Baseball Takes Series Finale, 4-3, Over Minnesota

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. – The Penn State baseball team picked up a 4-3 win over Minnesota on Sunday afternoon at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. Isaiah Shayter limited the Gophers to one run over five innings before the Nittany Lions broke out with three runs in the sixth, including a two-run homer by Jesse Jaconski.

 

Penn State moved to 13-31 (6-18 Big Ten) on the season, while Minnesota dropped to 29-18 overall (10-14 Big Ten).

 

Isaiah Shayter earned the start for the Nittany Lions, firing five strong innings. He allowed one run on five hits and a walk, while striking out one. He held the Gophers scoreless until a solo homer in the fifth. Eleven of Shayter’s 15 outs came on routine fly balls.

 

Mason Horwat threw 1.2 innings, giving up one run on two hits and a walk. Dimond Loosli recorded the final out of the seventh. Ben DeMell tossed one inning, allowing a run and a hit. Harrison Lollin picked up the save with a scoreless ninth.

 

DeMell made his 77^th career pitching appearance, moving into fifth all-time at Penn State. He is one appearance behind Dakota Forsyth (78; 2014-17) for fourth.

 

Cole Selvig got the start for the Gophers, going five innings. He gave up one run on four hits. Selvig tallied three walks and three strikeouts. Joe Sperry worked two-thirds of an inning, surrendering three runs on four hits. Tyler Hemmesch retired the only batter he faced. Ben Gregory gave up two hits and struck out a batter in two-thirds of an inning. Will Whelan threw 1.1 scoreless innings and struck out one.

 

Penn State tallied four runs on 11 hits. Jaconski led the way with three hits, including a double and a two-run homer. Preston Yaucher added two hits, including an RBI single, and a stolen base. Spencer Barnett and Maddox McDonald singled and scored.

 

Minnesota recorded three runs on eight hits. Easton Richter collected three hits, including two solo homers and a double. Jack Mosh and Charlie Sutherland each had two hits.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The Nittany Lions got on the board in the third. Preston Yaucher dribbled a grounder down the left field line and off the third base bag for a single. Jayden Davis perfectly executed a hit-and-run with a line-drive single to right as Yaucher hustled to third. A wild pitch allowed Yaucher to cross the plate and give Penn State a 1-0 lead.

 

Minnesota tied the game in the fifth. Leading off the inning, Easton Richter snuck a 3-1 pitch over the wall in left-center. The 394-foot homer evened the game at 1-1.

 

Penn State re-took the lead in the sixth. Kevin Karstetter reached on an infield single to begin the frame. Spencer Barnett replaced Karstetter at first after a fielder’s choice and moved up to second on a groundout. Jesse Jaconski hammered an 0-1 pitch off the batter’s eye in center for his third homer of the season. Maddox McDonald dropped a bunt single on the left side of the infield and then stole second. Preston Yaucher’s soft liner landed in shallow right to drive in McDonald. PSU led 4-1.

 

The Gophers cut their deficit in the seventh. Brayden Hellum worked a four-pitch walk to begin the inning. Jack Bello dribbled a single through the left side to put runners on first and second.  A sac bunt by Jack Mosh moved the runners up a base. Jack Spanier bounced a groundout to the right side but allowed Hellum to score. Minnesota trailed 4-2.

 

Minnesota added a run in the eighth. With one out, Richter lifted a fly ball over the wall in right for a solo homer. The Gophers trimmed their deficit to 4-3.

 

Up Next

The Nittany Lions host Washington for a three-game Big Ten series on May 8-10.

 

Friday’s game is set for a 5:30 p.m. first pitch. Saturday begins at 2 p.m.

 

Sunday is Senior Day, presented by the Penn State Alumni Association, and begins at noon with a broadcast on Big Ten Network.

 

All games at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park are free admission for all ages.