April 6, 2008
Pitching coach Bell talks with Loren Crispell on the postgame show after the win (mp3)
University Park, Pa. - Every Penn State batter reached base at least once and after being held quiet for the first three games of the series, the Nittany Lion offense exploded for 10 hits and 10 runs in the series finale on Sunday as Penn State salvaged the final game and avoided a sweep with a 10-1 win over Michigan.
Cory Wine went 3-for-5 with two doubles, three runs, and three RBI and Rob Yodice went 2-for-5 with three RBI and a run scored. Brian Ernst went 2-for-5 with a pair of runs scored while Ryan Boonie knocked in two runs. Ryan Stobart turned in a stellar performance, his second straight long and quality outing in Big Ten play, yielding just one run, one walk and six hits over seven innings of work to pick up his first win of the year. Calvin Grumley threw a scoreless eighth and Drew O'Neil finished off the Wolverines in the ninth, striking out the final two batters of the game looking.
Penn State's offense came alive early, putting up three runs in the first and batting through the lineup. Ernst set the tone by lining Michigan starter Travis Smith's first pitch of the game to left field for a base hit and advanced to second on a Landon Nakata sacrifice bunt. After Yodice flew out to left, Blackburn walked and Wine drove in Ernst with a single through the left side of the infield. Wilson walked the next three batters, scoring Joe Blackburn and Wine in the process, and that ended his day before even making it through the batting order once as reliever Ben Jenzen came on to retire Lou Picconi on a fly out to right to end the inning. .
Stobart sat down the first six Wolverine batters he saw before letting up a double to Oaks in left-centerfield in the top of the third. Mike Dufek followed that up with a single to drive in Michigan's first run of the game. Leif Mahler then singled to right, but was forced out on the next play as Picconi and Nakata turned two together for the 15th time this year. Stobart escaped, letting up Michigan's only run of the game and keeping Penn State on top, 3-1.
The Nittany Lions broke the game open in the fourth, batting around the lineup for the second time. Penn State tallied four hits and drew five bases on balls en route to scoring six runs off three different pitchers in the inning. After Jenzen got the first two batters of the inning out on infield pop outs, he walked Picconi and then Ernst notched his second hit of the game and Nakata drew a walk to fill the bases for Yodice, who lined a single to right, scoring Picconi and Ernst. Blackburn then laced one to left, scoring Nakata and ending the day for Jenzen. Tyler Burgoon came in relief and Wine greeted him by smacking a double to the warning track in left, scoring both Yodice and Blackburn. Burgoon then issued three straight walks to Scott Kelley, Rick Marlin and Boonie that swelled Penn State's lead to 9-1. Michigan brought in Colby Wood, who finally ended the Lions' scoring surge by getting Picconi on a hard hit and long fly ball to right.
Brian Ernst went 2-for-5 with a pair of runs. |
Penn State added another run in the sixth when Wine smacked a double down the right field line and Kelley drove him in with a single, putting the Nittany Lions on top 10-1.
Neither Grumley nor O'Neil allowed a Michigan hit in their respective innings of work.
Penn State will now embark on a five-game road trip beginning this Wednesday with a 3:00 p.m. game at Pittsburgh. They will then travel to Purdue next weekend for a four-game series.
Notes: Stobart has allowed just two earned runs in his last two starts, spanning 15 innings....Grumley has pitched four straight scoreless innings and has not allowed any runs at home....O'Neil is unscored upon in his last six appearances, spanning 5.2 innings....Boonie has three multiple-RBI games in his last six starts, and has four on the season....Penn State handed Michigan its first loss of the year in Big Ten play....By avoiding the sweep today, the Nittany Lions have now played 18 straight Big Ten series without being swept, dating back to 2005....The series loss was the first series loss in a four-game series since the final series of the 2006 season at Ohio State. Penn State only lost two Big Ten series last year but both were weather-shortened three-game series....Wine needs just 11 putouts to break the school record for career putouts....With his two hits today, Ernst moved into eighth place on the Penn State career hits list with 193 career hits.