Hurricanes Take On Penn State
March 25, 2004
The fifth-ranked Miami Hurricanes host Penn State in a three-game series at Mark Light Field beginning Friday, March 26, at 7 p.m. The series continues on Saturday, March 27, at 7 p.m. with the series finale slated for 1 p.m. Sunday, March 28.
Friday night’s game will be broadcast on Miami’s flagship station, WQAM (560 AM). UM’s student voice of the Hurricanes, WVUM (90.5 FM), will carry all three games over the weekend.
Miami (19-5) is coming off of a tough 5-4 loss to Florida International on Wednesday and looking to bounce back.
Penn State enters the weekend series with an 8-6 record, including a 6-1 mark in road games. The Nittany Lions have faced a tough schedule this season that includes the likes of Notre Dame, Virginia and Richmond.
Dan Touchet has regained his Friday night starting role with an outstanding 2004 season. Just over a year removed from Tommy John surgery, Touchet is 4-0 on the season with a 2.05 ERA. Penn State will counter with RHP Sean Stidfole (1-1, 3.44 ERA).
Saturday night features UM’s hard-throwing Cesar Carrillo. The sophomore is 3-0 on the season with a 2.74 ERA. The Nittany Lions will send right-handed pitcher Jim Farrell to the hill. Farrell is 2-2 on the season with 5.96 ERA. He leads the team in innings pitched with 22.2.
The series finale on Sunday will pit UM’s junior Brandon Camardese (2-0, 2.55 ERA) with Penn State’s Clayton Hamilton (2-1, 6.05 ERA). Camardese was reinstated to the Hurricanes’ squad on Wednesday, March 24, after serving a three-game suspension for a violation of team rules. Hamilton has made five starts for PSU, recording 20 strikeouts and nine walks.
UM is hitting an impressive .331 entering the series with a team slugging percentage of .544. UM has also stolen 74 bases on the season at a clip of 3.08 per game, which ranks fourth in Hurricanes’ history. Miami’s pitching staff has a team ERA of 3.52.
Penn State is hitting .266 as a team with six home runs through 14 games. The Nittany Lions’ pitching staff sports a 4.61 team ERA with opponents hitting .279 against them.
