March 9, 2008
Coach Wine's Postgame Podcast Interview (3-9) (mp3)
Lantana, Fla. - In its first-ever meeting with the U.S. Air Force Academy and their first game against a service academy since 2002, Penn State broke open a close game with a seven-run fourth inning and six different players had a multiple-hit game as the Nittany Lions opened their spring break trip by scoring a season high 12 runs in a 12-2 win over Air Force.
Penn State improves to 3-4 with the win and Seth Whitehill evened his record at 1-1 with a six-inning performance. The game was called due to a 10-run rule at the Papa John's Palm Beach Challenge after the Nittany Lions scored their 12th run to take a 10-run lead in the bottom of the seventh.
Brian Ernst and Rob Yodice led the way for the Nittany Lions at the plate. Ernst went 4-for-5 with four runs and an RBI at the top of the lineup. Yodice went 3-for-4 with two doubles, four RBI and a run. Joe Blackburn went 3-for-3 with two RBI and a run. Mike Deese (2-for-3) and Rick Marlin (2-for-4) also collected multiple hits while Landon Nakata went 2-for-3 and scored two runs. On the mound, Whitehill pitched six innings, allowing six hits and two runs. He struck out four and did not walk any.
Penn State scored first as it manufactured a run in the first inning. Nakata beat out an infield single that was in the hole at second with one out. He then went to second on Yodice's groundout down the first base line and scampered home on Blackburn's RBI single up the middle.
The Falcons evened the score in the top of the second as they got back-to-back singles from Addison Gentry and Matt Alexander to lead off the inning. They each moved up a base on a sacrifice fly and Gentry scored on a groundout by Vai Schierholtz before Whitehill stranded the other runner at second by getting another groundout to end the inning.
Yodice delivered a one-out RBI double in the bottom of the third to put the Nittany Lions back on top. Ernst led off the inning with a short bloop single into center and was sacrificed to second by Nakata before Yodice drove his double to deep left field. Blackburn was then robbed of another RBI when Yodice was cut down at home plate for the second out of the inning after Blackburn's single into right field.
Brian Ernst went 4-for-5 with four runs scored. |
The Nittany Lions broke open the game in the fourth with a seven-run inning as they took advantage of an Air Force error and strung together a couple of singles to extend their lead to 9-1 in the fourth inning. Deese started the inning with a single up the middle. One out later, Scott Kelley singled to right, sending Deese to third. Lou Picconi then struck out but on the strikeout, Kelley stole second and when the throw went into center field, Deese scored and Kelley went to third. Kelley trotted home on a single to center by Ernst. Another single by Nakata knocked out put runners at first and second and knocked Air Force starter Alex Truesdale in favor of Colin Shepherd. Shepherd got Yodice to pop a ball into shallow left field but neither the left fielder or the shortstop were able to get a beat on the ball, which was being played with by a swirling wind as well, and it fell for a Yodice's second double of the day, driving in two more runs. Blackburn then walked and Cory Wine followed with his first hit of the day, an RBI single to left center that drove in Yodice. Deese and Marlin then followed with consecutive RBI singles before Shepherd was relieved by Gregg Laswell, who got the final out of the inning.
Penn State tacked on two more in the bottom of the fifth, using a sacrifice fly by Yodice and an RBI triple by Blackburn to take an 11-1 lead. Picconi started the inning by drawing a leadoff walk and Ernst followed with a double down the line in left. After the first out was made, Yodice drove in his fourth run of the day with a sac fly to left. Blackburn then followed with the first Penn State triple of the year, a gap shot to right center to score Ernst.
Air Force scored a single run in the top of the sixth as it loaded the bases with no outs on three straight singles. But Whitehill escaped the jam with only one run allowed as he got Alexander to fly out to left for a sacrifice fly and the first out of the inning and he then got Jon McMahon to bounce into an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play.
Joe Blackburn went 3-for-3 with a pair of RBI and had the first Penn State triple of the year. |
Closer Drew O'Neil entered the game in the seventh and needed just 12 pitches to set down the side in order. The 10-run rule was invoked after Penn State scored a run in the bottom of the seventh to take the 12-2 lead. Ernst started off the inning with a single, Nakata walked and Yodice singled to load the bases. Ben Heath then pinch hit for Blackburn and grounded into a double play that scored Ernst.
The spring break trip continues for the Nittany Lions on Monday as they will take on Monmouth at 4:00 p.m.
Notes: Ernst has now hit in six of seven games this year and has collected multiple hits in five of them....Picconi has now reached base safely in all seven games this year....Penn State's last games against a service academy prior to was March 23-24, when the Nits played at Navy in a two-game series ....The three wins through seven games are the most for Penn State since the 2005 season when the Lions were also 3-4 after seven games....The Nittany Lions did not commit an error in a game for the first time this year....Ernst's four-hit game was the first for a Penn State player since both Matt Cavagnaro and Joe Blackburn had four hits against Mount St. Mary's on April 18 of last year.