Saturday, March 30
McLane Stadium at Kobs Field | East Lansing, Mich.
3:35 PM
Michigan State University
11-14, 2-3
5
vs
2
Rutgers
19-8, 1-1
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Rutgers
0
0
0
0
1
1
0
0
0
2
8
0
Michigan State
0
0
3
0
0
1
1
0
X
5
6
1
Photo by: MSU Baseball Social Squad
Spartans Spear Scarlet Knights, 5-2, Saturday
3/30/2024 7:46:00 PM | Baseball
Frank’s 3-run HR sparks offense while Powers and Mishoulam stymie RU’s bats.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Jack Frank's bat and the arms of Nick Powers and Aaron Mishoulam sparked Michigan State baseball to a 5-2 spearing of the Scarlet Knights Saturday afternoon at a damp McLane Stadium at Kobs Field.
After pre-game rain rolled through the East Lansing area, MSU and RU played their second game of the Spartans' three-game Big Ten Conference home-opening series in drizzly and damp conditions. The weather was unsuccessful in slowing down the Spartans from leveling the series at a game apiece after Friday's tough 4-2 loss in which MSU led early and RU rallied late.
"We have had a couple of tough losses, I think we have had the lead in the 7th or 8th in almost every Big Ten game that we've played this year, and we're 2-3. So to be able to finish the job today was very encouraging," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "I'm proud of our guys for having short memories. I don't think we swung the bats great today, but we were pretty efficient when we did get guys on base, so as long as you score one more than they do, it's a good thing."
Saturday's Victory for MSU moves to the Spartans to 11-14 overall and 2-3 in B1G play. Rutgers now has a 19-8 overall and 1-1 in B1G ledger.Â
The Spartans have now beaten the Scarlet Knights in four of the last five and six of the last nine overall meetings. MSU won last year's series at Piscataway, two games to one, and then the Spartans knocked off the Scarlet Knights in last season's B1G Tournament. MSU now leads the all-time series, 20-10 overall, including 13-8 at Big Ten foes.Â
Senior outfielder Jack Frank jacked a three-run home run over the right-field wall and into the Red Cedar River in the third inning for another early Spartan advantage at 3-0.Â
"Unfortunately it doesn't change that much, I think I try to approach the day and every at bat the same way whether it's good or bad, you can't be result-oriented, and we talk about that a lot," Frank said about his approach of bouncing back from Friday's tough game. "Yesterday wasn't as good of a day for me, but at the end of the day, that's just baseball, and that's kind of how it goes, so I approach it the same every time. I know what I'm good at, I know what maybe some of my weaknesses are but, just keep doing the same thing day in and day out and I think good outcomes come to you. You can get yourself in trouble if you try changing something every time something goes bad.Â
"I really believe in that; I think all the guys on this team believe in that and I think that's what makes us a really good offense and a really good team, not afraid of failure, yesterday being a bad day, so what. You know you get up today, do the same thing and today goes your way a little bit better. That's how I feel, and I think that the whole team has taken on that mindset."
The Scarlet Knights got on the board with a run in the fifth and added another in the sixth to cut the MSU margin to 3-2, but it was short-lived as the Spartans plated a run in the sixth and another in the seventh for the final margin.
Frank finished 2-for-4 with four RBI and a run scored, adding a ribbie in the seventh on a single. Sophomore infielder Randy Seymour was 1-for-3 with an RBI, while graduate catcher Sam Thompson was 1-for-2 with two runs scored. Junior designated hitter Christian Williams was 1-for-3 with a run scored, while freshman infielder Ryan McKay was 1-for-4. Freshman outfielder and leadoff hitter Landen Lozier drew three walks and scored a run.Â
Meanwhile, senior starting pitcher Nick Powers went 7.0 IP, spraying seven hits while yielding just two runs to RU, with one walk and two strikeouts.
"Nick was great today," Boss said. "He was really good, he gave us everything he had, he was starting to get tired, started to tighten up, it's a little chilly today, but we ended up running him out for one more and he was really good, throwing pitches for strikes, that's what Nick does."
Powers' performance resonated beyond Coach Boss, but also to his teammates.
