UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – Courtesy of a trio of home runs from three different student-athletes, Penn State softball slugged its way to a 9-6, come-from-behind victory over the Maryland Terrapins to even the weekend series Saturday afternoon at a rainy Nittany Lion Softball Park and Beard Field.
The Blue & White returned to the win column Saturday afternoon, improving to 10-1 overall in the friendly confines of Nittany Lion Softball Park this season. Penn State improved to 25-7 following Saturday's series-tying effort, rising to 4-1 in Big Ten Conference play early in the league calendar. The Nittany Lions moved back to .500 against the Terrapins in the last eight meetings, with both squads picking up four wins in those contests, while PSU improved to 23-16 against the Terps following the 39th all-time meeting. In defeat, Maryland fell back to even at 16-16 overall and 3-2 in the B1G.
On the offensive side of things, PSU's bats came alive once again, recording the 12th double-digit hitting performance of the 2024 season in addition to the second Nittany Lion contest with 10 or more hits since B1G action began last week against Indiana. Penn State hit at a .400 rate against a trio of Terrapin tossers, going 10-for-25 as a team with three different Nittany Lion student-athletes recording multiple-hit outings. The Blue & White cranked a trio of extra-base hits in the affair, with all three leaving the yard.
Senior catcher Gaby Garcia led the way for Penn State with a 2-for-4 showing highlighted by two runs scored, two RBI and an emphatic solo homer over the Beard Field scoreboard in left. Garcia cranked her fifth home run of the 2024 season, moving into a tie for second place on the PSU roster in dingers this season. Junior right fielder Maddie Gordon, meanwhile, assumed the top spot on the Nittany Lion home run leaderboard with a two-run shot in PSU's five-run third inning. The Shenandoah, Virginia, native finished the day 2-for-3 with a pair of runs, two RBI and her 11th stolen base of the year. Senior Kaitlyn Morrison rounded out the trio of PSU multi-hit performers with a 2-for-3 day and two RBI, while senior center fielder Liana Jones pelted a two-run shot dead-center to close out a 1-for-3 day at the dish.
PSU's pitching staff worked together to produce a critical victory for the Nittany Lions, with sophomore Paige Maynard, junior Mady Volpe and freshman Bridget Nemeth each earning time in the circle. Maynard picked up her eighth start of the 2024 season and worked through 1.2 innings against the Terrapin lineup with just two earned runs surrendered. Volpe entered in the top of the second and pitched for 2.1 frames, steering the Nittany Lions into the lead with zero earned runs allowed, one strikeout and no walks en route to the winning decision. The Lansdale, Pennsylvania, native improved to 7-3 in her junior year with the Blue & White. Nemeth came in to close the game out over the final 3.0 innings, yielding zero earned runs, three strikeouts and a walk to complete her third save of the campaign. The Glendora, California, native moved into a tie for sixth all-time at PSU for career saves following the result of Saturday's contest.
Maryland's bats started the game off hot, with the Terrapins cranking a two-run homer in the top of the first inning in addition to a three-run shot in the top of the second to take an early 5-0 lead. Unfazed by the Terrapins' early success at the plate, Penn State remained focused and began chipping away at the Maryland advantage. Seeking a response, Gordon led the home half of the second inning off with a single up the middle, stealing second after a Nittany Lion flew out in the ensuing moments. After a grounder put two away, Hernandez booked an RBI single to right that hit the wall near the foul pole, bringing Gordon in for the score. The Blue & White were able to keep Maryland off the board in the third thanks to an excellent showing from Volpe in the circle, bringing the Nittany Lion bats back to the plate.
