Rutgers gets first Big Ten tourney win, 10-3 over Purdue

OMAHA, Neb. (AP) — Freshman Josh Kuroda-Grauer's two-run single capped a five-run seventh inning and second-seeded Rutgers beat seventh-seeded Purdue 10-3 on Wednesday in the Big 10 Tournament.

Four walks in the seventh broke a 3-3 tie before Tony Santa Maria singled in a run, Richie Schiekofer plated a run with a ground out and Kuroda-Grauer ripped a single into left.

The Scarlet Knights (42-14), who set a school record for regular-season wins and are making their first tournament appearance since joining the Big Ten in 2015, face No. 6 seed Penn State in the second round on Friday. Purdue (29-20) goes against No. 3 seed Iowa, which lost to the Nittany Lions earlier.

Ryan Lasko homered in the first inning and Mike Nyisztor hit a two-run double in the second for Rutgers, which leads the nation in scoring at 9.7 runs a game. Evan Sleight, who had a bases-loaded walk in the seventh, added a two-run double in the eighth.

Purdue got three runs in the second inning on a two-run homer from Cam Thompson and a fielder's choice by Steve Ramirez.

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