"I'm not surprised. I feel like I've seen it a million times," Frank said about the solid outing by Powers. "Just "Steady Eddie" is what I always say. You know what you're getting. He's going to show up, he's going to do his thing every time. It doesn't look like the most impressive thing in the world, he's not throwing 95, but he finds a way and he gets people out and he knows how to pitch. I think something that he does really well is he knows exactly what he's good at. He knows exactly what he needs to do to get people out, not trying to be somebody he's not. I'm not surprised. Every time he takes the ball, that's what I think is going to happen and this year it's been that over and over and over, and it's great to see."
Senior reliever Aaron Mishoulam took over in the eighth and went the final 2.0 IP in ringing up three strikeouts and allowing just one hit to earn his first save as a Spartan.
After a scoreless first two frames of the game, Michigan State blasted onto the scoreboard with Frank's 3-run home run deep over the wall in right and into the Red Cedar River. Thompson sparked the rally with a walk and Lozier likewise walked, and two batters later, Frank jacked his third HR of the season, but first of the year coming at home.
Â
Rutgers got a run back in the fifth on a solo HR and another in the sixth on a sacrifice fly to close to 3-2.
Â
MSU re-took the two-run lead at 4-2 with a run in the home half of the sixth as C.Williams led off with a single, moved to second after a McKay bunt single. After a sacrifice bunt by junior outfielder Nick Williams moved C.Williams to third, Seymour flew out to right center for the sac fly and insurance run.
In the seventh, Thompson ignited the rally with a double to the gap in left center. Lozier followed with another walk, and Thompson moved to third on a groundout, before Frank singled to drive Thompson in to score for a 5-2 Spartan lead.
Mishoulam worked a 1-2-3 eighth inning, and then worked around a one-out single and two-out error to get two Scarlet Knight baserunners on. However, Mishoulam slammed the door on an RU rally by ringing up his third strikeout of the stanza to secure the Victory for MSU, sparking the Spartan celebration.
MSU and Rutgers meet in the rubber match of the B1G home-opening series Sunday with a 1:05 p.m. first pitch.
"We'll need to have kind of the same approach as today. They are very good, that's a good team over there, their bullpen is really good, and starting pitching is very good," Boss said. "We need to take advantage of opportunities when we do get them. We're going to have to do the same thing tomorrow, we can't give them free bases, and have to play clean on our end defensively and take advantage of the opportunities when we get them."
Fans can follow this week's action with "Watch Live," "Listen Live" and "Live Stats" links at MSUSpartans.com.Â
The schedule is subject to change based on weather.
---------
For the first time ever, Michigan State baseball fans have the ability to purchase season tickets.
Season tickets packages are on sale through the Spartan Ticket Office. The MSU baseball season ticket package, which includes 24 home games at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field, is available for $50.Â
All ticket levels for seniors, adults and children are the same price. Admission remains free for all Michigan State students by showing their MSU ID at the entry gate.
The 2024 Spartan baseball season includes Big Ten match-ups against Rutgers, Penn State and Nebraska, along with regional clashes with Central Michigan, Oakland and Notre Dame, in addition to giving fans admission to all three home games of baseball Rivalry Week against Michigan.
Individual game tickets will go on sale later this spring.
Fans can contact the Spartan Ticket Office at 517-355-1610 or by email at tickets@msu.edu for questions or more information. A direct link to purchase season tickets is here.
Â
After pre-game rain rolled through the East Lansing area, MSU and RU played their second game of the Spartans' three-game Big Ten Conference home-opening series in drizzly and damp conditions. The weather was unsuccessful in slowing down the Spartans from leveling the series at a game apiece after Friday's tough 4-2 loss in which MSU led early and RU rallied late.
"We have had a couple of tough losses, I think we have had the lead in the 7th or 8th in almost every Big Ten game that we've played this year, and we're 2-3. So to be able to finish the job today was very encouraging," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "I'm proud of our guys for having short memories. I don't think we swung the bats great today, but we were pretty efficient when we did get guys on base, so as long as you score one more than they do, it's a good thing."
