PHILADELPHIA – With just three non-conference midweek contests remaining during the 2024 season, the University of Pennsylvania baseball team looks to complete the home-and-home series with Villanova on a winning note Wednesday afternoon in Plymouth Meeting.
 
First pitch from Villanova Ballpark at Plymouth is set for 3 p.m. as Penn looks to build off a critical Ivy series victory at Yale over the weekend in the final game of the seven-game road trip.
 
GAME 28: Penn (13-14, 5-4 Ivy) at Villanova (7-21, 0-6 Big East)
April 10 | Watch (FloBaseball) | Live Stats
 
Non-Conference Update
With just three non-conference games remaining for the Quakers, Penn is 8-10 in such games so far this year, playing three in the last month, going 2-1 during the span with victories over the Wildcats (3/13) and Lehigh (3/20).
 
The Quakers will finish up the non-conference portion of the home schedule next Wednesday against Saint Joseph's at Tommy Lasorda Field. The matchup with Villanova marks Penn's first outside of Ancient Eight play since March 26 against Delaware after last week's game at SJU was canceled due to inclement weather.
 
Another Series Win
Penn clinched its second Ivy series victory of the 2024 season over the weekend at Yale, taking two out of the three games in New Haven. With that, the Quakers have taken series against both the Bulldogs and Brown to open the year.
 
Henseler Milestone Watch
Wyatt Henseler tied the Ivy League's all-time record for RBIs (164) with a three-run home run Saturday at Yale. On Wednesday at Villanova, he'll have a shot to pass Brown's Matt Kutler '05 for first with just one RBI.
 
At 194, Henseler is also just six hits away from becoming the third Quaker to join the 200-hit club, along with Sean Phelan '19 (200) and Dan Williams '11 (204). Henseler is currently tied for third place with Nick Italiano '03.
 
With 46 doubles, Hensler is currently fourth in program history in that category and four shy of becoming Penn's all-time leader.
 
Putting the cherry on top, five more home runs would give Henseler 50 for his career, which would make him the first Ivy Leaguer to reach the half-century mark.
 
At The Plate
*Penn comes into the new week remaining the Ivy's best hitting team with a batting average of .288. Six regular starters are hitting north of .300 led by Davis Baker (.339), Nick Spaventa (.337), Ryan Taylor (.333), and Henseler (.324). Carson Ozmer (.306) and Asa Wilson (.304) have also crossed that threshold.
 
*Taylor did wonders against Yale to push his average up to third on the team after batting .462 (6-for-13) over the three games. He's currently riding seven-game hitting and reached-base streaks.
 
*Henseler leads the Quakers and the Ivy League in home runs with 13. He also leads the conference in slugging percentage (.781).

*Baker, who laced another triple on Saturday, leads the team and Ivy with three. It's also good enough for 28th in NCAA Division I.
 
On The Mound
*Penn's pitching staff is ranked among the best in the Ivy League, heading into this matchup slotted at second with a 6.93 ERA.
 
*Relievers Carson Ozmer (1-0, 2.82) and Eli Trop (2-1, 3.21) remain the program's most reliable arms out of the bullpen this season, combining for five of the team's six saves. Ozmer has struck out 28 and walked 11 over 22.1 innings of work, while Trop has 19 Ks and eight walks in 14 innings.
 
*It'll be interesting to see who the Quakers put on the mound against the Wildcats on Wednesday. Traditional midweek starter Marty Coyne (0-0, 9.16) tossed 36 pitches in Penn's loss to Yale on Sunday. Familiar arms John Cerwinski (1-1, 9.18), Will Tobin (0-2, 6.48), Edward Sarti (0-0, 11.25) and Jake Moss (2-0, 9.39) all got into the action in the series finale at Bush Field.
 
Scouting Villanova
*The Wildcats have struggled since the last time the Quakers faced them back in March. Villanova enters Wednesday on a seven-game losing skid, having fallen in all six Big East contests thus far. They're 2-12 since falling to Penn, 8-3, on March 13 at Tommy Lasorda Field.
 
*Dylan Dennis (.321) and Jack O'Reilly (.300) lead the 'Cats at the plate this season. Scott Shaw has a team-best six homers with 19 RBIs. Jason Neff has driven in more runs than any of his teammates with 25.
 
*Villanova pitching is giving up 6.27 runs per game in 2024, led by relievers Jake Francis (2-2, 3.04 ERA), Ryan Mintz (0-1, 3.18) and Stephen Turzai (0-0, 3.77).
 
Series History
Penn is looking for its fourth straight victory over Villanova dating back to last season, hoping to sweep the season series for a second straight year.
 
The Wildcats hold a 61-51 series lead in a series that dates all the way back to 1905.
 
Follow The Action
Wednesday's ballgame will be streamed live on FloBaseball with live stats provided.
 
For the latest on Penn baseball, follow @PennBaseball on X (formerly Twitter), @Penn_Baseball on Instagram, and on the web at PennAthletics.com.