Penn State baseball (10-2, 1-1 Big Ten) opened conference play with a Friday doubleheader against Indiana (7-8, 1-1 Big Ten) at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park.

After the Nittany Lions’ bats, led by two home runs by Bryce Molinaro and a pair of grand slams, crushed their way to a 15-9 win in game one, Indiana struck back by run-ruling Penn State in the second game, 17-6.

Game One

The early Friday afternoon start did not affect the Penn State offense, which pounded the Indiana pitching staff into submission.

Ryan DeSanto kicked off the doubleheader on the mound for the Nittany Lions, working around a walk and a single to throw a scoreless first inning.

After Penn State went down quickly in the bottom half, Indiana struck first with a solo home run by TJ Schuyler to go up 1-0. That lead lasted just a few minutes, as Jack Porter responded with one out in the bottom of the second with his second home run of the season to tie it at one.

DeSanto nearly got out of another jam in the third but coughed up a go-ahead two-run double with two out to put the Hoosiers up 3-1. It was their last lead of the game.

A trio of singles in the bottom half by Cohl Mercado, Ryan Weingartner, and Joe Jaconski loaded the bags with one out for Bryce Molinaro, who blasted a grand slam to take a 5-3 lead. A Porter RBI single and Joe Jaconski RBI double got it up to 7-3 after three.

GRAND SLAM!!! Bryce Molinaro's first homer of the year is a big one!

B3 | PSU 5, IU 3#WeAre pic.twitter.com/PVMAHZaD4u

— Penn State Baseball (@PennStateBASE) March 7, 2025

Indiana nearly punched back in the fourth, but DeSanto struck out Korbyn Dickerson with the bases loaded to hold a lead that would explode shortly after.

Two quick outs for Indiana pitcher Gavin Seebold turned into a meltdown in the bottom of the fourth. A walk and a single forced a pitching change before Porter lined another RBI single to left to make it 8-3. Reliever Ryan Rushing would lose total command, walking three straight to force in a pair of runs.

A second pitching change in the inning for Paxton Kling did not work out, as Kling crushed the Nittany Lions’ second grand slam of the game to balloon the lead to 14-3. Kling is one of three players in the nation with seven homers in 11 or fewer games.

GRAND SLAM!!! Kling launches our second slam of the day! His second slam this season!

B4 | PSU 14, IU 3#WeAre pic.twitter.com/GwxDxpcyL7

— Penn State Baseball (@PennStateBASE) March 7, 2025

Ben DeMell came in for Penn State in the fifth, striking out a pair in a scoreless frame. In the bottom half, Molinaro crushed his second home run of the game to go up by 12.

The two teams exchanged a pair of zeroes, setting up Penn State for a seven-inning mercy rule. Unfortunately, the game continued as DeMell and Riley Weatherwax allowed four runs in the seventh to cut the lead to 15-7.

Despite ample opportunities to end the game on its own terms, the Penn State offense cooled off, as Indiana crept closer. Mason Butash pitched the eighth and allowed an infield single before forcing a 5-4-3 double play to end the game, 15-9. DeSanto got his third win of the season, allowing three runs in four innings.

Game Two

Indiana scored the last six runs of game one and used that momentum to bombard Penn State in the nightcap.

Mason Horwat took the mound for Penn State, looking to continue his hot start to the season. Unfortunately for Horway, he didn’t get out of the first inning, allowing four runs in 0.2 innings, taking the eventual loss.

While the Nittany Lions got one back in the bottom half on an RBI forceout by Molinaro, the Hoosier offense gave no mercy to any of the home team’s relievers.

After a scoreless second, Indiana notched two each in the next two innings before scoring four runs on five hits in the fifth to take a 12-1 lead.

After the lead was pushed to 12 in the sixth, Penn State benefitted from a pitching change, as reliever Caleb Koskie hit a batter, walked another, and threw a wild pitch. A Cole Wagner RBI single and Porter sacrifice fly pulled the Nittany Lions back to within 10, 13-3, after six.

Indiana faced a similar situation to Penn State in Game One with an opportunity to end it in the seventh, but a pair of errors and a two-run double by Joe Jaconski extended the ballgame, cutting the deficit to 13-6.

Unlike Penn State in Game One, Indiana added insurance to get the run-rule victory in eight innings. A four-spot in the top half triggered the run rule after the Nittany Lions went quietly in the bottom half, ending 17-6.

Takeaways

• The offense is still legit. Penn State has 24 home runs as a team through 12 games, which sits top-12 in the nation. Even after an off-game by the offense in the second leg of the doubleheader, it’s still averaging 10.4 runs per game, which also sits top-12 in the nation. These bats are going to carry the Nittany Lions anywhere they go.
• The pitching is suspect. Just two outs away from a needed run-rule victory in game one, a band of relievers coughed up six runs in the last three innings to keep Indiana alive and make themselves vulnerable for game two. With three other teams in the Big Ten averaging over ten runs per game, the pitching needs to round into shape for a successful season.

What’s Next?

Penn State will work to win their opening series in conference play at 1 p.m. on Sunday, March 9, in State College against Indiana in the third and final game of the series.