Iowa Baseball Series Preview Against Purdue

Iowa entered last weekend's series against No. 25 Nebraska one victory away from the 30-win plateau, and that hasn't changed after the Hawkeyes got swept by the Cornhuskers in a three-game set.

One victory for Iowa will give the Hawkeyes their fifth straight 30+ win season, but that won't be an easy task against a Boilermakers team that has won a season-best seven consecutive games after sweeping Indiana.

About Iowa

Despite getting swept by Nebraska, Iowa (29-21, 12-15) is ninth in the Big Ten and just one game behind Illinois for eighth. The Hawkeyes offense is their strength, but Iowa's best arm, Maddux Frese, is one of the best pitchers in the Big Ten when he's on top of his game.

Frese is 4-2 with a team-best 3.16 ERA in 13 games (seven starts) this year and will likely start Thursday's series opener or the middle game of the series on Friday. In his last four starts, Frese is 3-1 with a 2.73 ERA and has done a nice job going deep into games.

Iowa's offense is led by senior Gable Mitchell, who leads the Hawkeyes in batting average, runs, hits, triples, RBIs, total bases, and on-base percentage.

About Purdue

Head coach Greg Goff has made steady progress each year at Purdue, but this is unequivocally his best team.

Purdue (35-15, 18-9) has won a season-high seven straight games and eight of its last nine series after sweeping in-state rival Indiana. The Boilermakers are currently tied for fourth in the Big Ten and just one game behind USC for third.

Purdue's three starters -- Zach Erdman, Austin Klug, and Cole Van Assen -- have been solid all year, but Erdman has been the team's best arm as of late. The southpaw has recorded wins in each of his last two outings and has allowed just two runs over his last 12 innings.

As with Iowa, Purdue's offense is its biggest strength. The Hawkeyes have scored 11 or more runs in four of their last five games and have five guys batting over .500.

Purdue's most dangerous bat is Sam Flores. Flores has reached base safely in eight straight games and leads the Boilermakers in at-bats, runs, hits, doubles, home runs, total bases, and RBIs.

Series Schedule

Thursday, May 14th (6:32 p.m. CT)
Friday, May 15th (6:32 p.m. CT)
Saturday, May 16th (1:02 p.m. CT)

All three games are available via the Big Ten Network Plus (BIG+).