| Northwestern (5-18) vs. Minnesota (7-13) | |
| Date | Time | Friday, March 27 (3:05 p.m. CST) Saturday, March 28 (3:05 p.m. CST) Sunday, March 29 (1:05 p.m. CST) |
| Location | Sibert Field | Minneapolis, Minn. |
| Media | Live Stats: Live Video: BTN Plus |
| Social | @NUCatsBaseball | @NU_SportsLIVE |
| Notes | Northwestern (PDF) | Minnesota (PDF) |
| Pitching Matchups | Game 1: Matt Portland vs. Ben Meyer Game 2: Joe Schindler vs. Toby Anderson Game 3: Brandon Magallones vs. Tim Shannon |
EVANSTON, Ill. - Northwestern kicks of Big Ten play when it heads to the Twin Cities for the first time since the 2012 season to face Minnesota, beginning Friday, March 27, at 3:05 p.m. CST. The teams will face off on Saturday before wrapping up the series on Sunday, March 29, at 1:05 p.m. All three games will be broadcast live on BTN Plus.
NU continues its road tour after four-game series against UNLV and a pair of midweek games at St. Mary's. The `Cats dropped the series, 1-3, to the Rebels despite a strong offensive effort that saw the squad drive home 31 runs on 61 hits through four games.
Northwestern has yet to play a game at home this season and is 3-10 in true road games. Fifth-year senior Kyle Ruchim leads the team with a .364 batting average and has two of the squad's four home runs. The fifth-year senior went 12-for-30 this past week with four runs and six RBI. Redshirt-senior Scott Heelan (.329) and juniors Zach Jones (.323) and Antonio Freschet (.300) are also hitting at least .300 this season. Jones leads the Wildcats in hits (30) RBI (14) and doubles (11). Four other Wildcats have also recorded 20 or more hits so far this season as Ruchim (28), Heelan (28), sophomore Joe Hoscheit (25) and senior Hunter Reid (22) join Jones in the 20-hit club.
Junior Matt Portland is slated to take the mound in the series opener on Friday. The southpaw is 1-2 on the year and has registered 23 strikeouts in 36 1/3 innings pitched. Sophomore Joe Schindler will back up Portland on the bump in Saturday's contest before senior Brandon Magallones closes out the series on Sunday afternoon. Schindler, who has fanned 25 batters so far this spring, will look for his second with of the year. Magallones holds a 1-3 record in 2015 and ranks second among Big Ten pitchers with 37 strikeouts in 36 innings pitched.
Minnesota lost its first three league games last weekend to Big Ten newcomer Maryland and holds a 7-13 overall record. The squad is led by right fielder and pitcher Matt Fiedler who is batting .403 through 20 games to rank second in the Big Ten. He also has one win, one save and a 1.17 ERA in six appearances in relief. Ben Meyer, who owns a 4.99 ERA, will take the ball for the Gophers in Friday's game before Tim Shannon closes out the series in Minneapolis on Sunday.
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