LEESBURG, Fla. – Penn State softball opened the 2024 edition of THE Spring Games with a pair of victories on Friday at the Sleepy Hollow Sports Complex, defeating the Kansas Jayhawks by a 5-4 margin in the opener followed by a 6-2 result in the day's finale against the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers.
The Nittany Lions' 7-0 start to the 2024 campaign matched the best start to a season in PSU program history, joining the 2023 and 1974 rosters as the only three teams in Happy Valley to book 7-0 openings on the diamond. PSU's unbeaten start through seven games last season featured wins over Cleveland State, North Florida, Bethune-Cookman, Jacksonville, Memphis, Charlotte and Kent State. In the all-time series against Kansas, Penn State registered its first-ever victory, improving to 1-3 against the Jayhawks in a series dating to 1991. PSU moved closer to .500 against the Chanticleers, improving to 3-4 in the all-time series following the seventh meeting of the two programs. In defeat, Kansas fell to 3-5-1 before beating B1G-rival Illinois later in the day, while Coastal Carolina fell back to .500 at 4-4 overall.
Freshman pitcher Bridget Nemeth's astronomical start continued Friday against the Jayhawks and Chanticleers, rising to 5-0 overall with two saves through her first seven collegiate appearances. Nemeth, a native of Glendora, California, has been either the pitcher of record or the pitcher credited with a save in all of Penn State's games through the first week of the season. In Friday's appearances, Nemeth tossed 9.0 total innings and struck out 14 batters against a lone walk, tallying a 0.00 ERA in the process. Against Coastal Carolina, Nemeth tossed her first collegiate complete game and surrendered just two runs, with both runs going in the book as unearned scores. During the first game of the day, sophomore pitcher Paige Maynard earned the start, and junior pitcher Mady Volpe saw 3.2 innings of relief work, logging a 0.00 ERA with a pair of strikeouts and zero walks in the process of securing the win.
In the batter's box, senior third baseman Emily Maddock finished the day 5-for-7 overall, knocking a pair of extra-base hits and scoring a trio of runs on her own while batting in three more. The second game of the day against Coastal Carolina saw Maddock go 3-for-4 and finish one home run short of the cycle, booking all three of her RBI on the day with a bases-clearing triple against the Chanticleers. Junior right fielder Haylie Brunson hit .429 on Friday with a pair of doubles, while senior catcher Gaby Garcia logged a pair of doubles en route to a .400 outing against KU and Coastal.
PSU started the day on the right foot against the Jayhawks, finding some run support in the bottom of the first inning. Base hits from Maddock and senior shortstop Kaitlyn Morrison paved the way to a two-run frame for the Blue & White, but Kansas snapped back in the top of the second to take a 4-2 lead thanks to extra-base hits.
Hunting for a rally in the later innings, senior first baseman Amanda Mack drew a leadoff walk, and sophomore Jenna Nelson came in to pinch run for her at first. After a quick fly out to right, Maddock singled toward second base and allowed Nelson to advance to second. A strikeout at the dish put two away, but a single from Mendoza and the ensuing defensive drama allowed Mendoza to advance to second while Maddock headed to third and Nelson scored. In the next at-bat, Brunson pelted the ball to right center, bringing Maddock and Mendoza home to give PSU the one-run advantage. The Nittany Lions held on defensively the rest of the way and improved to 6-0 with a 5-4 result against KU.
With just 30 minutes to celebrate Friday's tournament-opening victory, the Nittany Lions immediately refocused and turned their attention to Coastal Carolina. Penn State called on a pair of two-out, RBI hits from Brunson and Garcia in the top of the third inning to spot three runs on the board for the Nittany Lions, but the Chanticleers were able to scratch a pair of unearned scores in the home half.
Nemeth helped her own cause in the top of the fourth, drawing a leadoff walk after a seven-pitch plate appearance. Nelson came in to pinch run for her at first and advanced to second after Barbanente drew yet another walk moments later. A single to left field by Mack juiced the bases, and Maddock's bases-clearing triple to right added three more runs to the board for PSU. Nemeth rattled off five more strikeouts the rest of the way, including a pair of K's in the seventh inning to close out her first collegiate complete game and PSU's second win of the day by a 6-2 tally.
