April 23, 2008
Coach Bell on the radio postgame show (mp3)
University Park, Pa. - A little rain and a three-run deficit in the bottom of the ninth did not discourage the Nittany Lions on Wednesday night, as they rallied to tie Youngstown State 4-4 in the ninth and eventually won 5-4 in 13 innings to record their sixth straight victory. A sacrifice fly by Wes Borden in his seventh plate appearance of the game scored Jack Greenberg with the winning run in the bottom of the 13th to end the longest collegiate game in terms of innings in Medlar Field at Lubrano Park history.
Scott Kelley and Landon Nakata were Penn State's saviors in the ninth inning. Kelley, who went 2-for-4 with two RBI, came off the bench and delivered a two-run single to bring the Nittany Lions within one. Two batters later, with the bases loaded, Nakata drew a two-out walk to tie the game at four. He went 2-for-3 with a pair of RBI and reached base two other times on walks.
Freshman Mike Pierce earned his first career victory, allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out two over four innings of relief work. Calvin Grumley started the game for Penn State, pitching a career high five innings and allowing just two earned runs on three hits and two walks while striking out two. Paul Cianciolo pitched two innings in relief, and David Lutz threw two scoreless innings, allowing just two hits and a walk while striking out three, escaping a bases-loaded, no outs jam in the top of the ninth to preserve the three-run deficit and set the stage for the bottom of the ninth.
Grumley quickly retired the first two Penguin batters in the first inning, but hit the next two and walked the fifth batter to load the bases. Jason Reitenbach beat out a slow roller to shortstop, allowing a run to score. Grumley was able to escape any further damage as he recorded the third out, stranding the bases loaded.
Wes Borden extended his hitting streak to 11 games and came up with the game-winning sacrifice fly in the bottom of the 13th. |
Penn State came within a few feet taking the lead in the bottom of the first. Nakata ripped a double into the left field corner and Joe Blackburn crushed a Matt Tucker fastball to the warning track just in front of the 399 foot sign but it was caught.
Youngstown State struck again in the third. A pair of singles by Erich Diedrich and C.J. Morris put runners on the corners, and Diedrich scored on a sacrifice bunt by Reitenbach, giving the Penguins a 2-0 lead.
The Penguins added another run in the sixth. After pinch-hitter, Mike Turjanica, hit a two-out double into leftfield, he scored on a David Leon grounder down the third baseline that was just out of Rob Yodice's reach, expanding the Penguins' lead to 3-0.
A Sean Lucas base hit in the seventh inning became Youngstown State's fourth run after he stole second, took third on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly.
Scott Kelley delivered a two-run single in the bottom of the ninth to help force extra innings and also had a single in bottom of the 13th as he went 2-for-4 after entering the game as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning. |
Ben Heath scored the Nittany Lions' first run in the eighth after notching his first career hit - a one-out triple to deep center field - and crossing the plate on a Nakata sacrifice fly to centerfield to shrink the Penguins' lead to 4-1. After getting the final out of the eighth, the day was over for Youngstown State starter Matt Tucker, who threw eight innings and frustrated the Nittany Lion bats, only allowing three hits and the one run while striking out three but also walking four.
As a passing shower poured down rain in the bottom of the ninth, the Nittany Lions refused to let their winning streak end quietly. With reliever Eric Marzec on to pitch, Ernst reached first with one out on an errant throw by the third baseman and Wine followed with a single up the middle. Rick Marlin walked to load the bases for Kelley, who ripped a single to right-center that just went off a leaping Josh Page's glove at second base to score Ernst and Wine. Ryan Boonie then pinch-hit for Heath and grounded out on a weak bounding ball back to the pitcher with no chance for a double play, advancing Marlin and Kelley to third and second. With a narrow 4-3 lead, the Penguins intentionally walked Borden to load the bases for Nakata, who leads the team in walks. Nakata was poised and patient at the plate, drawing a four-pitch walk to force in Marlin from third and tie the game at four. A Blackburn groundout sent the game into extra innings.
The Nittany Lions had a pair of chances to score in extra innings before the 13th. Youngstown State centerfielder Cory Jornyak dropped Rob Yodice's fly ball to the gap in left center, allowing him to reach second as the leadoff hitter in the 10th inning. Ernst then laid down a sacrifice bunt that advanced Yodice to third but he was thrown out on a close play at first. But two straight groundouts, one by Wine with the infield in and the other by Marlin with two outs, ending the inning.
In the 12th, Nakata led off with a single to center and Blackburn reached on a fielder's choice in which Nakata took second when shortstop David Leon bobbled Blackburn's grounder for an error, leaving everyone safe. Both runners were sacrificed over by Yodice and Ernst was then intentionally walked to load the bases. This time, the intentional free pass paid of for the Penguins, as Wine grounded into an inning-ending 6-4-3 double play.
Jack Greenberg singled to lead off the 13th inning and scored the game-winning run on Borden's sac fly. |
While the Nittany Lions missed out of two scoring chances, the Penguins did not get any chances as Pierce set down 12 of the 14 hitters he faced in 14 innings of work, giving up only a two out single in the 12th and a two-out walk in the 13th. Neither runner made it past first base.
The Nittany Lions finally put the game to rest in the bottom of the 13th. Greenberg, who had entered the game for Marlin after he was ejected after making the last out in the bottom of the 10th, led off with a single through the left side of the infield and Kelley followed with a base hit to leftfield. Lou Picconi, who had entered the game to start the 10th in Heath's spot as Yodice moved from third base to catcher, dropped down a sacrifice bunt, but the Penguins' pitcher tried unsuccessfully to get a sliding Greenberg at third, leaving the bases loaded with no outs. Youngstown State then brought in right fielder C.J. Morris to play as a fifth infielder with Borden at the plate. Borden, however, hit a sacrifice fly to right-center that was caught by the center fielder scored Greenberg for the winning run, touching off a mild celebration of the Penn State dugout emptied.
Penn State, which is currently just one win off equaling its longest winning streak from last year of seven games, will travel to Illinois this weekend for the first time since 2004 and for the first time under head coach Robbie Wine for a four-game series with the Illini this weekend.
Notes: Heath recorded his first career hit with an eighth inning triple, and scored his first career run two batters later. He had been robbed of a hit by a nice diving play up the middle by Page in his first at-bat to leadoff the third inning....This was Penn State's first extra-inning game that has gone passed nine innings this season. The March 23rd contest against Lehigh went into extra innings, but it was a scheduled seven-inning game that went nine innings....The game was the longest collegiate game in terms of innings at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park, surpassing the 10 innings that the Nittany Lions played with Ohio State last May 18th. The longest game in stadium history was 14 innings involving the State College Spikes....The game tied the longest game in terms of time with a game between the Nittany Lions and Temple last April 11th. Both games lasted 3:39....Borden extended his hitting streak to 11 games with an 11th inning infield single....However, Marlin's nine-game hitting streak came to an end as he went 0-for-4 but did score a run....Grumley's five innings and Pierce's four innings of work were both career highs....This was just the second game in stadium history that was won by Penn State in either the bottom of the ninth or extra innings, the other being the aforementioned game against Ohio State last year....Both Marlin and head coach Robbie Wine were ejected between the 10th and 11th innings for arguing over the call made at first base on Ernst's sacrifice earlier in the 10th. Marlin's ejected led to Greenberg coming into the game at third, Borden moving into left field for the first time in his career, and Kelley moving to right.