St. John's and Seton Hall in the 2017 BIG EAST Baseball Championship.
#BIGEASTbase Minute – Two Weekends Left, Two Spots Left
BIG EAST Baseball Update (PDF)
NEW YORK – With two weekends left to play, two spots have been filled by the pair of teams in the top of the standings: St. John’s and Seton Hall. The Pirates clinched last weekend after taking two at Creighton to move to 10-2 in the conference. St. John’s had a BIG EAST bye, but remained in first place at 11-1. The two teams will square off in South Orange this weekend. Also this weekend, Butler hosts Georgetown and Villanova hosts Creighton. Xavier has the bye and will continue with its series at Penn State.
Penn State won Thursday’s opening game 6-5.
Assuming all games played, Georgetown could be the next team to qualify. To clinch, the Hoyas can do it on their own with a series win at Butler. If the Hoyas win one of three games, Georgetown would also need Creighton to lose at least one game. Should Georgetown sweep Butler, the Blue & Gray could be at least the No. 3 seed in the upcoming tournament. Butler can also clinch with a sweep of Georgetown. Should Butler win the series 2-1, the Bulldogs would need Creighton to lose at least one game. All tournament qualification must be approved by the BIG EAST Championship Committee, due to the fact that not all games have been played. Tournament seeding is based on winning percentage.
SERIES NOTES:
No. 17 St. John’s at Seton Hall
The St. John’s-Seton Hall series could potentially determine the regular season champion. St. John’s travels to South Orange with a league record of 11-1, while Seton Hall is just one game back with a mark of 10-2. St. John’s would need to sweep Seton Hall to win the regular season title. The Red Storm has won its last six games, Seton Hall, the last three, including a 2-1 weekend at Creighton. St. John’s and Seton Hall have squared off 148 times dating back to 1956. St. John’s holds a slight 78-70 series advantage over Seton Hall. Last season, the Red Storm won the regular season series 2-1. In the championship in Omaha, St. John’s defeated Seton Hall, 3-2, in the Friday afternoon elimination game. Friday’s contest will be broadcast on BEDN with Dave Popkin and Sean Saint Jacques.
Georgetown at Butler
Georgetown and Butler are currently the last two teams in the championship, if the season ended today. Georgetown needs two wins to qualify for the tournament. Butler can qualify with a series sweep, or with a 2-1 series win, can qualify with at least one Creighton loss. The Hoyas are coming off a sweep of Villanova at home. Georgetown played a doubleheader on Friday against Villanova due to weather issues. The Hoyas won the first game of the doubleheader 8-7, then took the second, 9-3. In a quick turnaround the Hoyas won game three 4-1, a Saturday noon start. Butler picked up a key home series win against Xavier. The Musketeers won game one behind the relief pitching of Matt Kent who went 6.2 innings on 97 pitches, limiting Butler to a .167 batting average for the 9-6 win. Butler won the second game 8-4, Ryan Pepiot got the start and win for the Bulldogs and struck out seven in seven innings. Gehrig Parker iced the game with a three-run homer. Butler won the rubber match 6-4.
Creighton at Villanova
For Creighton, a series sweep could be critical for potentially qualifying for the upcoming tournament. The Bluejays are currently at 5-9 in the league with just the series against the Wildcats left. Villanova has six games to go, and is looking for their first league win so far this season. Creighton won the first game of their home series against Seton Hall, 4-2, but lost the Saturday and Sunday games, 2-1 then 3-0. The Bluejays lead the all-time series with Villanova 12-1. Since becoming league opponents, Creighton leads the series 11-1. Creighton has won the last 10 games. Villanova’s win was on April 17, 2014.
Upcoming in #BIGEASTbase
FRIDAY, May 11
CREIGHTON at VILLANOVA at 3 p.m.
GEORGETOWN at BUTLER at 4 p.m.
No. 17 ST. JOHN’S at SETON HALL at 4:30 p.m. (BEDN)
XAVIER at Penn State at 6:30 p.m.
SATURDAY, May 12
XAVIER at Penn State at 1 p.m.
No. 17 ST. JOHN’S at SETON HALL at 1:30 p.m.
GEORGETOWN at BUTLER at 2 p.m.
CREIGHTON at VILLANOVA at 3 p.m.
No. 17 ST. JOHN’S at SETON HALL at 4 p.m. (approx).
SUNDAY, May 13
GEORGETOWN at BUTLER at 11:30 a.m. (BEDN)
CREIGHTON at VILLANOVA at 1 p.m.
TUESDAY, May 15
Nebraska Omaha at CREIGHTON at 12 p.m.
Minnesota at ST. JOHN’S at 3 p.m.
Northern Kentucky at XAVIER at 3 p.m.
Penn State at VILLANOVA at 3 p.m.
BUTLER at Eastern Mich. At 4 p.m.
U.M.B.C. at GEORGETOWN at 7 p.m.
All times listed are Eastern.