COLUMBUS, Ohio – Freshman third baseman Allison Oneacre stepped into the batter’s box in the top of the sixth inning with a runner on second base and crushed a two-run bomb to right-center, ensuring her place as the Penn State softball single-season RBI record holder in a 15-7, six-inning demolition of the Ohio State Buckeyes on Saturday evening from Buckeye Field.
Hailing from Alpharetta, Georgia, Oneacre cemented her place in Penn State history on Saturday afternoon following her record-setting performance against the Buckeyes. Oneacre finished the night hitting 3-for-5 with three runs scored, three RBI and two home runs to her credit. She found herself standing alone atop the Penn State single-season RBI leaderboard, reaching her 55th RBI of the season with her blast in the top of the sixth. Oneacre passed junior teammate Brooke Klosowicz’ prior record of 53, set a season ago during Penn State’s historic offensive season in 2025. The rookie sensation became the first player in Penn State program history to muster three multiple-home run outings in a single season and now stands tied for the second-most home runs hit in a single season alongside program alumnae Ally Kurland and Jennifer Tripken. Oneacre needs just four home runs to tie, and five to surpass the Penn State single-season record of 20 set by First Team NFCA All-American Cassidy Bell in 2013.
As a squad, Penn State improved to 28-16 overall and 8-9 in Big Ten Conference competitions following the run-rule win over Ohio State. In defeat, OSU dropped back to .500 at 22-22 overall and sits at 9-8 in Big Ten Conference contests through its first 17 opportunities on the league calendar. In the all-time series between the two programs, Penn State mustered its first win since toppling the Buckeyes in run-rule fashion a season ago in Happy Valley. The Nittany Lions booked their 37th win against OSU in the 104th all-time meeting, securing the team’s first win in Columbus since April 26, 2022.
Elsewhere in the Nittany Lion batting order, Klosowicz turned in an impressive final line, hitting 2-for-4 with two runs scored and an astronomical five RBI. The Johnsburg, Illinois, native bashed a three-run homer and a two-RBI single in the contest, maintaining her second-place mark on the roster in home runs with 13 and RBI with 48 through this point in the 2026 season. In total, eight different Penn Staters recorded hits in the game, with junior second baseman Michela Barbanente joining Oneacre and Klosowicz as the only three Nittany Lions to record multiple-hit efforts. Barbanente finished the game 2-for-2 with an RBI, walk drawn and a sacrifice fly to her credit. Sophomore center fielder Natalie Lieto added the only other home run in the game, leaving the yard with a solo shot in the top of the sixth that sparked a 10-run frame for the Blue & White.
In the circle, junior right-handed pitcher Bridget Nemeth earned the start and threw the first 2.0 innings in the contest, scattering five hits while racking up five strikeouts. Freshman righty Mackenzie Duncan threw the next 1.1, registering three strikeouts while allowing three runs scored. Rookie southpaw Brevyn Kellepouris entered the game next, using her 1.1 innings of work in the circle to hold Ohio State scoreless, yielding just two hits and a walk against a trio of fanned Buckeye batters. Junior right-handed pitcher McKenna Young entered for the remaining 1.1 innings, holding OSU without a run scored or walk drawn, allowing just two hits with a pair of strikeouts to her credit across six batters faced and 22 total pitches. Young, a native of Brodhead, Wisconsin, earned credit for the winning decision and improved to 11-4 overall on the 2026 campaign individually following the result.
Ohio State got out to an early lead in the bottom of the first inning, with a no-out two-run homer lifting the lid on the scoring following an extensive delay due to inclement weather. Little occurred in the second inning, but the Blue & White were able to snap back in the top of the third. Lieto drew a leadoff hit-by-pitch, and Hanik executed a sacrifice bunt to bump the runner 60 feet further. Oneacre smacked a single through the left side of the infield to make it runners on the corners, and Klosowicz followed that up with an opposite-field dinger toward the scoreboard in right-center field that deadlocked the game through two-and-a-half innings. Ohio State mustered a reply in the bottom of the third with a solo shot to re-take the lead and utilized a three-run bottom of the fourth to build up a stark four-run edge.
Cracks in the armor materialized for Penn State to exploit in the top of the fifth, as after taking the first pitch of her at-bat for a 1-0 count, Oneacre walloped a solo home run over the fence in left to cut into the Buckeye lead. A pair of groundouts followed, but Flesher recorded an infield single to keep the inning alive. A fielding error by the Buckeye third baseman saw George reach and Flesher advance to second, and a single through the right side by Barbanente caused chaos for the Ohio State defense, as an errant throw allowed Flesher to come aboard for the unearned tally. With PSU trailing by two heading into the top of the sixth, the Nittany Lions would need a big contribution from the entire lineup to take command of Saturday’s contest.
