In a rematch of last year’s Big Ten Championship, Penn State baseball (33-23, 15-15 Big Ten) could not get revenge for last May, as they fell to Nebraska (31-27, 15-15 Big Ten) in the Big Ten Semifinal, 6-3, ending their season. Despite avoiding the No. 1 seed after they fell to Nebraska earlier in the day, as well as a rest advantage, the Nittany Lions just didn’t have enough.

Penn State took a 3-2 lead in the fourth inning, but a pair of balls that bounced off of Nittany Lion’s gloves got the Cornhuskers a pair of runs soon after and gave them a lead they did not relinquish.

How It Happened

Both teams, worn down by tournament play, were looking to advance without their best pitchers on the bump. Penn State elected to go with a bullpen game, with Ben DeMell making his first start of the season against Nebraska’s Tucker Timmerman, making his fifth start after Nebraska used two of their best starters to beat Oregon earlier in the day.

Penn State got a runner on early in the first on a Paxton Kling hit-by-pitch but stranded him. DeMell pitched a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom half, including a strikeout to end the inning.

After a Timmerman 1-2-3 inning, DeMell got in a serious jam in the second. A walk started the rally, followed by back-to-back infield singles on perfectly placed bunts to load the bases with nobody out. A slow ground ball off the bat of Devin Nunez that led to a forceout at home and a strikeout put DeMell on the brink of escaping unscathed, but Hogan Helligso grounded one through the left side for a two-run single to put Nebraska up 2-0 after two.

Derek Cease led off the third with a single and got to second base on a wild pitch and was at risk of being stranded after two pop-ups, but ol’ reliable showed up once again for the Nittany Lions, as Kling roped an RBI double to left-center field to bring a run in and cut the deficit to 2-1.

Matthew VanOstenbridge took over for Penn State in the bottom half of the third and didn’t have great command, plunking a pair of Cornhuskers and giving up a jam shot single to get in another bases-loaded jam with two out. This time, Penn State got out unscathed, as Dylan Carey popped out in foul territory to end the third.

The clutch pitching was immediately rewarded in the fourth, as Jesse Jaconski tied the ballgame up at two with a game-tying home run to left field, his 12th of the season. After a long flyout by Ryan Weingartner, Matt Maloney scorched a ball into the Nittany Lions’ bullpen, giving them a 3-2 lead with his fourth home run of the season. That forced Timmerman out of the game, but Drew Christo got out of the inning with no problem.

Matt Maloney!!! He sends this one into the PSU bullpen! His 4th of the year!

T4 | PSU 3, NEB 2#WeAre pic.twitter.com/DxEQwozne0

— Penn State Baseball (@PennStateBASE) May 24, 2025

Unfortunately, the lead was short-lived. VanOstenbridge struck out the first batter of the fourth, but a bloop single and a single through the right side put two on before Riley Silva lifted a fly ball to right-center field. A miscommunication between Kling and Cohl Mercado led to the ball dropping for an RBI double to tie the game.

Anthony Steele came on with two in scoring position and one out but allowed the go-ahead run to score on an RBI groundout before getting out of the inning, with Nebraska leading 4-3 after four.

Bryce Molinaro singled with two out in the fifth and put himself in scoring position with his eighth stolen base of the year, but Jesse Jaconski grounded out to end the inning. Steele made quick work of the Cornhuskers with a 1-2-3 inning to send it to the sixth.

Nate Voss worked a two-out walk in the sixth but was stranded, as Christo was in full control. Steele gave up a ground-rule double to start the bottom of the sixth, but the senior gritted his teeth and kept Nebraska off the scoreboard, despite his pitch count going over 40.

Mercado led off the seventh with a double down the left-field line, giving Penn State three cracks at bringing home the tying run. After a baffling bunt attempt by Joe Jaconski popped up for the first out, Nebraska made a pitching change. Against Nebraska’s closer, Luke Broderick, Kling worked a walk and Molinaro grounded out to bring up Jesse Jaconski with two in scoring position with two out, but he struck out swinging to end the best threat since the fourth.

Dimond Loosli got the ball on the other end of the seventh-inning stretch, trying to keep it in range. After an overturned call at first base for an out, a single and a back-breaking two-run homer by Gabe Swansen gave Nebraska a 6-3 lead. The game almost got out of hand after a two-out single and double put two in scoring position, but Loosli got a strikeout to end the inning.

Weingartner led off the eighth with a walk, and Maloney singled to quickly bring the tying run to the plate with nobody out. Unfortunately, the struggles with runners in scoring position continued, as Broderick struck out two and got an inning-ending groundout.

Chase Renner pitched the bottom of the eighth, and the redshirt sophomore continued his recent dominance with a 1-2-3 inning. In the ninth, the top of the order came up for the last licks. While Kling singled and Jesse Jaconski walked to bring up the tying run, Broderick gritted out an eight-out 64-pitch save and ended the Nittany Lions’ season with Weingartner barely missing a game-tying home run with a flyout to the warning track in right field.

Takeaways

• The difference was hitting with runners on. Nebraska went 8-for-18 with runners on base and 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position. Penn State went 2-for-17 and 1-for-11, respectively.
• If that’s it for Paxton Kling in the blue and white, it was a memorable season that will go down in Nittany Lions history. After an RBI double today, he finished his junior year hitting .355 with 13 home runs, 54 RBI, 30 extra-base hits, and 15 stolen bases. Last week, he became the first Penn State player named to the All-Big Ten First Team since Matthew Wood in 2022. He still has one year of eligibility, but he is likely to become one of the highest-drafted Penn State players in recent history at this year’s MLB Draft in July.
• Although they couldn’t get back to the title game, Penn State baseball continued its positive momentum this season, notching its most wins in a single season since 2000. With the success of guys like Kling, Ryan DeSanto, and Ryan Weingartner, Penn State under Mike Gambino will continue to be a destination for promising transfers.
• The inconsistencies of the pitching staff were the Achilles’ heel of the team for most of the regular season, but they stepped up in Omaha. They allowed just 10 runs in three games and did everything they could to continue this Cinderella run.

What’s Next

Penn State missed its opportunity at an automatic bid for the NCAA Tournament. Without a resume for an at-large bid, its season is over. It is on to the offseason for Gambino and the rest of the program.