#BIGEASTbase Features Three Sunday Games On BEDN
BIG EAST Baseball Notes (4.27.18)
NEW YORK – The fourth weekend of BIG EAST baseball starts Friday with St. John’s at Xavier, Villanova at Seton Hall and Georgetown at Creighton.
This weekend, the midway point of league play, will have full BEDN coverage for Sunday’s series finale action in all three series. Coverage for St. John’s at Xavier starts at 12 p.m., as does Villanova at Seton Hall. The Georgetown at Creighton series final starts at 1 p.m. on the BIG EAST Digital Network on FOX Sports GO.
While the six teams are competing in league action, Butler, currently ranked third in the league, will play a two-game non-conference series against Illinois State this weekend.
SERIES NOTES
No. 16 St. John’s at Xavier
At 9-0 in league action, winners of the last 12 and 13-1 in the month of April, St. John’s (26-10) will test its winning streak on the road at Xavier (14-27, 3-6). St. John’s has swept its last three BIG EAST series (Georgetown, Creighton, Villanova). Xavier has gone 1-2 against its last three opponents (Creighton, Georgetown and Seton Hall). Dating back to the beginning of the Villanova series, the St. John’s pitching staff has compiled a 1.73 team ERA to go along with a .198 opponent batting average. On the season, St. John’s now ranks second nationally with a team ERA of 2.55. The Red Storm’s mound ranks second in the NCAA in ERA (2.55), third in hits allowed per nine (7.03) and fourth in WHIP (1.12). Xavier is coming off a midweek split against Northern Kentucky and Eastern Kentucky. Xavier took one of three from Creighton last weekend, winning the Sunday game 12-8. Conor Grammes is leading Xavier on a seven-game hit streak. Xavier leads the BIG EAST and ranks 34th nationally with 40 homers. St. John’s owns a 10-6 series advantage over Xavier since 2014. Last season, SJU swept the regular season series in Queens, but XU emerged victorious against St. John’s twice en route to their third BIG EAST Championship in four years. Both Xavier and St. John’s represented the BIG EAST in the NCAA Tournament field last season. Since realignment, the two teams have been the only teams to dance in June.
Villanova at Seton Hall
Villanova (6-26, 0-6) returns to BIG EAST play after a week hiatus. Seton Hall (17-15, 5-1) is looking to continue its recent league success after jumping Butler last weekend in a head-to-head series sweep to take over second place in the conference standings. The rivalry between Villanova and Seton Hall is long with the Pirates leading the series 84-43 all-time. Seton Hall swept Villanova last year at Villanova and allowed just one run over the three-game weekend. SHU has won 13 of the last 15 games in the series. Last year, the series was capped by Zach Prendergast’s no-hitter, a 1-0 Seton Hall victory. Cullen Dana also tossed seven-inning complete-game shutout. Currently, Seton Hall has won eight of its last 11 games. The Pirates are coming off a 10-4 loss against NJIT on Tuesday. Villanova has lost its last seven with the last win 3-2 on the road at Saint Joseph’s on April 11. The Wildcats are 5-5 on the road this season.
Georgetown at Creighton
Creighton (24-11, 3-5) moved into fourth place in the BIG EAST standings last weekend with a 2-1 series victory over Xavier. Georgetown (15-23, 2-4) trails Creighton by one win and sits in fifth place in the BIG EAST standings. Creighton will play its first league series at home at the friendly confines of TD Ameritrade Park Omaha. The Bluejays will play seven-straight games and 10- of their final 14 games at home. CU is 9-1 at home this season, the only loss on March 18 to then-No. 20 Wichita State. Georgetown was on a seven-game winning streak until it was stopped by St. John’s last weekend. Georgetown is coming off an 8-5 non-conference win against La Salle on Wednesday. Creighton is also coming off a midweek victory, the Bluejays defeated in-state rival Nebraska on the road 12-9.
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FRIDAY, April 27
No. 16 ST. JOHN’S at XAVIER at 3 p.m.
VILLANOVA at SETON HALL at 6 p.m.
GEORGETOWN at CREIGHTON at7:30 p.m.
SATURDAY, April 28
VILLANOVA at SETON HALL at 1 p.m.
No. 16 ST. JOHN’S at XAIVER at 1 p.m.
Illinois State at BUTLER at 2 p.m.
GEORGETOWN at CREIGHTON at 7:30 p.m.
SUNDAY, April 29
No. 16 ST. JOHN’S at XAIVER at 12 p.m. (BEDN)
VILLANOVA at SETON HALL at 12 p.m. (BEDN)
GEORGETOWN at CREIGHTON at 1 p.m. (BEDN)
BUTLER at Illinois State at 1 p.m.
TUESDAY, May 1
Saint Peter’s at SETON HALL at 4 p.m.
Iona at ST. JOHN’S at 6 p.m.
Indiana State at BUTLER at 6 p.m.
Mount St. Mary’s at GEORGETOWN at 7 p.m.
WEDNESDAY, May 2
Army West Point at VILLANOVA at 3 p.m.
All times listed are Eastern.