Baseball finishes .500, drops two in tourney

Pitt baseball broke even this season when it lost in the Big East Tournament in late May to… Pitt baseball broke even this season when it lost in the Big East Tournament in late May to end with a record of 27-27 (15-12 Big East).

The Panthers surpassed their 2006 record of 23-29 and 10-17 Big East and also balanced their home record this past season, finishing 11-11. On the road, Pitt went 10-11 and, in neutral territory, had a 6-5 record.

Pitt head coach Joe Jordano, who has been with the team for nine years, would have liked a winning season instead of a .500 finish, but based on the youth of his team, he can’t complain about its record.

“There were quite a few players that were involved in their first college baseball season,” Jordano said. “You can’t teach experience, you have to live it. It was, with the experience we had, in my opinion, a solid season.”

Jordano had five starting-position players and five key pitchers return this season, along with 16 previous letter winners.

Typically, six underclassmen started, including sophomore catcher Morgan Kielty, freshman first baseman Gary Bucuren, sophomore pitcher Kyle Landis, freshman outfielder Jordan Herr, freshman shortstop Danny Lopez and freshman pitcher Nate Reed.

The Panthers recovered after a rocky start. They lost three in the Coastal Carolina Tournament in South Carolina before losing another three in the Music City Classic in Nashville, Tenn.

The team had its first win against Sacred Heart at the Clearwater Invitational, giving it a 1-8 record. It was the first of six wins in a row for the Panthers.

The team notched five shutouts and swept two series, one against Villanova and the other against Notre Dame.

The Panthers lost their conference opener to South Florida in March but claimed a 6-2 win over then-Big East leader Louisville in a road series. Pitt lost its last regular-season game to Seton Hall, 8-3. Pitt was the fourth seed in the Big East Tournament but lost back-to-back games in the double-elimination tournament.

South Florida beat the Panthers, 2-1, on the tournament’s first day. In the loser’s bracket, Pitt dropped its second game to Connecticut, 5-2.

Seven seniors will leave Pitt’s roster with six rising seniors replacing them for next season.

Senior outfielder Peter Parise finished with 252 career hits, an all-time record for the Panthers.

Starting pitcher Paul Nardozzi broke Pitt’s all-time strikeout record, which previously stood for 39 years, and had a 3.58 ERA and 5-6 record. Nardozzi and Landis were named to the All-Big East Third Team. Landis had a 2.12 ERA.

Senior first baseman Seth Button led Pitt with eight home runs and 31 RBIs. Button also led the team with 63 hits.

Three other Panthers had more than 50 hits for the season – Parise had 59, Sean Conley had 58 and Kielty had 54.

Kielty also notched 30 RBIs while Bucuren had 29. Bucuren and Dan Williams each had five home runs.

Conley led with 11 stolen bases, taking 11 bases in 18 attempts. Lopez followed close behind with 10 and Herr notched nine.

Conley also led the team with 44 runs, followed by Button’s 28.

The starter with the highest batting average was Bucuren with a .319 average, followed closely by Button, who hit .318.

The Panthers will not play together again until fall workouts start in September.

Jordano said that every time he spends four years with a group of guys, it’s hard to see them go.

“In my office, when I recruit, I tell them it’s going to be the greatest four years of your life,” Jordano said. “Hopefully when they leave, they confirm that that’s what it was.”