Penn State baseball (21-19, 7-11 Big Ten) eased past Georgetown (29-16, 10-4 Big East) 7-2 on Friday in Annapolis, Maryland.

Backed by a strong performance from Travis Luensmann on the mound, Penn State’s bats went off to pull off a resounding win on the road.

How It Happened

Georgetown pitcher Everett Catlett got the start to begin the game. Luensmann fanned two batters and got the third out on a ground ball to end the inning.

Catlett’s luck ran thin in the second inning. Grant Norris led off with a double, and after advancing to third base, was driven in two batters later when Bobby Marsh hit a sacrifice fly to make it 1-0 Nittany Lions.

After a scoreless third inning, Penn State got on the board again. Norris’ impressive day continued with a triple, which scored JT Marr to make it 2-0.

The Hoyas evened the score in the bottom of the fourth inning. Luensmann had already secured two outs when Michael Eze and Jake Hyde got on base. They both scored off reigning Big East player of the week Christian Ficca’s double to tie it 2-2.

Andrew Williams replaced Catlett in the sixth inning. Adam Cecere hit a double, which scored Marr. Cecere advanced to third base on a wild pitch, then he scored when Norris hit his second double of the game to make it 4-2. Williams was swiftly replaced by Cody Bowker, who, despite allowing two baserunners, got the Hoyas out of the inning.

Penn State kept its foot on the gas pedal in the seventh inning. Marr’s single scored Derek Cease, and Cecere drove in Marr with another single to make it 6-2.

Another run in the ninth inning made it 7-2, as Marr had another RBI that again scored Cease. Mason Horwat closed out the Hoyas in the bottom of the ninth to secure a Penn State win.

Takeaways

• Luensmann was the unsung hero of today’s game. He had a season-high nine strikeouts over seven innings, which more often than not kept the Hoyas at bay.
• Norris was terrific. His two doubles and a triple with an RBI were instrumental in the win.
• Marr also had a standout performance. Today was his eighth three-hit game and 14th multi-RBI game of the season.

What’s Next

Penn State has a two-game series against Navy starting at 6 p.m. on Saturday, May 4, in Annapolis, Maryland.