INDIANAPOLIS – The start of BIG EAST action will get underway this weekend with Butler hosting St. John's at Bulldog Park. Friday's 4 PM first pitch will stream live on BEDN. The final two games of the weekend series will be available on Facebook Live.
 
Weekend Schedule
Friday, April 5 – 4 PM – BEDN
Saturday, April 6 – 2 PM – Facebook Live
Sunday, April 7 – 1 PM – Facebook Live
 
Probable Starters
RHP Ryan Pepiot vs. LHP Joe LaSorsa
RHP Sam Hubbe vs. RHP Sean Mooney
RHP Connor Schultz vs. LHP Jeff Belge
 
BIG EAST Standings
Creighton 14-6
Butler 16-10
St. John's 14-10
Seton Hall 11-13
Xavier 9-19
Georgetown 8-21
Villanova 6-20
 
Scouting St. John's
The defending BIG EAST champions come to Indianapolis with a record of 14-10.  Head Coach Ed Blankmeyer is looking for his sixth BIG EAST title and third consecutive. In 2019, the Red Storm have already recorded impressive non-conference victories against #24 UC Irvine and Kansas (three-game sweep).
 
This series is shaping up to be a pitching battle as St. Johns (41) and Butler (5) are both ranked in the top 50 for lowest ERA in the NCAA. The Red Storm are led by junior lefty Joe LaSorsa, who holds a record of 3-2 on the season. LaSorsa's 1.46 ERA is good for first in the BIG EAST. Junior Sean Mooney (RHP) leads the Red Storm with 41 strikeouts on the season. His 1.58 ERA is good for third in the conference and 51st nationally. Junior left-hander Jeff Belge rounds out the Johnnies rotation. Belge is 1-3 through six starts in 2019. Belge carries a 5.74 ERA and 37 strikeouts into Indianapolis.
 
At the plate St. John's has a solid lineup top to bottom. Catcher Mitchell Henshaw holds a .313 average and has also contributed two home runs and 14 RBI. Designated Hitter Wyatt Mascarella provides some power in the three-hole with a home run and 15 RBI to go along with a .320 average. Centerfielder and cleanup hitter, Sean McGeehan, leads the Red Storm with four home runs.
 
Last Year vs. St. John's
Butler ended the 2018 regular season at St. John's when the Red Storm were ranked No. 12 in the national poll. BU won game two of the weekend series by the final score of 3-0. The Johnnies won game one 4-2 and game three 3-1. These two teams met again in the BIG EAST Tournament. St. John's won that matchup 12-8.
 
Pepiot Puts on a Show
Ryan Pepiot led Butler to victory over #12 St. John's last year by throwing eight shutout innings of baseball. Pepiot limited the Johnnies to just three hits and struck out 10 batters to help Butler earn a spot in the postseason tournament. The save went to Jack Pilcher. Pilcher struck out two of the three batters he faced one year ago.

BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week
Butler junior righty Ryan Pepiot earned the win for the Bulldogs over Southern Illinois on Friday pitching 6.2 innings of a 5-4 victory. Pepiot held opposing batters to a .095 average against him, striking out 12, a season high. He allowed just two hits, one walk and two runs.  The walk, which occurred at the top of the seventh was his first free base in 25 innings pitched.
 
Pepiot Chases Strikeout Record
Ryan Pepiot will attempt to become the career strikeout leader at Butler by the end of the season. The right-handed junior heads into the St. John's series with 248 total strikeouts. The all-time record currently belongs to Pat Neshek who recorded 280 strikeouts at Butler from 2000-02.
 
BIG EAST Opener
Weather impacted last year's start to the BIG EAST season as Butler and Creighton were forced to play a two-game series at SIUE. Butler won game one 6-4, but lost game two 3-2. The Bulldogs won two of three games at Seton Hall in 2017.
 
Best in the Business
Dave Schrage and Ed Blankmeyer each have over 800 career wins as a college baseball head coach. Schrage has 30 years of experience and has recorded 813 wins as a head coach. Blankmeyer has been in charge for 24 years and heads to Indianapolis with 811 career wins.
 
Focused on Freed
Opposing teams will be focused on Harrison Freed in the Butler batting order. Perfect Game recently released their Mid-Season Awards and Freed was tabbed Second Team All-America. The BU junior is leading the BIG EAST in average (.393), hits (42), RBI (33), triples (3), home runs (8), and total bases (76). He ranks second in both slugging percentage (.710) and runs scored (25) and ranks third in on-base percentage (.463).
 
Smith Slides into Lineup
Newcomer Kyle Smith has had a major impact in the lineup this season. The BU lead-off man is batting .306 with a .482 on-base percentage to go along with a .682 slugging percentage. He is tied with Freed for the home run lead both on the team and in the conference with eight. Smith leads the team in runs scored (30) and stolen bases (9).
 
Weekend Arms
Ryan Pepiot, Sam Hubbe and Connor Schultz have been successful for Butler in 2019. Pepiot is the Friday starter with a 2.36 ERA and a team-high 68 strikeouts. Saturday's starter is senior Sam Hubbe. He is 3-1 on the year with a 2.25 ERA. Sunday's starter is Schultz. He is 4-0 this season with a 1.49 ERA. This unit combines for 142 strikeouts and just 36 walks.
 
Butler Bullpen
Jack Myers and Jack Pilcher each have two saves for Butler out of the BU bullpen. Myers is 1-1 this season with a 2.81 ERA. He has the most appearances on the team at 10. Pilcher has two saves in eight total appearances. He has eight strikeouts in just 6.1 innings of work.
 
Couple of Lefties
St. John's will throw two left-handers this weekend. The top Butler bats against southpaws include Harrison Freed and Zach Jarosz. Freed is batting .345 against lefties this year and Jarosz has a .323 average.
 
Get on Base
Brody McGrath leads the team with 20 walks this season. The newcomer has reached base safely in all 26 games this season. Kyle Smith has been hit by a pitch 13 times in 2019. The BU record is 17 times in a single season. Smith has reached base safely in 24-straight games.
 
By the Numbers
Butler is 11-5 this season when they score first and 8-3 when they score in the first inning. A fast start could go a long way as BU has only surrendered two runs all season long in both the second and fourth innings. The Bulldogs are 14-1 this season when leading after six innings. They are just 1-7 when they trail after that point.
 
Hewitt's Not Healthy
Duncan Hewitt has not played since March 17 due to an injury. The BU catcher ranks second on the team with a .333 batting average. He recorded 18 RBI and held a .533 slugging percentage before the injury.
 
Bulldog Bits
- Sam Hubbe needs nine strikeouts to reach 100 in his career
- BU has more home runs at the halfway point of 2019 (23) than they had in all of 2018 (20)
- Jack Myers has thrown 16 innings in 2019 (10 appearances - 2.81 ERA); he threw 4.1 innings in 2018
- Kyle Smith was named BIG EAST Player of the Week on Feb. 18
- Harrison Freed was named BIG EAST and NCBWA Player of the Week on March 3
- Ryan Pepiot was named BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week on March 12 and on April 2
- Connor Schultz was named BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week on March 25
- Pepiot ranks sixth in the NCAA in strikeouts (68)