May 10, 2008
Pitching coach Bell on the postgame radio show (mp3)
University Park, Pa. - Joe Blackburn drove a game-winning grand slam just under the scoreboard in left field with one out in the bottom of the seventh inning and Cory Wine also hit a home run, a two-run shot, in the bottom of the seventh as the Nittany Lions overcame a three-run deficit in its final at bat to defeat Iowa, 13-9 and sweep the Hawkeyes in the Saturday doubleheader. The victory secured Penn State's first series win over the Hawkeyes since 2000 and also puts them over .500 in conference play (14-13) and alone in fourth place in the Big Ten.
Blackburn's grand slam was the first grand slam in a collegiate game at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park and was also the first home run to go underneath the scoreboard in left field for a college game, as it just cleared the 378 sign below the scoreboard. It was also the first game-ending home run in collegiate stadium history and the first game-ending grand slam in park history, college or professional. It also marked the first game-ending home run for a Penn State player since 2004, when Matt Harter ended a game vs. Northwestern on April 10 with a game-ending home run.
Joe Blackburn's home run ball from Saturday, the first collegiate grand slam, walk-off home run and grand slam, and the first collegiate home run to go under the scoreboard at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. The ball was retrieved from underneath the scoreboard after the game. |
Blackburn went 3-for-4 with five RBI and three runs scored, his second five-RBI game of the season. In addition to his grand slam, he also hit a ground rule double that may have actually traveled further than the home run, as it bounced in front of and then over the nook in left center. Brian Ernst went 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored while Rick Marlin went 3-for-4 with one RBI and two runs scored. Wine scored two runs and knocked in a pair of runs with his seventh-inning jack.
Brian Ernst went 3-for-4 and drove in two runs. |
Paul Hawkins tossed 1.2 innings, giving up one run on two hits and no walks while striking out two to pick up his second win of the weekend in relief. He relieved starter Ryan Stobart with one out in the sixth. Stobart threw 5.1 innings and allowed eight runs, six earned on nine hits while walking five and striking out four.
The game was a back-and-forth affair for the most part up until the sixth and seventh innings. Iowa took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on a Zach McCool single up the middle that scored Kyle Riffel, who had previously walked and stolen second base.
Penn State responded by posting two runs and taking the lead in the bottom half of the inning. Rob Yodice led off with a line drive base hit up the middle and advanced to second on an Ernst single into left field. Wine hit into a fielder's choice that put him on first and Yodice on third with one out. Marlin rapped a double down the left field line that scored Yodice and moved Wine to third. Ryan Boonie hit a high chopper back to the pitcher and was thrown out at first, but Wine scored on the play as he was able to beat the throw home after Boonie had been thrown out and Marlin advanced to third.
The Hawkeyes recaptured the lead in the top of the third. After the first two batters made outs, Tyson Blaser doubled to left field and scored on a Kurtis Muller single up the middle. T.J. Cataldo walked and Riffel followed by lining a double down the left field line to score both Muller and Cataldo, giving Iowa a 4-2 advantage.
Paul Hawkins notched his second win out of the bullpen in the series. |
The Nittany Lions answered back in the bottom of the third by tying the score 4-4. Borden walked and Nakata bunted him over to second base. Blackburn then poked a single through the right side of the infield to score Borden from second. Blackburn stole second, tagged up and took third on a Yodice fly out to deep right field, and then scored when Ernst thumped a double into right field.
Iowa went out in front once again in the top of the fifth inning by picking up an unearned run. Blaser drew a walk to lead off the inning and advanced to second on a Muller infield single to second base. The throw got by Wine at first base allowing Muller to proceed to third. Cataldo grounded into a 4-6-3 double play, but Muller scored from third, putting the Hawkeyes on top, 5-4. Stobart struck out Riffel to end the inning.
As they had done all game, the Nittany Lions responded in the bottom half of the inning by equaling the score, this time at five apiece. Blackburn hit a ground-rule double over the nook and after Yodice grounded out, Blackburn stole third and scored on an Ernst groundout.