After a flyout to lead off the inning, PSU got its best offensive frame of the day going with a Morrison single toward the Maryland third baseman. A grounder from senior third baseman Emily Maddock allowed Morrison to reach second, and Garcia zipped an RBI single to left that brought Morrison around for Penn State's second run. In the next at-bat, Gordon pelted the third pitch of her plate appearance over the wall in left to tack on two more scores. Maryland changed pitchers moments later, but junior designated player Haylie Brunson kept the offense rolling with a single up the middle. With a 1-0 count and two outs on the board, Jones dismantled Maryland's offering over the fence in center, giving Penn State the lead at 6-5. From that moment forward, Penn State logged a run in each ensuing inning and was able to stave off Maryland's attempt at a comeback in the top of the fifth, ultimately turning in a 9-6 home victory to force an Easter Sunday rubber match in Happy Valley.
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS
Gaby Garcia | 2-for-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, HR
Liana Jones | 1-for-2, R, 2 RBI, HR, BB
Mady Volpe | WIN, 2.1 IP, 2H, 1R, 0ER, 0BB, 1K, 44TP
KEY INNINGS
T1 | Megan Mikami led the game off with a single to the PSU shortstop and promptly stole second. Following a Maryland flyout to left, Diamond Williams hit a two-run shot off the scoreboard in left field to give Maryland the early 2-0 lead. UMD 2, PSU 0
T2 | The Terrapins added to their advantage in the top of the second, with Madison Runyan singling on the first pitch of her at-bat with one down. After advancing to second on a wild pitch, Maryland flew out to left to put two away. Mikami reached first base on a fielding error in her second at-bat of the day, with Runyan reaching third in the process. After a PSU pitching change, Jaeda McFarland homered to right to plate three more Terp runs. UMD 5, PSU 0
B2 | Seeking a response, Gordon led the home half of the inning off with a single up the middle, stealing second after a Nittany Lion flew out in the ensuing moments. After a grounder put two away, Hernandez booked an RBI single to right that hit the wall near the foul pole, bringing Gordon in for the score. UMD 5, PSU 1
B3 | After a flyout to lead off the inning, PSU got its best offensive frame of the day going with a Morrison single toward the Maryland third baseman. After a Maddock grounder allowed Morrison to reach second, Garcia zipped an RBI single to left that brought Morrison around for Penn State's second run. In the next at-bat, Gordon pelted the third pitch of her plate appearance over the wall in left to tack on two more scores. Maryland changed pitchers moments later, but Brunson kept the offense rolling with a single up the middle. With a 1-0 count and two outs on the board, Jones dismantled Maryland's offering over the fence in center, giving Penn State the lead. PSU 6, UMD 5
B4 | Poletti reached first on a fielding error by the Terrapin second baseman, and an errant throw allowed her to continue her advance to second. After Barbanente executed an ideal sacrifice bunt to move Poletti to third, Morrison batted her in with a sac fly to center. PSU 7, UMD 5
T5 | Facing Nemeth in the circle, McFarland struck out looking, but Williams was able to reach first in the next at-bat following a PSU fielding error. After Caitlyn Cornwell entered to pinch run for Williams at first, Maryland struck out once again to put two away. Mazie MacFarlane entered the box and singled up to middle while Cornwell was able to complete her trip around the bases thanks to the hit and an additional throwing error by the Blue & White. PSU 7, UMD 6
B5 | Squaring off against Maryland's ace, Garcia worked an exceptional at-bat and was rewarded with a solo dinger over the "Beard Field" lettering atop the scoreboard in left field. PSU 8, UMD 6
B6 | Poletti drew a leadoff walk, and advanced to second after another successful Barbanente sac bunt. After Poletti moved to third thanks to a wild Maryland pitch, Morrison drove her home with a single to center that closed out the scoring in Saturday's 9-6 PSU victory. PSU 9, UMD 6
UP NEXT
Penn State softball closes out its weekend series against the Maryland Terrapins on Easter Sunday, March 31, with the rubber match set to begin at 1 p.m. (ET) at Nittany Lion Softball Park and Beard Field. The Blue & White welcome the Easter Bunny for a ceremonial first pitch before the contest and will host an Easter Egg Hunt on Beard Field after the game. Gates open at noon (ET), with fans invited to arrive early and watch Penn State batting practice pregame. Admission is free to all Penn State softball games in the 2024 season.
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