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS (VS. KANSAS)
Emily Maddock | 2-for-3, 2 R
Haylie Brunson | 1-for-3, 2B, 2 RBI
Mady Volpe | 3.2 IP, WIN, 3H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 2K, 57TP
Bridget Nemeth | 2.0 IP, SAVE, 2H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 3K, 42TP
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS (VS. COASTAL CAROLINA)
Emily Maddock | 3-for-4, 2B, 3B, 3 RBI, R
Gaby Garcia | 2-for-4, 2 2B, 2 RBI
Haylie Brunson | 2-for-4, 2B, RBI, R
Bridget Nemeth | 7.0 IP, WIN, 5H, 2R, 0ER, 1BB, 11K, 94TP
KEY INNINGS (VS. KANSAS)
B1 | Morrison and Maddock booked back-to-back singles to open the inning, with Morrison sprinting to third on Maddock's base hit. Maddock promptly stole second base at the next opportunity, and Garcia juiced the bases after being struck by a Jayhawk pitch. A wild pitch allowed Morrison to sprint home, and a throwing error by the pitcher attempting to halt Maddock allowed her to add PSU's second run of the afternoon. PSU 2, KU 0
T2 | After a quick pop-out, Campbell Bagshaw drew a walk and ultimately scored after Addison Purvis doubled to left center. An Ashlyn Anderson single pushed Purvis to third, and both Anderson and Purvis were driven in thanks to a bases-clearing triple from Angela Price. KU found one more run after a Nittany Lion pitching change thanks to a Presley Limbaugh double to right that plated Price. KU 4, PSU 2
B5 | Mack drew a leadoff walk for the Blue & White, and Nelson came in to pinch run for her at first. After a quick fly out to right, Maddock singled toward second base and allowed Nelson to advance to second. A strikeout at the dish put two away, but a single from Mendoza and the ensuing defensive drama allowed Mendoza to advance to second while Maddock headed to third and Nelson scored. In the next at-bat, Brunson pelted the ball to right center, bringing Maddock and Mendoza home. PSU 5, KU 4
KEY INNINGS (VS. COASTAL CAROLINA)
T3 | A pair of quick grounders put a pair of outs on the board for the Nittany Lions, but a Morrison single up the middle kept the inning alive. Maddock singled to second in the following at-bat, moving Morrison 60 feet further. A well-placed Brunson single gave Morrison the requisite time to reach home and move Maddock to third. PSU found its fourth-straight two-out knock in the next at-bat, as Garcia blasted a two-RBI double down the left field line to plate Maddock and Brunson. PSU 3, CCU 0
B3 | With one out on the board, Hope McDonald reached on a fielding error and advanced to second after a single from Riley Zana. Sydney Montoya came in to pinch run for Zana at first, and both McDonald and Montoya advanced a base after a Nittany Lion passed ball. An Iyanla De Jesus single to center ultimately drove McDonald and Montoya home for Coastal's only runs in the game. PSU 3, CCU 2
T4 | Nemeth helped her own cause in the top of the fourth, drawing a leadoff walk after a seven-pitch plate appearance. Nelson came in to pinch run for her at first and advanced to second after Barbanente drew a walk moments later. A single to left field by Mack juiced the bases, and Maddock slammed a bases-clearing triple to right that added three more runs to the board for PSU. PSU 6, CCU 2
UP NEXT
Penn State softball continues its weekend stay in Central Florida on Saturday, February 17, as the Nittany Lions continue competition at THE Spring Games with contests scheduled against UC Riverside and Southern Illinois. Due to forecasted inclement weather in Leesburg, first pitch against the Highlanders is now scheduled for 9:30 a.m. (ET), with a noon start booked against the Salukis at the Sleepy Hollow Sports Complex.
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