RICHMOND, Va. – The Penn State baseball team dropped two tight games in a doubleheader at Richmond on Saturday. The Nittany Lions fell 3-0 in game one and 4-3 in game two at Pitt Field.
The Nittany Lions are now 2-4 this season, while Richmond improved to 5-3.
Game 1
Ben Hudson earned the start for the Nittany Lions, going four innings. He allowed three runs (one earned) on three hits. Hudson recorded four strikeouts and two walks.
Ben DeMell fired four shutout frames. He gave up two hits and one walk, while securing three strikeouts.
Joey Giordano got the start for Richmond, firing five scoreless innings. He gave up three hits and three walks, while striking out three. Bijan Anvar worked two scoreless frames, allowing one hit and striking out two. Justin Gay picked up the save with two shutout innings.
Penn State tallied four hits with a single each by Spencer Barnett, Jesse Jaconski, Bryce Molinaro and Preston Yaucher.
Richmond recorded three runs on five hits. Ryan Recio had two hits, including a double, while Grant Kennedy added two hits. Michael Elko, Noah Haught and Dylan Winebrenner each drove in a run.
Game 2
Isaiah Shayter got the start for the Nittany Lions, going three innings. He gave up two runs on four hits and struck out three batters.
Mason Horwat fired four scoreless innings. He allowed three hits and struck out one batter. Matthew VanOstenbridge threw one-third of an inning and gave up two runs. Kyle Emmons got the final two outs of the eighth and struck out one batter.
Chase Topolski made the start for Richmond, working four innings. He allowed one run on four hits. Topolski registered six strikeouts and three walks. Mauricio Rodriguez worked one inning, allowing no runs and striking out three. Chayse Gruber got the win, tossing four innings and giving up two runs on four hits with four strikeouts.
Penn State collected three runs on eight hits. Michael Anderson and Jack Porter each recorded two hits, including a solo homer. Kevin Karstetter added two hits, including an RBI double.
Richmond recorded four runs on nine hits. Dylan Winebrenner notched three hits, including two solo homers. Khris Morris added a solo homer, while Noah Haught went three-for-three with a double and a run.
HOW IT HAPPENED
Game 1
In the top of the third, Preston Yaucher reached on a one-out single to center. He moved up to third on an error on a pickoff attempt. Michael Anderson drew a walk to put runners on first and third. However, a groundout ended the inning.
The Spiders got on the board in the bottom of the third. RJ Rickabaugh worked a four-pitch walk. After a walk by Trevor Dosenbach, a grounder by Dylan Winebrenner was misplayed to allow Rickabaugh to score. A sac fly to left by Michael Elko brought in Dosenbach. Richmond led 2-0.
Richmond added a run in the fourth. With one out, Jackson Kraemer lined a single to left-center. Grant Kennedy followed with an infield single. The bases were loaded after Rickabaugh was hit by a pitch. Noah Haught lifted a sac fly to left to bring home Kraemer. The Spiders held a 3-0 lead.
In the top of the fifth, Avery Smith worked a four-pitch walk. Two batters later, Justin Turcovski held off on a 3-2 pitch for a walk. A groundout moved the runners up to second and third. However, a grounder down the left-field line was snagged by the third baseman and fired to first for the final out of the frame.
Game 2
Richmond broke the scoreless tie in the third. Noah Haught lined a leadoff double to center. An error on a pickoff attempt moved Haught to third before he scored on a sac fly by Trevor Dosenbach. Dylan Winebrenner followed with a fly ball over the center field wall. The Spiders led 2-0.
The Nittany Lions answered in the fourth. Jack Porter began the inning with a double to right-center. Kevin Karstetter followed with a line drive into the left-field corner for a double as Porter scored. PSU trailed 2-1.
Penn State tied the game in the eighth. With one out, Porter sent the first pitch he saw over the wall in left. The 378-foot blast evened the game at 2-2.
Richmond answered in the bottom of the eighth. Leading off the inning, Winebrenner sent an 0-1 pitch over the wall in center. Two batters later, Khris Morris homered to left to give Richmond a 4-2 lead.
In the top of the ninth, with one out, Michael Anderson launched a homer over the batter’s eye. The 407-foot shot cut PSU’s deficit to 4-3. Two batters later, Bryce Molinaro worked a walk, but a groundout ended the game.
UP NEXT
Penn State is set to battle Indiana State in a three-game series in Nassau, Bahamas on February 27-March 1 at Andre Rodgers National Baseball Stadium.
The Atlantis College Baseball Series, run by BdG sports, will be streamed on FloCollege.
Game times are set for 6 p.m. on Friday, 3 p.m. on Saturday and noon on Sunday.
The 2026 Penn State Baseball season is presented by The Family Clothesline.