the season.
"On the mound, I thought Mason really competed, and while he probably didn't have his best stuff today, I thought he really gave us a great effort today," Boss said. "It's interesting because it certainly sometime changes the approach when you put up six runs early and try to get ahead in the count. I think Mason really grinded through it a lot today, without some of his best stuff, and so we tried to stay with the fastball more there and get him a good feel for it. Maybe sometimes with the lead you try to do too much, and instead of attacking all the time, you can get a little passive. He threw a lot of pitches in six innings, but at the end of the day, he only gave up one run and while he walked four guys, he struck out six and got deep enough into the game where we felt comfortable at that point taking him out."
The Spartans have won four of their last five, in moving to 16-23 on the season, while the Scarlet Knights suffered their second-straight loss and have lost eight of the last nine, and are now 18-21. MSU's win also snapped a three-game loss in the series with RU, as the Spartans now lead the all-time series, 15-7, and take a 4-3 lead in games played in Piscataway.
With the game time temp at 85, MSU's bats were equally hot, as the Spartans' 12 runs tied a season-high, matching a 12-3 win vs. Northwestern at Fluor Field in Greenville, S.C. on March 13. Michigan State's 15 hits Friday afternoon were its third-highest of the season.
Six Spartans had multiple hits, led by Farquhar going 3-for-5 with two runs scored, while Walker was 2-for-5 with three RBI and Morrow was 2-for-3 with three RBI and a run scored. Freshman infielder Reese Trahey was 2-for-3 with a career-high four RBI, junior catcher Adam Proctor was 2-for-5 with a run scored, knocking a triple, while freshman infielder Mitch Jebb was 2-for-5 with two runs scored. Stewart ended 1-for-4, while Kelley was also 1-for-4 with two runs scored.
Along with Erla's solid outing on the mound, sophomore reliever Burrell Jones took over and pitched 2.0 IP with only one hit and two strikeouts, before freshman reliever Adam Burghorst pitched a scoreless, hitless ninth.
Michigan State erupted out of the gates, hanging a six-spot on the board before Rutgers even had a chance to bat.
Farquhar led off the game with a single and Walker followed by bashing a home run to left for an early 2-0 lead. Two batters later, Jebb singled and advanced to second on an error, then senior infielder Bailey Peterson reached on a fielder's choice, as Jebb beat the throw the third. Two batters later, Morrow mashed his first HR of the season to almost the same spot in left as Walker's round-tripper. The Spartans weren't done as Proctor knocked a triple to center and Trahey singled to drive in Proctor and stake Erla to a 6-0 lead after the first frame.
It was the first time this season that the Spartans homered in the same inning and just the second time they have two home runs in the same game, joining April 18 vs. Purdue when Peterson pummeled a pair of round trippers.
Erla got solid help from his defense all game, starting off in the first inning, turning a 4-6-3 double play to end the frame, as the Spartans added to their B1G lead in turning two.
MSU added to its lead in the top of the fourth, as Trahey drew a one-out walk and after Farquhar reached on an error, Walker knocked a single up the middle the Spartans had a 7-0 advantage.
In the visitor's fifth, Jebb sparked the rally with a leadoff single, and Kelley later followed with a single, chasing RU starter Harry Rutkowski. Morrow greeted RU reliever Ben Gorski with a walk to load the bases. Two batters later, Trehay knocked a laser back up the middle, buzzing the tower on Gorski, and driving in Jebb and Kelley for a 9-0 Spartan lead.
The Scarlet Knights scattered the shutout thoughts by plating a run in the bottom of the fifth, with a walk and single, before Erla slammed the door on any more of a rally with a strikeout.
MSU went up 11-1 in the eighth on a two-run home run by Stewart, his team-leading fourth of the season, with a no-doubter off the bat to left field, nearly the same spot at Walker and Morrow home runs in the opening frame.
The Spartans tacked on a run in the top of the ninth on a sac fly by Trahey, driving in Kelley.
Game two of the series is on Saturday, May 22 with a 1 p.m. first pitch, and the series wraps up on Sunday, May 23 at 12 p.m.
The weekend schedule is subject to change based on weather.
Along with any schedule updates, fans can follow the games with links for live stats, live audio (when available) and live streaming from Big Ten Network+ at MSUSpartans.com.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Erla, Mason (5-5)
L: Rutkowski, Harry (2-4)
Batting:
3B: Proctor, Adam 1
HR: Walker, Zaid 1 ; Stewart, Joe 1 ; Morrow, Andrew 1
RBI: Walker, Zaid 3 ; Stewart, Joe 2 ; Morrow, Andrew 3 ; Trahey, Reese 4
SF: Trahey, Reese 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Farquhar, Trent 2 ; Walker, Zaid 1 ; Stewart, Joe 1 ; Jebb, Mitch 2 ; Peterson, Bailey 1 ; Kelley, Bryce 2 ; Morrow, Andrew 1 ; Proctor, Adam 1 ; Trahey, Reese 1
CS: Walker, Zaid 1 ; Trahey, Reese 1
HBP: Morrow, Andrew 1
Batting:
RBI: Schiekofer, Richie 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Welsh, Kevin 1
HBP: Nyisztor, Mike 1
Game Leaders
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AB
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3
RBI
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AB
5
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1
H
2
RBI
3
AB
5
R
2
H
2
RBI
0
AB
3
R
1
H
2
RBI
3
Players Mentioned
RHP
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/ Baseball
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OF/LHP
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IF/OF
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OF/1B
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OF
/ BaseballOF
/ BaseballPursuit to Greatness | Spartans All-Access
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