Michigan State University
29-19, 0
Penn State
18-26, 0
Spartans Drop Series Opener to Penn State, 5-3
5/8/2015 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
EAST LANSING, Mich. - The Michigan State baseball team fell to Penn State by a score of 5-3 on Friday afternoon at McLane Baseball Stadium at Kobs Field in the opening game of the weekend series between the teams. The Spartans dropped to 29-19 overall and 11-8 in the Big Ten with the loss, while the Nittany Lions improved to 18-26 and 6-12 in league play.
"We didn't play well enough today. Give Penn State credit - they played better than we did," said Michigan State Head Coach Jake Boss Jr. "In a close ballgame, errors and mistakes are amplified. They made pitches when they needed to make them. They got big at-bats when they needed them and we didn't. That's the way the game goes.
"We still have a chance to win the series though. We'll come back and compete tomorrow."
Penn State struck first in the top of the second inning on a solo home run to left by Tyler Kendall, his first of the year.
MSU threatened with two outs in the third, but Ryan Krill was thrown out at home plate on a double to right center by Mark Weist. The Spartans eventually evened the score in the bottom of the fourth as Brandon Hughes launched a two-out solo blast to center field. The home run was Hughes' fifth of the season, tied for second on the team.
The Nittany Lions answered with a pair of runs in the top of the fifth on a two-run single by J.J. White and Christian Helsel added his first home run of the year in the sixth for a 4-1 lead.
MSU got a run back in the bottom of the sixth on a two-out RBI single by Ryan Richardson that scored Weist to cut the deficit to 4-2. The Spartans picked up another two-out run in the bottom of the seventh as Hughes singled to lead off the frame and came around to score on an infield single by Cam Gibson.
However, the Nittany Lions tacked on an insurance run in the top of the ninth and Jack Anderson closed things out in the bottom of the inning for his fifth save of the year. Nick Hedge (3-6) worked 6.1 innings and allowed three runs on eight hits to earn the win for Penn State.
Senior Cam Vieaux (4-6) took the loss on the mound for MSU, allowing four runs on eight hits over six innings. He struck out five and walked one.
The Spartans finished with 11 hits for the game. Hughes and Richardson each had two hits and an RBI on the day, while Weist and Chad Roskelly had two hits apiece as well. Krill went 1-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to 13 games.
The series will resume Saturday afternoon with first pitch scheduled for 12:05 p.m.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Hedge, Nick (3-6)
L: Vieaux, Cam (4-6)
S: Anderson, Jack (5)
Batting:
2B: Haley, Jim 1
HR: Kendall, Tyler 1 ; Helsel, Christian 1
RBI: Novak, Aaron 1 ; White, J.J. 2 ; Kendall, Tyler 1 ; Helsel, Christian 1
SH: Skerpon, Taylor 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Haley, Jim 2 ; Kendall, Tyler 1 ; Helsel, Christian 1 ; Graham, Nick 1
SB: Haley, Jim 1 ; Novak, Aaron 1 ; White, J.J. 1
HBP: Haley, Jim 1
Batting:
2B: Weist, Mark 1 ; Roskelly, Chad 1
HR: Hughes, Brandon 1
RBI: Gibson, Cam 1 ; Richardson, Ryan 1 ; Hughes, Brandon 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Weist, Mark 1 ; Hughes, Brandon 2
SB: Weist, Mark 1
CS: Richardson, Ryan 1
