PISCATAWAY, N.J. – The Penn State baseball team travels to New Jersey to take on Rutgers for its final Big Ten series of the 2025 season. First pitch is set for 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday at Bainton Field. Sunday’s series finale is set for 2 p.m.
Penn State, led by head coach Mike Gambino, is 27-19 this season (13-14 Big Ten) after an 8-4 win last Sunday against Maryland.
Rutgers, coached by Steve Owens, is 25-24 this year (12-12 Big Ten) after winning its sixth-straight game on Wednesday against Rider. Last weekend, Rutgers swept Illinois.
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The 2025 Penn State baseball season is presented by The Family Clothesline.
FOLLOW ALONG
LEADING OFF
- Penn State travels to Piscataway for its final Big Ten series of the season.
- The Nittany Lions look to bounce back after taking one of three games against Maryland last weekend.
- On Sunday, Nate Voss, Derek Cease and Cohl Mercado combined for six hits and five RBI at the bottom of the order, while Ryan Weingartner added a two-run double.
- Penn State has tied a program record with 22 games of 10+ runs this year, matching the 2000 season, including 11 times against Big Ten opponents.
- Against Maryland, the Nittany Lions broke their team steals record of 91 in 2000. PSU owns 97 steals entering the weekend.
- Ryan Weingartner (26), Paxton Kling (14), Cole Wagner (11) and Joe Jaconski (10) each have double-digit steals, marking the first time PSU has four players with 10+ steals in a season since 1994.
- Weingartner is one steal away from tying the program season record held by Michael Campo (27; 2000) and Kyle Hannon (27; 2023).
- Penn State also has three players with 10+ homers (Kling, 12; Bryce Molinaro, 11; Jesse Jaconski, 10) for the second-straight season.
- Ryan DeSanto is third in the Big Ten with seven wins on the mound this year.
YEAR TWO GROWTH UNDER GAMBINO
- With a 21-10 start, Penn State got off to its best 31-game start since going 23-8 to begin the 2000 season.
- With its sweep over Minnesota, the Nittany Lions have won two Big Ten road series (at Northwestern, at Minnesota) in a season for the first time since 2012 (at Iowa, at Minnesota, at Michigan State).
- PSU also has earned two road series sweeps (at Longwood, at Minnesota) in a season for the first time since 2000 (at Norfolk State, at Iowa).
- With its series win against Purdue, Penn State has won at least four Big Ten series in a season (vs. Indiana, at Northwestern, at Minnesota, vs. Purdue) for the first time since 2012.
- Penn State’s 24 wins in Big Ten play over the last two seasons are its most in a two-year span since 2011-12 (not counting the Big Ten-only schedule in 2021).
- PSU is 9-3 in series/weekend openers this season and 20-6 in series/weekend openers over the last two years.
- In non-conference action, Penn State earned a win over Missouri in its season opener, its first win over an SEC team since 1995, and a 3-2 victory over No. 17 West Virginia to snap the Mountaineers’ 14-game win streak.
- With its win in game one against Indiana on March 7, the Nittany Lions had a nine-game win streak for the first time since 2000.
NITTANY LIONS AMONG NATIONAL LEADERS IN HOMERS, STEALS
- Through 46 games, Penn State has slugged 68 home runs, just behind pace to break its team season record of 91 in 2000.
- The Nittany Lions have tallied 10+ runs in 22 games this season, tied for eighth in the country, and 11 times in Big Ten games. PSU has 21 games of 10+ runs in a season for just the second time in program history (22; 2000).
- The Nittany Lions rank 39th in the country, averaging 1.5 homers per game, and 41st in the nation in total home runs.
- Paxton Kling leads the Nittany Lions with 12 homers, sitting 11th in the Big Ten.
- With two steals in game one against UCLA, Kling (12 HR, 13 SB) became the first PSU player with 12+ homers and 12+ steals in a season since Sean Deegan (12 HR, 14 SB) in 2011.
- Kling is the only Big Ten player with 12+ HR and 14+ SB this year.
- With Kling (12 homers), Bryce Molinaro (11) and Jesse Jaconski (10), Penn State has three players with 10+ homers for the second-straight season.
- Ryan Weingartner has nine homers, Jack Porter has eight and Nate Voss has seven, while Joe Jaconski has six homers. Cole Wagner has four.
- Molinaro is the first Nittany Lion with back-to-back 10+ homer seasons since Sean Deegan (12 HR in 2011; 11 HR in 2012).