Saturday's Victory for MSU moves to the Spartans to 11-14 overall and 2-3 in B1G play. Rutgers now has a 19-8 overall and 1-1 in B1G ledger.Â
The Spartans have now beaten the Scarlet Knights in four of the last five and six of the last nine overall meetings. MSU won last year's series at Piscataway, two games to one, and then the Spartans knocked off the Scarlet Knights in last season's B1G Tournament. MSU now leads the all-time series, 20-10 overall, including 13-8 at Big Ten foes.Â
Senior outfielder Jack Frank jacked a three-run home run over the right-field wall and into the Red Cedar River in the third inning for another early Spartan advantage at 3-0.Â
Jack Frank's 393-ft home run into the Red Cedar!
— Michigan State Baseball (@MSUBaseball) March 30, 2024
#GoGreen | @jackf_22 pic.twitter.com/pMOpCzkIWf
"Unfortunately it doesn't change that much, I think I try to approach the day and every at bat the same way whether it's good or bad, you can't be result-oriented, and we talk about that a lot," Frank said about his approach of bouncing back from Friday's tough game. "Yesterday wasn't as good of a day for me, but at the end of the day, that's just baseball, and that's kind of how it goes, so I approach it the same every time. I know what I'm good at, I know what maybe some of my weaknesses are but, just keep doing the same thing day in and day out and I think good outcomes come to you. You can get yourself in trouble if you try changing something every time something goes bad.Â
"I really believe in that; I think all the guys on this team believe in that and I think that's what makes us a really good offense and a really good team, not afraid of failure, yesterday being a bad day, so what. You know you get up today, do the same thing and today goes your way a little bit better. That's how I feel, and I think that the whole team has taken on that mindset."
The Scarlet Knights got on the board with a run in the fifth and added another in the sixth to cut the MSU margin to 3-2, but it was short-lived as the Spartans plated a run in the sixth and another in the seventh for the final margin.
Frank finished 2-for-4 with four RBI and a run scored, adding a ribbie in the seventh on a single. Sophomore infielder Randy Seymour was 1-for-3 with an RBI, while graduate catcher Sam Thompson was 1-for-2 with two runs scored. Junior designated hitter Christian Williams was 1-for-3 with a run scored, while freshman infielder Ryan McKay was 1-for-4. Freshman outfielder and leadoff hitter Landen Lozier drew three walks and scored a run.Â
Meanwhile, senior starting pitcher Nick Powers went 7.0 IP, spraying seven hits while yielding just two runs to RU, with one walk and two strikeouts.
"Nick was great today," Boss said. "He was really good, he gave us everything he had, he was starting to get tired, started to tighten up, it's a little chilly today, but we ended up running him out for one more and he was really good, throwing pitches for strikes, that's what Nick does."
Powers' performance resonated beyond Coach Boss, but also to his teammates.
"I'm not surprised. I feel like I've seen it a million times," Frank said about the solid outing by Powers. "Just "Steady Eddie" is what I always say. You know what you're getting. He's going to show up, he's going to do his thing every time. It doesn't look like the most impressive thing in the world, he's not throwing 95, but he finds a way and he gets people out and he knows how to pitch. I think something that he does really well is he knows exactly what he's good at. He knows exactly what he needs to do to get people out, not trying to be somebody he's not. I'm not surprised. Every time he takes the ball, that's what I think is going to happen and this year it's been that over and over and over, and it's great to see."
Senior reliever Aaron Mishoulam took over in the eighth and went the final 2.0 IP in ringing up three strikeouts and allowing just one hit to earn his first save as a Spartan.
After a scoreless first two frames of the game, Michigan State blasted onto the scoreboard with Frank's 3-run home run deep over the wall in right and into the Red Cedar River. Thompson sparked the rally with a walk and Lozier likewise walked, and two batters later, Frank jacked his third HR of the season, but first of the year coming at home.
Â
Rutgers got a run back in the fifth on a solo HR and another in the sixth on a sacrifice fly to close to 3-2.
Â
MSU re-took the two-run lead at 4-2 with a run in the home half of the sixth as C.Williams led off with a single, moved to second after a McKay bunt single. After a sacrifice bunt by junior outfielder Nick Williams moved C.Williams to third, Seymour flew out to right center for the sac fly and insurance run.
