BRYAN-COLLEGE STATION, Texas – Penn State softball recorded its first NCAA Tournament win in 13 years and led its second elimination game of the day headed into the top of the fifth inning, but the Nittany Lions ultimately concluded their 2024 season at Davis Diamond Saturday night. The Blue & White recorded a historic 9-3 victory over the UAlbany Great Danes in the first elimination game of the day but dropped an 8-4 decision to the No. 25 Texas State Bobcats in the nightcap.
Penn State completed its 2024 campaign with a 35-20 overall record, tying the third-most wins in a single season in program history set by the 1999 team. The Nittany Lions recorded their first NCAA Tournament victory since 2011, when the Blue & White recorded a 5-2 decision in 16 innings against the Fordham Rams in the second elimination game of the NCAA University Park Regional. PSU's 60th varsity team brought the all-time Nittany Lion record in the NCAA Division I Softball Tournament to 13-22, winning at least one game in a national postseason tournament for just the eighth time in program history. With their win, Texas State improved to 47-14 overall and will face the national 16th-seeded Texas A&M Aggies in the Bryan-College Station Regional Final on Sunday, May 19.
In the circle, Penn State's record-shattering freshman right-hander, Bridget Nemeth, cemented her place atop the Nittany Lion record book for pitching victories in a single season. Nemeth, a native of Glendora, California, tallied her 23rd winning decision after a complete game showing against the Great Danes, rising to 23-8 overall following the conclusion of PSU's NCAA Tournament competitions. The previous record of 22 overall victories was set by Kelly McCann in 2001 and Bailey Parshall in 2022, two of the greatest individual seasons in the circle in Nittany Lion history. In addition to Nemeth's impressive performances on the field, the freshman star additionally picked up NFCA First-Team All-Great Lakes Region earlier Saturday afternoon, landing yet another accolade in her trophy cabinet.
Nemeth was a rockstar in the circle once again, tossing 12.0 innings while yielding a day-long ERA of 1.17. The freshman scattered 16 total hits and yielded nine total runs, but only two of the opponent runs scored against Nemeth on the day went in the book as earned. She finished with 13 strikeouts across both performances and walked four opposing batters en route to a 1-1 showing in her final two games of her rookie campaign. In the second game of the day, junior righty Mady Volpe tossed 2.0 innings and yielded a pair of earned runs, registering a strikeout and two walks in her performance against Texas State.
At the dish, PSU mustered a combined 19 hits with six of those going for extra bases. Freshman first baseman Gianna Poletti had the most productive day in terms of batting average, going 3-for-4 with a trio of singles. Junior right fielder Haylie Brunson went 2-for-5 and cranked her 14th double of her inaugural Nittany Lion season. Freshman Audree Mendoza recorded one of the most iconic individual at-bats of the 2024 NCAA Tournament, pelting her first collegiate home run into the left pillar of the Davis Diamond scoreboard to put the Nittany Lions ahead by a 3-2 margin in the season finale against Texas State. Junior second baseman Maddie Gordon cranked a double and home run in the win over UAlbany, while freshman left fielder Michela Barbanente crushed a two-run home run in PSU's victory against the Great Danes. Finally, senior center fielder Liana Jones mustered her second career grand slam to ensure Penn State's first NCAA Tournament win since 2011, logging the go-ahead four-ribbie swing to put UAlbany away.
Penn State got the day started in the first elimination game of the NCAA Bryan-College Station Regional, rolling to an impressive 9-3 decision against the Great Danes. The fun began for the Blue & White in the bottom of the fourth inning, where Gordon saw her perfect pitch on the first pitch of her at-bat and drove a solo home run dead center to open up Saturday afternoon's scoring. After working a 2-2 count moments later, Garcia stepped into the box and drove a single to center field to keep the Nittany Lion offense rolling. After Jones reached on a fielder's choice up the middle that saw Garcia thrown out, Barbanente drove an opposite-field shot off the right field foul pole to make it a three-run Nittany Lion lead. UAlbany got their offense going in the visitor's half of the fifth, tying the game up 3-3.
PSU snapped back in the home half, when Poletti recorded a leadoff single to right field on a 1-0 count, and Morrison reached on a fielder's choice to the pitcher that saw Poletti thrown out at second. After a flyout, Gordon smacked a double down the left field line and Morrison advanced to third. Following a walk drawn by Garcia, Jones lifted the second grand slam home run of her career over the fence in center field to give the Blue & White an emphatic four-run lead. After keeping UAlbany off the board in the sixth, Brunson started home half of the inning off with a four-pitch walk, and Mendoza smacked a single toward the shortstop that put runners on first and second. Senior Amanda Mack entered the game to pinch hit for Poletti and responded by sending a single through the left side of the infield to load the bases. After Poletti re-entered to run for Mack, each base runner got to advance 60 feet thanks to a wild pitch that saw Brunson score. Morrison followed with a sac fly to center that brought Mendoza in, closing out the scoring in Penn State's historic 9-3 victory.
