BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Despite a sixth-inning rally that featured a record-tying double from senior shortstop Kaitlyn Morrison and an emphatic homer over the Davis Diamond scoreboard from junior second baseman Maddie Gordon, the Penn State softball team dropped a 4-2 decision to the No. 25 Texas State Bobcats in the opening game of the 2024 NCAA Bryan-College Station Regional.
The defeat saw Penn State drop to 34-19 overall through this point in the 2024 campaign and 0-1 in the NCAA Tournament, with the Blue & White looking to extend their season Saturday afternoon against the loser of Friday's second game between No. 16-seeded Texas A&M and UAlbany. The defeat dropped Penn State's all-time NCAA Tournament record to 12-21 overall, with the last Nittany Lion postseason win coming in 16 innings against Fordham on May 21, 2011. PSU suffered its fourth consecutive defeat at the hands of Texas State this year, with the Bobcats avenging an 0-2 start in the all-time series to take a 4-2 lead after the teams' competitions in 2024. The Bobcats advance in the winner's bracket and rise to 46-13 overall.
Morrison, a native of South Park, Pennsylvania, moved into a tie for the top spot all-time in Penn State history for doubles in a single season, joining program legends Ally Kurland, Danielle Kinley and Jen Acunto. The record of 18 has stood since the 2022 season when Kurland last matched that total in a dominant all-around offensive campaign. Meanwhile, the Shenandoah, Virginia, native Gordon cranked her 12th home run of 2024, moving into a tie for the seventh-most dingers in a single season alongside Shannon Salsburg's 12-homer season in 1995.
Gordon and Morrison both finished the day going 1-for-3 at the plate, respectively, making them accountable for two of Penn State's four hits in the NCAA Regional opener as well as both of PSU's hits for extra bases. Senior catcher Gaby Garcia returned to her native Lone Star State and got the offense going with the Nittany Lions' first hit of the day in the top of the second inning, ultimately finishing the game 1-for-2. Freshman left fielder Michela Barbanente got the offense rolling once again in the top of the fifth with a leadoff bunt single toward first base, completing her 1-for-3 day at the dish.
In the circle, freshman pitcher Bridget Nemeth tossed her 16th complete game of the 2024 season, dropping to 22-7 overall through this point in her record-setting rookie campaign. Nemeth, a native of Glendora, California, tossed 6.0 innings and scattered 10 hits on the day, yielding four earned runs in the contest. Nemeth surrendered two extra-base hits, both in the form of doubles, while striking out three batters and walking four.
Neither offense managed much in the early going, with both teams combining for four hits through the first three and a half innings. The Bobcats managed to work their way into a precarious 1-0 lead in the bottom of the fourth with an RBI single, with both pitchers and defenses settling into a rhythm in the ensuing frames. In the top of the sixth inning, Morrison cranked a leadoff double to left field that matched the Penn State single-season program record, and after a PSU flyout to left field, Gordon stepped up to the plate. After working ahead in the count 2-0, Gordon smacked the barrel of her bat into the softball and drove it over the towering scoreboard in Davis Diamond's left field, putting Penn State ahead for the first time, 2-1. Texas State wasted little time mustering a response, tallying a trio of runs in the home half to finalize the 4-2 score and continue their run in the winner's bracket.
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS
Maddie Gordon | 1-for-3, R, 2 RBI, HR
Kaitlyn Morrison | 1-for-3, R, 2B
Bridget Nemeth | CG, 6.0 IP, 10H, 4R, 4ER, 4BB, 3K, 120TP
KEY INNINGS
B4 | Karmyn Bass drew a leadoff walk for the Bobcats to start the bottom of the fourth inning, and Katarina Zarate executed a sacrifice bunt to advance the runner 60 feet further. After a lineout to the Nittany Lion shortstop, Hannah Earls drove a single up the middle to plate Bass for the game's opening run. TXST 1, PSU 0
T6 | Morrison cranked a leadoff double to left field that matched the Penn State single-season program record in the category, and after a PSU flyout to left field, Gordon stepped up to the plate. After working ahead in the count 2-0, Gordon smacked the barrel of her bat into the softball and drove it over the towering scoreboard in Davis Diamond's left field, putting Penn State ahead for the first time. PSU 2, TXST 1
B6 | With one away, Sydney Harvey slapped a single toward third base and Earls recorded a single toward the Nittany Lion pitcher to put two runners on with one out. After a strikeout from Nemeth, Sara Vanderford zipped a double into left field that plated Harvey and advanced Earls to third. Anna Jones kept things going with a single through the left side that plated Earls and advanced Vanderford, and Piper Randolph sent an RBI single to third base to bring Vanderford around. TXST 4, PSU 2
UP NEXT
Penn State continues its stay in the 2024 NCAA Division I Softball Tournament with day two action at the Bryan-College Station Regional, with the Nittany Lions set to square off against the loser of Friday night's game between No. 16 national seed Texas A&M and UAlbany. First pitch in the first elimination game of the Regional is set for 5:30 p.m. (ET)/4:30 p.m. (CT) on Saturday, May 18, at Davis Diamond, with broadcast information to be announced when available.
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