UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State baseball team scored two in the seventh and two in the eighth to take the lead and held on for a 10-8 win over Youngstown State on Tuesday night at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. A double by Bobby Marsh brought in the go-ahead runs. The Nittany Lions improved to 20-13 on the season and 10-3 in home games.
The Nittany Lions held their fifth Tuesday Dollar Dog Night of the season as 1,034 fans braved temperatures in the 40s to consume 2,420 hot dogs.
Ben DeMell made his fourth start of the season for the Nittany Lions. DeMell pitched 2.2 innings, allowing six runs (two earned) on eight hits. He struck out three batters and walked one. DeMell was not helped by multiple errors in the opening frames. Connor Throneberry helped to settle the game down, throwing 1.2 innings, allowing one run (unearned) on one hit. Carson Kohls recorded two outs and a walk without giving up a run. Ryan Partridge went 2.1 frames, allowing one run on one hit and striking out two. Anthony Steele finished the game, going 1.2 scoreless innings and striking out three.
Kenny Misik got the start for Youngstown State (7-29). He tossed 2.2 innings, allowing six runs on five hits and five walks, while striking out two. Patrick Gumpto threw 1.1 scoreless innings, followed by Zach Stayduhar's shutout frame. Nick Perez pitched two innings, giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits. Will Shaffer gave up two runs on a hit and a walk while recording two outs. Casey Marshalwitz finished the eighth.
Penn State notched 12 hits. Bobby Marsh led the offense with two hits, including a double, and three RBI. Johnny Piacentino returned to the lineup with two hits, a run and two RBI. Grant Norris tallied two hits, including a double, and two RBI. Josh Spiegel collected two hits and two runs, while Jay Harry scored three times.
Kyle Hannon recorded a hit, two runs and a stolen base. The steal was his 24th of the season, moving into a tie for second in a season at Penn State with Sean Deegan (2010), Zack Smithlin (2003) and Rod Perry (2001). Hannon also extended his hit streak to 17 games.
Youngstown State tallied 11 hits. Trey Law recorded three hits, including a double, an RBI and two runs at the top of the lineup. Padraig O'Shaughnessy contributed two hits, including a double, an RBI and two runs. Clay Wiesen had two hits and scored two runs.
The Penguins got on the board in the top of the first. Law started the game with a single to left, followed by Braeden O'Shaughnessy's single to center, which moved Law to third. Padraig O'Shaughnessy lifted a fly ball to center for a sac fly to bring home Law.
Penn State answered with three runs in the bottom half. Hannon led off the frame with a walk and stole second. Harry lined a single to right, moving Hannon to third and moving Harry to second on the throw into the infield. Marsh ripped a single to left-center to plate Hannon. Marsh moved up to second on a wild pitch and Spiegel drew a walk to load the bases. Two batters later, Piacentino launched a fly ball to left to score Harry on a sac fly. Norris singled to right to bring home Marsh and put Penn State ahead, 3-1.
Youngstown State scored five in the second, helped by errors. Wiesen started the inning with a single to center and moved to third on a double by Eli Brown. Law doubled to the warning track in right-center to drive in Wiesen. A throwing error on the play allowed Brown to score and Law to end up on third. Braeden O'Shaughnessy hit a fly ball to right for a sac fly to plate Law. After Padraig O'Shaughnessy was hit by a pitch, a fly ball by Steven D'Eusanio dropped in the right field corner to score O'Shaughnessy. Matt Thompson singled to center to bring home D'Eusanio to extend the Penguins' lead to 6-3.
The Nittany Lions tied the game in the third. Spiegel started the inning with an infield single. Bramley drew a walk before Piacentino singled to left to load the bases. Norris held off on a 3-1 pitch for a walk to allow Spiegel to score. Tayven Kelley bounced into a double play, but allowed Bramley to score and Piacentino to move to third. A wild pitch plated Piacentino to even the game at 6-6.
Youngstown State re-took the lead in the fifth. Wiesen reached on a fielding error before Ian Francis singled to left. An error on a ground ball by Brown allowed Wiesen to score to put YSU back in front, 7-6.
The Penguins added a run in the sixth. Padraig O'Shaughnessy led off the inning with a double to right-center and moved up to third on a wild pitch. A second wild pitch allowed O'Shaughnessy to cross the plate and extend the YSU led to 8-6.
Penn State again tied the game in the seventh. Harry reached on an error to begin the inning. Spiegel singled to right to put runners on the corners. Bramley lifted a fly ball to right-center, which bounced over the wall for a ground-rule double and scored Harry. Piacentino followed with an infield single to the left side to drive in Spiegel and even the game at 8-8.
The Nittany Lions completed the comeback in the eighth. With two outs, Hannon singled to center and Harry walked to put runners on first and second. Marsh then dropped a fly ball into left-center as Hannon and Harry hustled home to put Penn State ahead, 10-8.
Penn State welcomes Ohio State for a Big Ten series, beginning on Friday, April 21. Friday's game, beginning at 6 p.m., is Sandlot Day, honoring the 30th anniversary of the movie, featuring a t-shirt giveaway. Saturday's game, beginning at 2 p.m. is Wear White day and features postgame autographs and a trading card giveaway. Sunday's game is slated for 1 p.m. on Little League Day.
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.
Bobby Marsh