April 23, 2017
By Anna Pitingolo, GoPSUsports.com Student Staff Writer
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - On a chilly Blue and White Saturday, the Nittany Lions handily beat the Rutgers Scarlet Knights 7-0 on Saturday to win their second Big Ten series of the season. The win comes after an extra inning scare on Friday night when the Lions won on a walk-off in the eighth. Here are some takeaways from the Big Ten victory.
Fast start paces Lions
The Nittany Lions jumped out to a 4-0 start in the first inning thanks to RBIs from Tori Dubois, Kristina Brackpool and Christa Wagner. Fast starts are something Penn State has not succeeded at this season, so head coach Amanda Lehotak was happy her team was able to get going early.
"That has not been our comfort zone all year, so for us to jump out like that it was huge in momentum," Lehotak said. "I liked that it kind of took the pressure off the pitching and the defense a little bit. I think that was the first time we jumped out to a lead and I felt we were very confident and played really steady the rest of the game."
Dubois thriving on both sides
Dubois has been hitting well in the last couple of games, and continued that streak into game two of the weekend. After going 3-for-3 with two RBIs on Friday, Dubois finished Saturday 2-for-3 and added on another two RBI.
The sophomore has also been putting on a clinic in the outfield as well, continuously making difficult diving catches to keep runs off the board.
"That's just kind of Tori's style, she's kind of reckless a little bit, she's aggressive like that and that's what makes her good," Lehotak said. "She's athletic, she gets good jumps on the ball and the greatest thing about Tori is she's going to give you max effort every play. She's made really big catches for us and it just allows our pitchers to do what they need to do knowing their defense will give them max effort."
Offense generating hits
The Nittany Lion offense has been putting big numbers on the scoreboard lately, tallying 10-plus hits for the third-straight game and the 12th time this season. In Saturday night's game, seven of nine batters recorded a hit, with only one batter striking out.
What's Next?
Penn State closes it's weekend series with Rutgers on Sunday as the Nittany Lions look to complete the sweep of the Scarlet Knights. First pitch is set for 1 p.m.