UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Kyle Hannon's little league grand slam in the sixth sparked the Penn State baseball team to an 11-6 win over West Virginia on Tuesday night at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. The Nittany Lions rallied from down 6-1 to take the lead in the sixth and closed out the win with dominate pitching over the final three innings. Penn State improved to 18-11 overall, while West Virginia dropped to 23-10. The Mountaineers are ranked 25th in the NCBWA Poll.
On Military Appreciation Night and Dollar Dog Night, the Nittany Lions welcomed 2,700 fans to the ballpark. Those fans consumed an incredible 5,287 hot dogs.
Ben DeMell got the start on the mound for the Nittany Lions. He worked 2.2 innings, allowing four runs on six hits while striking out three. Ryan Partridge went 1.1 innings in relief, giving up one run on one hit and striking out one.
Tommy Molsky earned the win, settling things down with 2.1 innings of work. He gave up one run (unearned) on one hit. Anthony Steele struck out two in a shutout frame before Connor Throneberry retired the only two batters he faced. Steven Miller struck out the side in the ninth.
Grant Siegel got the start for West Virginia, going three scoreless frames. Maxx Yehl allowed one runs on three hits in an inning. Gavin Van Kempen threw a scoreless inning before Keegan Allen allowed three runs without retiring a batter. Noah Short allowed two runs (one earned) before Cole Fehrman gave up the go-ahead run. David Hagaman, Aidan Major and Carlson Reed combined for the final 2.2 innings, allowing four runs (one earned).
Penn State tallied 11 hits. The Nittany Lions scored 10 runs across the sixth and seventh innings. Jay Harry blasted his fifth homer of the year and scored two runs. Thomas Bramley collected three hits and two runs. Grant Norris drove in two runs with a double, while Bobby Marsh added an RBI double. Tyson Cooper contributed a two-run single.
West Virginia registered nine hits. JJ Wetherholt had a double, a run and a sac fly. Landon Wallace drove in two runs. Tevin Tucker recorded three hits and a run.
Penn State held the Mountaineers without a stolen base after West Virginia entered the game ranking ninth in the nation with 78 on the season.
The Mountaineers struck first with a run in the opening frame. Wetherholt led off the game with a ground-rule double to left-center. Wallace followed with a line-drive single to right to bring home Wetherholt.
WVU added two runs in the second. After Braden Barry and Sam White hit back-to-back singles, Logan Sauve reached on a fielder's choice, scoring Barry. Tucker singled to put runners at first and third before a wild pitch allowed White to cross the plate. West Virginia led 3-0.
West Virginia scored a run in the third. The Mountaineers loaded the bases as Wallace and Caleb McNeely were hit by pitches and Dayne Leonard singled. A fielder's choice by Barry to the left side of the infield allowed Wallace to score and extend the WVU lead to 4-0.
The Mountaineers plated a run in the fourth. Sauve began the inning with a single. He moved to second on a bunt and to third on a fly out. Wallace lifted a fly ball to center for a sac fly as Sauve scored.
The Nittany Lions responded in the bottom half of the inning. Bramley started the inning with a single to right. Two batters later, Spiegel lined a single to left. Marsh ripped a double to right to bring home Bramley and cut the deficit to 5-1.
In the sixth, Tucker lined a double to the corner in right and hustled to third on an error. Wetherholt launched a fly ball to deep center for a sac fly to plate Tucker. West Virginia extended its lead to 6-1.
Penn State rallied to take the lead. Bramley again led off the inning with a single and moved to second as Harry was hit by a pitch. Penn State loaded the bases as Spiegel drew a walk. Norris ripped a double to right to bring home Bramley and Harry. two batters later, Billy Gerlott was hit by a pitch to re-load the bases. Pinch-hitter Ben Kailher worked a five-pitch walk to score Spiegel.
That setup the little league grand slam by Hannon. The junior chopped a grounder to the right side along the line. He beat the throw to first but a wild throw by the pitcher and another by the right fielder allowed all three runners to score before Hannon raced home as the ball bounced back towards the infield. The Nittany Lions took an 8-6 lead into the seventh.
The Nittany Lions added to their lead in the seventh. Harry led off the inning by blasting a 2-1 pitch over the wall in right for a solo homer. It was his fifth of the season. With two outs, Marsh reached on an error. Gerlott followed with a single to left to put runners on first and second. A wild pitch moved each runner up a base. Cooper dropped a fly ball into shallow left as Marsh and Gerlott crossed the plate to give Penn State an 11-6 advantage.
Penn State travels to Purdue to resume Big Ten action, beginning on Friday, April 14 at 6 p.m. Saturday's contest is set for 2 p.m. and Sunday's series finale is set for 1 p.m. All games will be broadcast on B1G+.
Season and single game tickets for the 2023 Penn State baseball season are available here. Season tickets are $75 for adults and free for youth (ages 12 and under).
The 2023 Penn State baseball season is presented by The Family Clothesline.
Kyle Hannon