April 7, 2012
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State baseball (12-18) gave 1,204 Medlar Field fans something to cheer about for a fifth straight game, as senior Sean Deegan (Readington, N.J.) drilled a walk-off single off the right field wall to give the Lions a 4-3 win over the Canisius Golden Griffins on Saturday afternoon.
With one out in the 11th and sophomore Alex Farkes (Boston, Mass.) on second, Deegan hammered a first-pitch fastball off the right field wall to score Farkes and give the Lions a 4-3 extra innings victory. Deegan also tied the game up at one in the sixth inning as he nailed a solo-shot into the right field bleachers.
Penn State has won five-straight games and seven of its last nine.
There wouldn't be enough said without mentioning sophomore Joe Kurrasch's (San Juan Capistrano, Calif.) starting pitching performance on the mound Saturday. Kurrash punched out 10 batters in 6.2 innings while giving up just four hits and no earned runs in the no-decision. He dropped his ERA to 2.49 this season and had four multi-strikeout innings.
Sophomore Tim Dunn (Newport Beach, Calif.) earned the win by turning in his best performance of the season, going 2.2 scoreless and hitless innings while striking out three and walking none.
After Canisius would score an unearned run in the first, Penn State would get on the board in the sixth inning thanks to Deegan's solo homerun to tie the game up at one. The Nittany Lions would struggle early to get runners on base. Canisius' Devon Stewart threw a solid game, striking out nine batters in seven innings of work.
Penn State would get to Stewart and the Griffins in the bottom of the seventh. With two outs, Farkes reached on an error and junior Ryan Clark (Westerville, Ohio) walked. Junior Elliot Searer (Lewistown, Pa.), who extended his hitting-streak to seven games with two hits, would give the Lions a 2-1 lead on a base hit. After Deegan was intentionally walked, sophomore Steve Snyder (West Chester, Pa.) was plunked by a pitch with the bases loaded to score Clark. The Nittany Lions had a 3-1 lead.
Canisius would tie the game up on an RBI double and a bases loaded walk in the eighth inning. Then with guys on first and second with one out for the Golden Griffins in the ninth, Dunn came in to relieve sophomore Evan Dixon (Waynesboro, Pa.). Dunn forced a double-play ball to help the Lions escape the jam. The sophomore was flawless from that point on and put the Lions in position for the win.
Penn State closes its series with Canisius on Easter Sunday at 1:05 p.m. Junior Steven Hill (Colleyville, Texas) will make the start on the mound for the Lions. Fans who are not attending the game can listen on ESPN 1450 State College with Loren Crispell and Brian Tripp calling the action.
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