PSU did just that, capitalizing on a slew of Buckeye defensive and pitching miscues to rack up 10 runs scored on six hits with three Ohio State errors. The party started with a solo home run from Lieto that cut Ohio State’s lead down to one. Hanik kept things rolling with a double off the wall in center, prompting a Buckeye pitching change. Oneacre rewarded the Ohio State reliever with a two-run bomb over the fence in right-center that shattered the Penn State single-season RBI record and gave Penn State its first lead of the ballgame. Unbridled chaos ensued for Ohio State, and PSU gladly took advantage from there, ultimately racking up a 15-7 advantage that they would never relinquish en route to the run-rule victory.
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS
Allison Oneacre | 3-for-5, 3 R, 3 RBI, 2 HR, BROKE SINGLE-SEASON PSU RBI RECORD
Brooke Klosowicz | 2-for-4, 2 R, 5 RBI, HR, BB
McKenna Young | 1.1IP, 2H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 2K, 6BF, 22TP, WIN
KEY INNINGS
B1 | Hadley Parisien drew a leadoff walk on six pitches, and Abbie Wilhelm lifted a two-run home run over the fence in right-center to give the Buckeyes an early advantage. A strikeout put one away, but a double to right from Sami Bewick followed by an infield single from Kiki Estrada gave the Buckeyes a first-and-third situation with one away. Another strikeout popped on the board, but Ohio State managed to pull off a double steal to register another score. OSU 3, PSU 0
T3 | Lieto drew a leadoff hit-by-pitch, and Hanik executed a sacrifice bunt to bump the runner 60 feet further. Oneacre smacked a single through the left side of the infield to make it runners on the corners, and Klosowicz followed that up with an opposite-field dinger toward the scoreboard in right-center field that deadlocked the game through two-and-a-half innings. PSU 3, OSU 3
B3 | After taking the first two pitches of her at-bat for a 2-0 count, Taylor Cruse sent a solo home run over the wall in right field to give the Buckeyes the lead yet again. OSU 4, PSU 3
B4 | Skylar Limon drew a leadoff walk, and Parisien mustered an infield single that allowed both runners to advance on a throwing error by the Nittany Lion second baseman. A strikeout flashed on the board moments later, but a two-RBI double to center from Cruse extended the Buckeye advantage. Bewick sent an RBI single down the right field line, allowing OSU to bring Cruse in for another score. OSU 7, PSU 3
T5 | After taking the first pitch of her at-bat for a 1-0 count, Oneacre walloped a solo home run over the fence in left to cut into the Buckeye lead. A pair of groundouts followed, but Flesher recorded an infield single to keep the inning alive. A fielding error by the Buckeye third baseman saw George reach and Flesher advance to second, and a single through the right side by Barbanente caused chaos for the Ohio State defense, as an errant throw allowed Flesher to come aboard for the unearned tally. OSU 7, PSU 5
T6 | Lieto led the top of the sixth inning off by pulling a solo home run over the wall in deep left-center field. Hanik kept things rolling with a double off the wall in center, prompting a Buckeye pitching change. Oneacre rewarded the Ohio State reliever with a two-run bomb over the fence in right-center that shattered the Penn State single-season RBI record and gave Penn State its first lead of the ballgame. Defensive miscues continued to plague OSU, as Klosowicz reached on a fielding error. A double to right-center from Gradishar made it second-and-third with no outs, with Ohio State electing to change pitchers yet again. Flesher drew a walk to load the bases, and George drew an RBI walk to add another score. Barbanente added a score via sacrifice fly to right, and an RBI single to left from Chamberlin brought yet another tally aboard. A fly-ball error from the Ohio State right fielder plated another Nittany Lion run, and a fielding error in the next at-bat saw PSU score yet again. With runners on the corners and one out, Hanik stole second base. A foul-out put a second out on the board, but a two-RBI single to left-center from Klosowicz put Penn State in run-rule territory as the Nittany Lions closed out a 10-run inning. PSU 15, OSU 7
UP NEXT
Penn State softball wraps up its three-game Big Ten Conference weekend series against the Ohio State Buckeyes this Sunday, April 19, as the Blue & White get set for a 4 p.m. (ET) start from Buckeye Field. The game will serve as Penn State’s Big Ten Network debut in the 2026 campaign, with additional streaming coverage available through the FOX Sports App.
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The 2026 Penn State softball season is presented by Highmark.