DAYTON – The University of Dayton baseball team will play a pair of away midweek games. The Flyers will head to West Lafayette to take on undefeated Purdue on Tuesday at 4 p.m. at Alexander Field before hitting the road again on Wednesday in a game against Purdue Fort Wayne at Mastodon Field at 3 p.m.
 
Tuesday's game at Purdue will be broadcast on B1G+ with a paid subscription, and fans can listen in to the game on 104.3 FM WSHY. Both games will feature live stats as well so fans can follow along to the contests.
 
SCOUTING THE FLYERS
The Flyers were scheduled to play six games last week, but due to poor weather in the Dayton area, only two were played with UD dropping both games. Dayton fell on Tuesday at Wright State 14-0 before taking part in a home opener featuring snow on Friday against Milwaukee. UD dropped that game 6-2.
 
Graduate student Henry Strmecki went 4-for-8 between the two games, leading the Flyers with four hits on the week. Juniors Anthony Hattrup and Mark Manfredi each put together strong performances on the mound in the losses.
 
Hattrup got the start against Wright State, allowing just one unearned run in 4.2 innings on the mound and scattering two hits. He struck out five Raiders and did not allow a hit until the fourth inning. Manfredi entered in relief against Milwaukee on Friday, pitching five scoreless innings against the Panthers, allowing just one hit and striking out seven batters, a career high.
 
Junior Keagan Calero leads the Flyers with a .341 batting average and a .471 on-base percentage. Calero also has five stolen bases in 2022 to lead the team. Senior Jay Curtis has also gotten off to a solid start this season, catching all 12 games for UD and hitting .318 with five doubles and eight RBIs. Strmecki is tied with junior Alex Neff with two home runs, while Strmecki leads the Flyers with nine RBIs.
 
Hattrup also leads the Flyers with a 0.79 ERA in 11.1 innings so far this season. Junior Ryan Steinhauer has been Dayton's most consistent starter in terms of strikeouts, leading the team with 17 in three starts this season. Graduate student Andrew Zapka and senior Bryce Hellgeth have been the mainstays of the bullpen for Dayton this season, with Zapka posting a 2.45 ERA in 7.1 innings and Hellgeth striking out nine batters in eight innings.
 
SCOUTING THE BOILERMAKERS
Purdue is undefeated in 2022, posting a perfect 14-0 record to start their season. The Boilermakers have series sweeps of South Dakota State, Princeton, Longwood, and Bellarmine as well as a midweek victory over Charlotte. In the conference preseason poll, the Big Ten only ranked the top six teams with Purdue not being featured as one of those six.
 
The Boilermakers feature three preseason all-conference selections in Mike Bolton, Paul Toetz, and Wyatt Wendall. So far this season, CJ Valdez leads Purdue with a .389 batting average, picking up 14 hits in 11 games. Cam Thompson has been the main run producer in the lineup, leading the team with three home runs and 23 RBIs. Troy Viola also has two home runs and 14 RBIs this season for Purdue.
 
On the mound, Troy Wansing has been one of Purdue's most consistent starters. In three games, Wansing has a 1.64 ERA with 15 strikeouts in 11 innings on the mound. Khal Stephen is tied for the team lead with seven appearances, giving up just two hits in eight innings of work. Stephen is also the only Boilermaker with multiple saves this season.
 
SCOUTING THE MASTODONS
Purdue Fort Wayne will enter Wednesday's contest with a 1-14 record, with the lone win of their season coming in last weekend's series against Saint Louis. The Mastodons took one of two in Sunday's doubleheader after dropping Thursday's series opener.
 
The Horizon League Preseason Poll tabbed Purdue Fort Wayne to finish seventh of seven teams after an 11-35 finish in 2021. Alex Jackson leads the Mastodons with a .271 batting average in 15 games so far this season. Jack Lang has been the main run producer for Purdue Fort Wayne, leading the team with two home runs and nine RBIs.
 
Kyle Maurer leads the Mastodons with a 2.25 ERA in six appearances. Spencer Mitchell has been Purdue Fort Wayne's most consistent starter, posting a 1-1 record with 16 strikeouts in 22 innings. Justin Miller's 20 strikeouts lead the team, while Jacob Myer is the lone Mastodon with a save this season.
 
MATCHUP HISTORY
Tuesday's contest against Purdue will be the first ever meeting between the two schools, whereas the Flyers will play the Mastodons for the sixteenth time, with Dayton owning a 12-3 record against Purdue Fort Wayne.