EUGENE, Ore. – The Penn State baseball team fell 5-4 in an extremely tight contest against No. 19 Oregon on Friday night at PK Park. Colin Fitzgerald gave Penn State a strong start with a career-high 12 strikeouts. The Nittany Lions took the lead in the top of the seventh on a two-run homer by Bryce Molinaro, but the Ducks tied the game in the bottom of the seventh and took the lead in the eighth.
Penn State dropped to 12-27 overall (5-14 Big Ten), while Oregon improved to 30-11 overall (13-6 Big Ten).
The Nittany Lion pitching staff tied a season high with 14 strikeouts on the night. Penn State also had 14 against Bucknell on March 25. PSU’s 14 strikeouts are its most in a Big Ten game since March 7, 2025 against Indiana (14).
Colin Fitzgerald earned the start for the Nittany Lions, firing six innings. He gave up three runs on six hits and three walks. Fitzgerald recorded a career-high 12 strikeouts and his fourth career game with 10+ strikeouts. He notched three strikeouts in the first, two in the second, two in the third, two in the fourth, one in the fifth and two in the sixth.
Fitzgerald’s 12 strikeouts are the most in a game by a Nittany Lion since Kyle Virbitsky’s 12 strikeouts against Minnesota on May 29, 2021.
Fitzgerald secured his second game with 10+ strikeouts this season. He had 10 punchouts against Indiana State on February 27.
Dimond Loosli threw two-thirds of an inning, surrendering one run on two hits. He recorded two strikeouts and two walks. Kyle Emmons threw 1.1 frames, allowing one run (unearned) on one hit and two walks.
Will Sanford got the start for Oregon, tossing six innings. He allowed two runs on four hits. Sanford tallied eight strikeouts and two walks. Luke Morgan gave up two runs on one hit over an inning of work. Tanner Bradley fired two shutout innings and recorded five strikeouts to earn the win.
Penn State collected four runs on five hits. Bryce Molinaro launched a two-run homer, while Preston Yaucher doubled and scored. Jayden Davis and Michael Anderson both recorded a single and a run.
Molinaro blasted his 36th career home run, moving closer to Shawn Fagan’s all-time PSU record (43; 1997-00). Molinaro (139) also broke a tie with Chris Netwall (137; 1998-01) for fifth at PSU in career RBI.
Oregon tallied five runs on nine hits. Blake-Lee Mabeus hit a two-run homer. Brayden Jaksa recorded three hits, including a double, and scored once. Maddox Molony added two hits and drove in a run.
HOW IT HAPPENED
The Nittany Lions plated a run in the third. Preston Yaucher lined a leadoff double to the gap in left-center. Jayden Davis chopped a grounder to the right side, which resulted in an error and Yaucher hustling home. Penn State led 1-0.
Oregon took the lead in the fourth. Angel Laya ripped a single up the middle. Two batters later, Blake-Lee Mabeus launched the first pitch he saw over the wall in left-center. The Ducks led 2-1.
Penn State answered in the top of the fifth. With two outs, Davis sent a single through the middle. Michael Anderson smacked a single to left-center to put runners on the corners. A wild pitch allowed Davis to cross the plate and even the game at 2-2.
The Ducks responded in the bottom of the fifth. With one out, Jax Gimenez worked a six-pitch walk and stole second. A single to center by Brayden Jaksa put runners on first and third. Ryan Cooney lifted a fly ball to center for a sacrifice fly to bring in Gimenez. Oregon held a 3-2 advantage.
The Nittany Lions re-took the lead in the top of the seventh. With two outs, Anderson was hit by a pitch. Bryce Molinaro launched a 2-2 pitch over the wall in right to give Penn State a 4-3 lead.
Oregon tied the game in the bottom of the seventh. Jaksa snuck a leadoff double inside the first base bag. On a walk by Laya, Jaksa moved up to third on a passed ball. Maddox Molony bounced a single through the right side to bring in Jaksa and even the game at 4-4.
The Ducks re-claimed the lead in the eighth. Jack Brooks reached on an infield single to begin the frame. Jaksa worked a walk. After a double steal, Cooney was intentionally walked to load the bases. Drew Smith chopped a grounder to the left side. The throw home slightly pulled the PSU catcher off the plate as Brooks scored. An extremely close play was upheld by replay review. Oregon took a 5-4 lead.
Up Next
The series continues on Saturday at 7:05 p.m. ET and concludes on Sunday at 3:05 p.m. ET. Both games will be streamed on B1G+.