In the second game of the day, the Bobcats got things started with a pair of runs in the top of the third inning, but Penn State responded dramatically in the bottom of the fourth. Garcia reached second to open the inning thanks to a dropped fly error on the Bobcat right fielder, and after a PSU strikeout, Barbanente reached first on a fielding error that saw Garcia head to third. Barbanente proceeded to steal second, and after another Nittany Lion K, Mendoza stepped up to the plate and laced her first career home run into the left pillar of the Davis Diamond scoreboard. Texas State tallied twice more in the fifth and put the game out of reach in the top of the sixth with a grand slam. Despite a late PSU rally that featured a run scored in the bottom of the sixth, Texas State put an end to the Nittany Lion season in 8-4 fashion.
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS (VS. UALBANY)
Maddie Gordon | 2-for-4, 2 R, RBI, 2B, HR
Liana Jones | 1-for-3, 2 R, 4 RBI, GRAND SLAM HR
Bridget Nemeth | WIN, CG, 7.0 IP, 5H, 3R, 0ER, 2BB, 7K, 98TP
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS (VS. TEXAS STATE)
Emily Maddock | 2-for-4
Gianna Poletti | 2-for-2
Audree Mendoza | 1-for-3, R, 3 RBI, HR
KEY INNINGS (VS. UALBANY)
B4 | On the first pitch of her at-bat, Gordon saw her perfect pitch and drove a solo home run dead center to open up Saturday afternoon's scoring. After working a 2-2 count, Garcia stepped into the box and drove a single to center field to keep the Nittany Lion offense rolling. After Jones reached on a fielder's choice up the middle that saw Garcia thrown out, Barbanente drove an opposite-field shot off the right field foul pole to make it a three-run Nittany Lion lead. PSU 3, UALB 0
T5 | Jordan Nastos recorded a bunt single to lead off the inning, and after a strikeout, the Great Danes were able to place runners on first and second with Deanna Grahek reaching via fielder's choice and Nastos advancing to second following a Nittany Lion throwing error. Caitlyn Frederick managed to juice the bases with another bunt single, and after a UAlbany strikeout put two away, Morgan Petty knocked a bases-clearing triple to right center that tied the game. PSU 3, UALB 3
B5 | Poletti recorded a leadoff single to right field on a 1-0 count, and Morrison reached on a fielder's choice to the pitcher that saw Poletti thrown out at second. After a flyout, Gordon smacked a double down the left field line and Morrison advanced to third. Following a walk drawn by Garcia, Jones lifted the second grand slam home run of her career over the fence in center field to give the Blue & White an emphatic four-run lead. PSU 7, UALB 3
B6 | Brunson started the inning off with a four-pitch walk, and Mendoza smacked a single toward the shortstop that put runners on first and second. Mack entered the game to pinch hit for Poletti and responded by sending a single through the left side of the infield to load the bases. After Poletti re-entered to run for Mack, each base runner got to advance 60 feet thanks to a wild pitch that saw Brunson score. Morrison followed with a sac fly to center that brought Mendoza in. PSU 9, UALB 3
KEY INNINGS (VS. TEXAS STATE)
T3 | With one out on the board, Hannah Earls drew a walk, but the next Bobcat batter struck out swinging to put two down. Earls proceeded to steal second, and ultimately scored after Sara Vanderford sent a single to right center. Vanderford stole second at the next opportunity, and an Anna Jones single to left center and advancement on the throw allowed Vanderford to trot home. TXST 2, PSU 0
B4 | Garcia reached second to open the inning thanks to a dropped fly error on the Bobcat right fielder, and after a PSU strikeout, Barbanente reached first on a fielding error that saw Garcia head to third. Barbanente proceeded to steal second, and after another Nittany Lion K, Mendoza stepped up to the plate and laced her first career home run into the left pillar of the Davis Diamond scoreboard. PSU 3, TXST 2
T5 | Earls led the top of the fifth off with a single to left, and Makayla Hall notched a pinch-hit sac bunt to advance the runner. Vanderford singled up the middle to bring Earls around, and Jones kept the inning alive with a single through the left side that placed runners on first and second. From there, Piper Randolph singled to center field, plating Vanderford and moving Jones to second. TXST 4, PSU 3
T6 | Sydney Harvey notched a leadoff single to the pitcher, and advanced to second after an Earls groundout. An erroneous play moments later saw Baker reach second and Harvey move to third. The bases were loaded after Vanderford was intentionally walked, but a forceout at home saw PSU put a pair of outs on the board. Moments later, Randolph hit a grand slam to left field. TXST 8, PSU 3
B6 | Barbanente logged a leadoff single up the middle, and Brunson singled to left center to put a pair of runners on for the Nittany Lions late. Mendoza grounded into a double play that saw Brunson putout on the play, but Barbanente was able to reach third. Moments later, Texas State pitcher Jessica Mullins recorded a wild pitch that saw Barbanente trot home for PSU's final run of the season. TXST 8, PSU 4
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