The Hawkeyes took the lead for the fourth time of the game in the top of the sixth, 8-5. After striking out Trevor Willis, Stobart walked McCool, who stole second shortly thereafter. Kevin Hoef then singled to center field, advancing McCool to third. Hoef stole second and moved to third while McCool scored on a Justin Toole infield single deep in the hole between shortstop and third base, which prompted a pitching change of Hawkins in relief of Stobart. Picconi mishandled a grounder by Caleb Curry, scoring Hoef and advancing Toole to third. Curry stole second base and Toole scored on a Blaser sacrifice fly to center field, giving Iowa a three-run lead. Hawkins then executed a well-timed pickoff move to second, the throw beating Curry to the bag for the third out of the inning.
The Nittany Lions notched a run in the bottom of the sixth. Patrick Schatz started the inning in relief of Jeff Pacha, who had threw two innings in relief of starter Tony Manville, who had gone only three innings. Marrlin greeted Schatz with his second double of the game down the left field line. After Boonie grounded out to shortstop, Picconi was hit by a pitch. The Hawkeyes brought in freshman Zach Kenyon to relieve Schatz and his first pitch was wild, advancing Marlin and Picconi to third and second respectively. Borden grounded out to second to score Marlin and move Picconi to third. Kenyon then plunked Nakata and Blackburn to load the bases with two outs for Yodice, but he flew out to center field, stranding three runners and sending the game to the final inning with Iowa in front, 8-6.
Rick Marlin went 3-for-4 with two runs scored, including the game-tying run in the bottom of the seventh. |
Iowa added an insurance run in the top of the seventh inning when Riffel singled in Muller, who had reached base on a leadoff infield single and was sacrificed to second by Cataldo.
The Hawkeyes brought a 9-6 lead into the bottom of the seventh and it was cut two 9-8 after two batters. Ernst lashed a single into left-center and Wine followed by hitting a moonshot that cleared the right field wall for a two-run homer. Marlin came to the plate as the tying run and blooped a single into shallow right field with the right fielder playing deep. Boonie, the potential winning run, drew a walk on a 3-2 pitch to put runners on first and second with still nobody out. Picconi laid down a sacrifice bunt to move them both into scoring position. Iowa intentionally walked Borden to load the bases with one out for Nakata, who laced a game-tying single into right-center field that scored Marlin from third and left the bases loaded with the wining run on third. While Iowa brought in Jason Belk to pitch, Penn State brought Scott Kelley in to pinch run for Boonie at third, making him the winning run. Blackburn stepped up to the plate and was quickly down 0-2 but he sent the next pitch over the left field wall for the game-winning grand slam and the Nittany Lions celebrated their 13-9 victory by mobbing Blackburn at home plate.
Landon Nakata delivered the game-tying single in the seventh just before Blackburn's game-winning grand slam. |
With the win, the Nittany Lions maintain their hold on fourth place that they picked up after their win in the first game of the doubleheader and are now just one game behind third place Illinois. They lead fifth place Ohio State by a half-game and sixth place Northwestern by a full game. They also lead seventh place Michigan State by 1.5 games. The Nits will go for their second Big Ten series sweep of the year tomorrow at 12:05 p.m. Prior to the game, Penn State's senior class will be honored.
Notes: Picconi now has three sacrifice hits in the series and now has 12 for the season, just three shy of moving into second place for a sacs in a single season....Borden drew four walks in the game, on of which was intentional, and became the first Nittany Lion to draw four walks in a game since Scott Gummo was issued four free passes on April 21, 2006 at Northwestern....Penn State had just one home run at home prior to the seventh inning today....The Lions now have 25 home runs on the year, equaling their mark from 2005 for the most home runs in a season under head coach Robbie Wine....The seven runs scored in the seventh inning were tied for the most in any inning this year for the Nittany Lions. They had scored seven in an inning two previous times this year....Hawkins' appearance was the 65th of his career, moving him into fourth place alone on the Penn State career appearances list....The series win over Iowa is not only the first for the Nittany Lions since 2000, but also the first over the Hawkeyes at home since 1999. Minnesota, who the Nittany Lions play next weekend, is the only team in the Big Ten the Lions have gone longer against without a series win. The last series win over the Gophers came in 1997.