April 7, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State baseball team (17-12 overall, 3-3 Big Ten) returns home to Medlar Field at Lubrano Park to host Bucknell for the second time in two weeks on Wednesday at 6:35 p.m.
The intrastate rivalry continues for the second time this season. On Tuesday, March 31, Ben Heath hit a game-winning single in the bottom of the eighth inning to give the Nittany Lions a 6-5 victory over Bucknell. The Bison spoiled a seven-inning performance by Paul Cianciolo and scored four in the eighth to tie the ballgame before Louie Picconi initiated a rally during Penn State's next set of at-bats.
The Bison and Nittany Lions will be playing their 145th game against each other - the longest rivalry of any Penn State opponent. Overall, the Nittany Nine hold a 113-30-1 advantage over Bucknell. The Bison, despite representing the Patriot League several times at the NCAA Regionals and shutting out Florida State in last year's playoffs, have not won a game against their Route 45 rivals since 1998.
A collection of relievers will be seeing time for the Nittany Lions, as the starter is to be announced. Bucknell's Alex Cillo is expected to start and, like last week's game, will be followed by a number of relief pitchers.
Penn State comes into its six-game homestand after upsetting defending Big Ten champion Michigan, taking two of three in Ann Arbor, Mich. Following the game against the Bison, the Nittany Lions will host Purdue in a three-game set this weekend.
-30-