- Molinaro has three multi-homer games this season, tied for 11th in D1.
- With 68 home runs and 97 steals this season, PSU joins Arizona State, Rhode Island and UConn as the only D1 teams (Arizona State) with 68+ homers and 95+ steals this season.
- PSU is one of 20 D1 teams (only Big Ten) with seven players owning 6+ homers and one of five Big Ten teams with three players owning 10+ homers.
- PSU is the only team in the country with seven or more players with 6+ homers and 5+ steals.
- Penn State has launched six grand slams, including two by Kling, one by Jesse Jaconski, one by Molinaro, one by Voss and one by Weingartner.
- PSU is tied-10th in the country with six grand slams this year.
- The Nittany Lions are also 40th in the country in stolen bases per game (2.11), pacing the Big Ten, and 38th in total steals (97).
- Penn State has 13 more steals than any other Big Ten team this season and broke team record of 91 steals in 2000.
- PSU has eight players owning 5+ steals.
- Weingartner leads the Big Ten in total steals (26), sitting 34th in the country, and steals per game (0.57), holding 48th.
- Weingartner’s 26 steals are third in a season at PSU and one shy of the program season record held by Michael Campo (27; 2000) and Kyle Hannon (27; 2023).
- Weingartner is one of five players in Division I this season with 9+ homers and 26+ stolen bases.
- Kling has 14 steals, Wagner has 11 and Joe Jaconski has 10.
- Penn State has four players with 10+ steals in a season for the first time since 1994 (Dave Hall, 13; Lance Rathmell, 12; Ryan Wheeler, 11; Kirk Rentschler, 10).
HAGENMAN MAKES MLB DEBUT
- Former Nittany Lion Justin Hagenman made his Major League baseball debut for the New York Mets on Wednesday, April 16.
- After entering the game in the second inning, against the Minnesota Twins, Hagenmen went 3.1 innings. He was charged with one run on three hits, while striking out four.
- Hagenman notched two strikeouts in the first inning, including a punch out against the first batter he faced, the Twins’ Ryan Jeffers.
- He is the 24th Penn State player to appear in a MLB game and the first since Nate Bump in 2005.
- After being selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 23rd round of the 2018 MLB Draft, Hagenman’s professional baseball journey includes stops with the Ogden Raptors (2018), Great Lakes Loons (2018-19), Tulsa Drillers (2021-22), Oklahoma City Dodgers (2022-23), Worchester Red Sox (2023-24) and Syracuse Mets (2025).
- Hagenman was traded from the Dodgers to the Boston Red Sox in July 2023 and signed with the Mets in November 2024.
- In his minor league career, Hagenman is 32-16 with 22 saves and a 3.95 ERA in 203 appearances (27 starts) and 433 strikeouts in 419.1 innings.
- He was a three-year starter at Penn State from 2016-18, posting a 4.64 ERA, 10 wins and 190 strikeouts. He is fourth all-time at PSU with 42 career starts.
DOLLAR DOG NIGHT
- The Nittany Lions hosted their sixth and final Dollar Dog Night of the 2025 season against West Virginia on April 22.
- Penn State set records for attendance (6,106) and hot dogs consumed (12,112).
- PSU fans have consumed 39,324 hot dogs over six Dollar Dog Nights this year, an average of 6,554 hot dogs.
- Penn State’s first five Dollar Dog Night totals of 2025: vs. FDU (5,960), vs. St. Bonaventure (7,506), vs. Pitt (6,733), vs. Bucknell (4,429) and vs. Delaware (2,584).
- Across 15 Dollar Dog Nights in 2023, 2024 and 2025, Penn State fans have consumed 74,501 hot dogs, averaging 4,967 per Dollar Dog Night.
MARYLAND SERIES RECAP
- Penn State took one of three games in the series against Maryland, earning an 8-4 win on Sunday.
- In Sunday’s contest, Nate Voss, Derek Cease and Cohl Mercado combined for sit hits and five RBI at the bottom of the order, while Ryan Weingartner added a two-run double.
- Matthew VanOstenbridge, Mason Horwat and Dimond Loosli all tossed scoreless innings.
- In the series, Cease batted .636 (7-of-11) with two RBI and four runs.
- Nate Voss contributed seven hits, including a double, triple and homer, three RBI and three runs.
- Paxton Kling added six hits, two doubles, four RBI andt wo runs.
- VanOstenbridge tossed four scoreless innings over two appearances, while Mason Horwat threw 3.2 shutout frames.