Penn State Baseball Falls To Pitt 11-7
Penn State baseball (15-33, 8-19 Big Ten) fell to Pitt (29-21, 10-17 ACC) 11-7 after a slow start on Tuesday night.
The Nittany Lions let up 10 runs in the first three innings. The team went on a huge home run streak in the fourth inning, but only scored one run after the sixth. The pitching picked up in the second half of the game, but the offense couldn’t make up for the poor performance in the early innings.
How It Happened
Jayden Davis started at bat for the Nittany Lions, hitting a double. Penn State followed it with three straight outs. Mason Butash started on the bump and had a slow start. He threw a flyout and a walk until Lorenzo Carrier hit a double to center field. Pitt hit a base hit to score, along with a man on third and first. The Panthers continued their rally and had another base hit to go up 2-0.
Pitt then stole a base to second, and Butash threw another walk to make the bases loaded. Butash was taken out in just the first inning for Frankie Sanchez, who immediately gave up two more runs for the Panthers. Penn State finally caught two foul balls to finish the inning, but Pitt jumped out to an early 4-0 lead.
Penn State got on the board in the second inning after a sacrifice fly. Jesse Jaconski scored the first run for the Nittany Lions, but the team committed its third out after. Penn State started the bottom of the second strong with a great home plate stop, but Pitt scored a three-run single with two outs. Harrison Lollin subbed in for Sanchez, making him the third pitcher to play in two innings.
Pitt capitalized on a bases-loaded opportunity, making it an 8-1 game going into the third inning.
Penn State opened the third with two outs, but Bryce Molinaro hit a solo home run to get the Nittany Lions back on the board.
Jaconski ended the inning after getting out on a grounder. Penn State changed pitchers for the third time to start the bottom of the third. Robert Brown III stepped in for the Nittany Lions. Trey Fenderson hit a single through left field, which led to Lorenzo scoring another run for Pitt from second base. Pitt scored another run on a sacrifice fly ball, reaching 10 runs in just the third inning.
Penn State kicked off the fourth inning with two back-to-back one-run home runs. Spencer Barnett and Avery Smith helped Penn State stay in the game early on.
Davis then hit a two-run home run right after to make it a four-run game after being down eight. Pitt subbed out pitcher Freddy Beruvids Jr. for Daniel McAuliff. The Nittany Lions had a huge momentum boost, showing their strength in hitting. After playing four pitchers in three innings, the team had to rely on offense. The inning ended after the home-run streak, but Penn State narrowed its deficit after a slow start.
Pitt was scoreless in the fifth inning, and Penn State started with another solo home run. Barnett hit his second, making it a three-run difference.
The Nittany Lions also did not score in the sixth inning. Brown III has allowed three hits, and two batters have walked since the third inning, but Ethan Bauerschmidt started the inning instead. Pitt hit a solo home run from Mason Ligenza to go up four.
Penn State had its third straight scoreless inning. Dimond Loosli subbed as a pitcher for the Nittany Lions. Loosli ended the inning with two strikeouts, one of which had bases loaded. Penn State had some relief heading into the eighth inning in hopes of coming back.
The Nittany Lions didn’t score a run in the eighth inning. Pitt pitcher David Leslie threw three straight strikeouts to close out the inning. Neither team mustered anything more as Pitt closed out the win.
Takeways
- Pitt scored four runs in the first inning. Butash only threw one out in the first seven pitches and was taken out in the first inning. Frankie Sanchez, who hadn’t played nine games, subbed in for Butash with loaded bases and immediately threw a single, which led to two more runs.
- Penn State had three pitchers play in the first two innings after falling behind 7-1. Pitt was 8-12 on hits and had a .700 runners-on-base percentage before Lollin stepped in the game. The Nittany Lions also gave up a few walks early in the game, making it easier for the Panthers to score runs.
- The Nittany Lions went on a home run streak in the fourth and fifth innings. However, the batting side started to slow down when the pitching started to improve. After the third inning, Penn State only allowed one run, but scored only one.
What’s Next?
Penn State travels to College Park to face Maryland at 6 p.m. on Thursday, May 14, at Bob “Turtle” Smith Stadium. It is game one of the Nittany Lions’ final regular-season series.
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