March 12, 2008
Lantana, Fla. - Rob Yodice hit his first home run of the season and Paul Cianciolo, who joined the baseball team to begin the spring break trip, pitched three scoreless innings of relief to give a tired bullpen a lift but it was not enough as Penn State battled hard but fell to Connecticut 4-2 on Wednesday night at the Santaluces Sports Complex.
UConn took a 1-0 lead in the first inning and then scored three in the fifth off reliever Paul Hawkins after starter Kayle Sicker was forced to leave the game early with an injury. Penn State scored two runs in the bottom of the eighth but was unable to push any more runs across in the game despite having its opportunities.
Sickler, who was making his first appearance of the year and just his second career appearance, battled through some trouble in the first inning as he allowed a leadoff single and then put runners on the corners with one out. But he got a sacrifice fly for the second out of the inning and then struck out Peter Fatse with a runner on second to end the frame having only allowed one run.
After the Nittany Lions stranded the bases loaded in the bottom of the first, Sickler made sure the momentum did not swing UConn's way as he retired the Huskies in the top of the second. However, in the top of the third, after retiring the first two hitters and then issuing a two-out walk, Sickler gave up a single up the middle to Mike Olt and appeared to tweak a part of his throwing arm. He immediately left the game with an apparent arm injury and was relieved by Paul Hawkins. The Nittany Lions threw out a runner at the plate to end the inning with an attempted double steal by the Huskies with runners at the corners failed.
Hawkins worked a scoreless fourth before running into trouble in the fifth inning as he gave up a leadoff double to Harold Brantley, which was followed by an RBI through the right side by Pierre LePage. After a pop out, Hawkins hit Pat Mahoney with a pitch but got Olt to fly out for the second out. But Fatse single to right to drive in another run and then another single to Mike Nemeth to drive in one more run to make it 4-0 before retiring the side.
After the first, the Nittany Lions had a baserunner in every inning from the second through the sixth but they were blanked on the scoreboard by UConn starter Trent DeLazzer, who worked six innings and allowed four hits and no runs while striking out five and walking two. Reliever John Folino worked a scoreless seventh, striking out two.
Paul Cianciolo, also a member of the football team, pitched three scoreless innings in his debut with the baseball team after joining the team this spring break trip. |
Meanwhile, Cianciolo relieved Hawkins to start the sixth and after giving up a bunt single to the first batter he faced in the sixth, faced the minimum in his three innings as he induced two double plays. He got Brantley to bounce into a 1-6-3 double play in the sixth and then, after walking the leadoff hitter on a 3-2 pitch in the seventh, got Pat Mahoney to bounce into a 5-4-3 twin killing. He worked a 1-2-3 eighth, striking out the first and last hitters looking.
Penn State finally broke through in the eighth as they put together a two-out rally to cut the lead in half to 4-2. Rob Yodice started it by hitting his first home run of the year, a solo shot to right field. Cory Wine then drew a walk and Rick Marlin followed with a single to right to send Wine to third. Wine then came home on a wild pitch by Will Musson, who entered the game to start the eighth.
Drew O'Neil worked a scoreless ninth for Penn State, getting a strikeout and two groundouts. In the bottom of the ninth, with reliever Matt Karl on for UConn, Scott Kelley worked a 10-pitch at bat before striking out swinging. Lou Picconi also worked a 10-pitch at bat and had appeared to work a walk but was called out swinging on an appeal to first. Wes Borden then struck out looking to end the game.
Penn State's six hits came from six different hitters but four of those hits came in two innings, the first and eighth. The Lions were only able to get two hits from the second through seventh innings. Lou Picconi led off with a double in the fifth but two outs later, he was picked off at second to end the inning.
The Nittany Lions will take Thursday off and then return to action with three more games this weekend to wrap up their spring break trip. This weekend's games will start with a game against Penn on Friday at 6:00 p.m.