Penn State Wins Back-To-Back Conference Games For First Time This Season Against Buckeyes
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - The Penn State bats got hot late which created a five-run bottom of the seventh inning that led the Nittany Lions to victory.
Coming off of a high firepower offensive game just the night before, Penn State was looking to remain in the win column and take the series from their arch rival the Ohio State Buckeyes.
The blue and white knocked in two runs in the bottom of the second and then the offense went quiet for the majority of the game. The Buckeyes tied the game at two in the bottom of the sixth and that's when Penn State flipped a switch.
“What was cool about that inning was there was two outs and just great battles,” head coach Rob Cooper said. “Sometimes it's not the pitches you swing at but the ones you take and don’t chase. The one guy got to the next guy and the next.”
The bases were loaded when catcher Thomas Bramley hit a two-RBI single followed by more RBI singles by Johnny Piacentino and Bobby Marsh. The Nittany Lions also had fantastic pitching all game long.
Jordan Morales, who’s been experiencing a rough patch lately, started the game with three hitless innings and then was replaced by Travis Luensmann who came in at the top of the fourth. Luensman recorded five walks and five strikeouts in five innings pitched but only gave up two hits and two runs. In the top of the ninth, Steven Miller closed the game which made the Nittany Lions victorious by a score of 7-2.
“I just slow myself down, stay up on my back leg and just focus and understand the situation for the team and have confidence out there to know you’re the guy they want on the mound, trusting yourself is the biggest thing at the end of the day,” Luensmann said.
Penn State has now taken the series away from the Ohio State Buckeyes taking the first two games in a three-game series in Happy Valley. Heading into Sunday’s game the blue and white will be looking for the sweep against the scarlet and gray and head coach Rob Cooper said “We spent a lot of time talking about how many games we have left and in conference and that can be really daunting so let’s win and just take care of one game.”
On the game's final play, a ball was skied into right field that was headed into the Nittany Lion bullpen. Billy Gerlott tracked it down and caught it while flipping over the fence landing hard on the ground.
Gerlott popped right back up and the entire crowd was stunned at what they had just witnessed. His teammates called the catch insane, and one of the wildest things they had witnessed in person.
As the end of the season nears, Penn State is fighting for one of the final spots for the Big Ten tournament. Sunday’s game against the Buckeyes will be crucial as it can determine placement in the Big Ten and also be a confidence booster for a team that has struggled in conference games.
Chris Machado is a junior studying broadcast journalism. To contact him, please email cvm6238@psu.edu.
