Penn State baseball (21-20, 7-11 Big Ten) fell 9-1 to Navy (26-20, 15-10 Patriot League) on Sunday afternoon in Annapolis, Maryland.

It looked like a pitcher’s duel was underway until the Midshipmen scored six runs in the fourth inning. It paved the way for a Penn State loss, as the Nittany Lions couldn’t overcome the steep deficit.

How It Happened

Bobby Marsh sent a fly ball to the warning track to start the game, but it died before it would’ve sailed over the wall. Jaden Henline took the mound in the bottom of the first inning and struck out one en route to a scoreless frame. 

Penn State once again threatened, with Tayven Kelley nearly hitting a homer in the top of the second inning. Navy got a run when Anthony Fiallo reached on a fielder’s choice, and Andrew Manning got home off an error.

After a scoreless third inning, the Midshipmen were back in business in the fourth. With two runners on base, Fiallo reached on another error and Logan Keller scored. Hudson Lehnertz singled two batters later, scoring another two runs to make it 5-0. Another fielding error let Eduardo Diaz reach base, and another run scored off the play. Diaz scored three batters later off of a wild pitch. Keller then hit an RBI single for the inning’s last run to make it 7-0.

Meanwhile, all of Penn State’s hitters went down swinging in a one-two-three top of the fifth inning. Navy would’ve also suffered the same fate if Lehnertz hadn’t hit a single.

Brock Murtha homered to make it 8-0 in the bottom of the sixth inning. With two outs in the eighth inning, Navy loaded the bases. Evan Brown singled to drive in a run, making it 9-0.

Matt Maloney doubled in the top of the ninth to score Bryce Molinaro, and Penn State was finally on the board. It was too little too late, and the Nittany Lions fell 9-1 in Annapolis.

Takeaways

• Penn State’s defense was atrocious. Several errors led to runs, as poor execution has consistently been a problem for this team. It’s something Mike Gambino has talked about at length throughout the season, but today’s game feels like a step backward.
• The bats were remarkably quiet until it was too late. Navy is a good baseball team, but Penn State’s offense is good, too. It was oddly a quiet day on that front.

What’s Next?

Penn State takes the country roads to West Virginia for a one-game series against the Mountaineers at 7 p.m. on Tuesday, May 8, in Morgantown, West Virginia. The game will be televised on ESPN 2.