Series Preview: Penn State Baseball vs. Ohio State

Story posted April 22, 2021 in

The Nittany Lions’ brief return to State College didn’t quite go as planned.

Nebraska came into Happy Valley as the top team in the Big Ten and left widening their gap on the rest of the conference. The Cornhuskers were able to sweep the Nittany Lions in the three game series.

The first two games of the series had similar results as the Nittany Lions suffered blowout losses. The opening game saw the Nittany Lions hold a 2-1 lead until the top of the seventh when the Cornhuskers tied things up and eventually took the lead in the eighth. The comeback spoiled a great start from Bailey Dees as the Cornhuskers won 8-2.

Game two was much worse as the Cornhuskers immediately took the lead with a five run first inning. Connor Larkin, the starter for Penn State, was knocked out after four innings and the Cornhuskers rolled to an 11-2 victory.

The final game of the series was much closer as the Cornhuskers were much quieter on offense, but much like the entire series the Nittany Lions couldn’t capitalize. No runs were scored after the sixth inning as the Cornhuskers completed the sweep with a 5-3 win.

Now, the Nittany Lions will head back on the road to take on the Ohio State Buckeyes.

Like Penn State, the Buckeyes have been struggling coming into the series as they have lost their last five games. Three of those five games came in the team’s last series where they were swept by Maryland.

A seven run sixth inning cost the Buckeyes in the opening game. Reliever Patrick Murphy was unable to record an out, giving up five runs in the process. The Terrapins opened up the series with a strong 10-6 win.

Game two was the only close game of the series as it would see extra innings. To get there, the Buckeyes had to rally for two runs in the top of the ninth, but that wouldn’t be enough as the Terrapins won the game in the tenth inning. Conner Pohl’s seventh homer of the season was wasted for the Buckeyes as they lost to Maryland 5-4.

The final game of the series wouldn’t be a contest after the fourth inning. The only offense for the Buckeyes came in the third inning where they rallied to a 4-0 lead. From that point on, it would be all Maryland as they would complete the sweep for a 9-4 win.

Both teams are coming off tough sweeps against some of the top teams in the Big Ten. The Buckeyes need this series as they just barely have a winning record and will start a six game homestand. As for Penn State, the Nittany Lions are still fighting from the bottom of the Big Ten and beating the Buckeyes would be a good start to move up in the standings.


Logan Bourandas is a sophomore majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email lxb5412@psu.edu.