In the seventh, Thompson ignited the rally with a double to the gap in left center. Lozier followed with another walk, and Thompson moved to third on a groundout, before Frank singled to drive Thompson in to score for a 5-2 Spartan lead.
Jack Frank with an RBI single to put the Spartans up 5-2!#GoGreen | @JackF_22 pic.twitter.com/bRiUty7JsL
— Michigan State Baseball (@MSUBaseball) March 30, 2024
Mishoulam worked a 1-2-3 eighth inning, and then worked around a one-out single and two-out error to get two Scarlet Knight baserunners on. However, Mishoulam slammed the door on an RU rally by ringing up his third strikeout of the stanza to secure the Victory for MSU, sparking the Spartan celebration.
VICTORY FOR MSU!!!
— Michigan State Baseball (@MSUBaseball) March 30, 2024
High fives and handshakes all around!!!
Final score:
Michigan State 5, Rutgers 2
Rubber match of 3-game @B1Gbaseball home-opening series Sunday at 1 pm.#VictoryForMSU pic.twitter.com/UANuGobDPe
MSU and Rutgers meet in the rubber match of the B1G home-opening series Sunday with a 1:05 p.m. first pitch.
"We'll need to have kind of the same approach as today. They are very good, that's a good team over there, their bullpen is really good, and starting pitching is very good," Boss said. "We need to take advantage of opportunities when we do get them. We're going to have to do the same thing tomorrow, we can't give them free bases, and have to play clean on our end defensively and take advantage of the opportunities when we get them."
Fans can follow this week's action with "Watch Live," "Listen Live" and "Live Stats" links at MSUSpartans.com.Â
The schedule is subject to change based on weather.
---------
For the first time ever, Michigan State baseball fans have the ability to purchase season tickets.
Season tickets packages are on sale through the Spartan Ticket Office. The MSU baseball season ticket package, which includes 24 home games at McLane Stadium at Kobs Field, is available for $50.Â
All ticket levels for seniors, adults and children are the same price. Admission remains free for all Michigan State students by showing their MSU ID at the entry gate.
The 2024 Spartan baseball season includes Big Ten match-ups against Rutgers, Penn State and Nebraska, along with regional clashes with Central Michigan, Oakland and Notre Dame, in addition to giving fans admission to all three home games of baseball Rivalry Week against Michigan.
Individual game tickets will go on sale later this spring.
Fans can contact the Spartan Ticket Office at 517-355-1610 or by email at tickets@msu.edu for questions or more information. A direct link to purchase season tickets is here.
Â
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Powers, Nick (4-2)
L: Christian Coppola (4-2)
S: Mishoulam, Aaron (1)
Batting:
2B: Ty Doucette 1
HR: Johnny Volpe 1
RBI: Pete Durocher 1 ; Johnny Volpe 1
SF: Pete Durocher 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Tony Santa Maria 1 ; Johnny Volpe 1
Batting:
2B: Seymour, Randy 1 ; Thompson, Sam 1
HR: Frank, Jack 1
RBI: Frank, Jack 4 ; Seymour, Randy 1
SH: Kark, Dillon 1 ; Williams, Nick 1
SF: Seymour, Randy 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Lozier, Landen 1 ; Frank, Jack 1 ; Williams, Christian 1 ; Thompson, Sam 2
HBP: Williams, Christian 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
AB
4
R
1
H
2
RBI
4
AB
3
R
1
H
1
RBI
0
AB
4
R
0
H
1
RBI
0
AB
3
R
0
H
1
RBI
1
Players Mentioned
OF
/ Baseball
INF
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
LHP
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
C
/ BaseballC
/ Baseball
OF
/ BaseballPursuit to Greatness | Spartans All-Access
Monday, May 19
Jake Boss | Baseball Press Conference | April 17, 2025
Thursday, April 17
Jake Boss | Baseball Press Conference | Mar. 25 2025
Tuesday, March 25
Jake Boss | Baseball Press Conference | Mar. 11 2025
Tuesday, March 11