| Mike Deese doubled and scored a run in Sunday's game. |
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UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa.; May 20, 2007 ?C In the fourth close and low-scoring game of the weekend, Ohio State managed to eek out a 3-2 win over Penn State in the regular season finale on Sunday afternoon after Penn State had won three games by either one or two runs in the first three games of the series. Penn State finishes the regular season with a 28-24 record and a 20-10 mark in the Big Ten. The Nittany Lions finished in third place alone and will be the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Big Ten Tournament.
Penn State will play the Buckeyes once again for the fifth time in six days on Wednesday as the win clinched the No. 6 seed in the tournament for Ohio State, who finished 15-15. Either Illinois or Michigan State will claim the fifth spot pending the outcome of their game today, which started an hour after Penn State??s game today.
Just as in the first three games in which Penn State came out on top, pitching dominated the game. After holding Ohio State to two runs in each of the first three games, the Buckeyes scored three on Sunday while Penn State, which had been held to three, four and three runs in the first three games, respectively, was only able to push across two.
The Nittany Lions drew first blood in the second as Rick Marlin (Orlando, Fla.) blooped a two-out double just inside the foul line in right field and he came around to score on Scott Kelley??s (Arlington Heights, Ill.) single to almost the same place in right field.
Ohio State took advantage of three walks issued by Penn State starter John Karr (Gibsonia, Pa.) in the fifth and a passed ball to tie the score 1-1. With runners at second and third after two walks and a wild pitch, Karr threw ball four to Eric Fryer but the ball got through catcher Joe Blackburn??s (Sinking Spring, Pa.) legs for a passed ball, allowing Cory Kovanda to score from third.
After Ryan Stobart (Barrington, Ill.) had relieved Karr to start the sixth inning and worked a 1-2-3 sixth, he hit the leadoff hitter in the seventh in Cory Rupert, who was sacrificed over to second with one out. Reliever Matt Ogrodnik (Saltsburg, Pa.) came on to get Jacob Howell to ground out to third for the second out but Matt Angle??s single up the middle, which just missed hitting Ogrodnik, scored Rupert with the go-ahead run.
Penn State answered right back in the bottom of the seventh to tie it up again as Mike Deese (Roswell, Ga.) drove a leadoff double to deep center field that just missed being a home run. He was advanced to third on Brian Ernst??s (Boyertown, Pa.) sacrifice and he scored on Marlin??s single through the drawn-in infield. Marlin was then sacrificed to second and pinch hitter Rob Yodice??s (Staten Island, N.Y.) deep fly to center was caught on the warning track by Angle to end the inning.
In the eighth, Ogrodnik gave up another single up the middle, this one with one out to Justin Miller. He then committed a balk, allowing Miller to go to second, before giving up a single through the left side to Jason Zoeller to put runners at the corners. Ogrodnik was then relieved by Scott Gaffney (Westbury, N.Y.), who came in from shortstop to make his first appearance since April 22 vs. Northwester. Gaffney got the final two outs of the inning on a fly ball by Tony Kennedy and a strikeout of Rupert but Kennedy??s fly to center was deep enough to score Miller from third with the go-ahead run.
OSU starter Josh Edgin left after 6.1 innings having allowed six hits and two run while striking out four. In his place came reliever Trey Fausnaugh, who got the final two outs of the seventh and then worked the eighth and ninth innings, setting down six of the seven batters he faced over the final two frames, allowing only a two-out walk to Cory Wine (Stillwater, Okla.) in the eighth to pick up the win.
Penn State and Ohio State will hook up again on the diamond on Wednesday in Ann Arbor, Mich. in the first round of the Big Ten Tournament. Game times and the complete tournament pairings will be announced later tonight by the Big Ten office.