The Penn State baseball team lost a close game, 3-1, against No. 15 West Virginia on April 15 at Meritus Park in Hagerstown. The Nittany Lions dropped to a season record of 10-24, while the Mountaineers improved to 25-8.
West Virginia scored all three of its runs in the first three innings and held off Penn State for the remainder of the game. The Nittany Lions limited the Mountaineers to no runs and only two hits over the final five and one-third innings.
Mason Butash started for Penn State, pitching two and one-third innings and allowing three runs on two hits with two strikeouts. Harrison Lollin followed with three and one-third shutout innings, giving up three hits and striking out one batter. Mason Horwat contributed another scoreless inning, while Dimond Loosli pitched a perfect eighth inning with two strikeouts.
For West Virginia, David Hagen started on the mound and allowed just one run over three innings. Ian Korn threw two shutout frames with three strikeouts, Weston Smith added a scoreless inning, and Reese Bassinger earned a save by pitching three scoreless innings with four strikeouts.
Jack Porter led Penn State offensively with a solo home run among his three hits, also adding a double. Michael Anderson singled and reached base four times through walks or being hit by pitch. Kevin Karstetter added another single for Penn State’s offense.
Paul Schoenfeld paced West Virginia’s lineup with a solo homer as part of his two-hit night; Sean Smith drove in a run on an RBI single while Gavin Kelly also brought home a runner on a sacrifice fly.
The Nittany Lions will return home to Medlar Field at Lubrano Park for their next series against Rutgers from April 17 through April 19. The weekend will feature themed events including “800 Strong Night,” “Ice Cream Day,” postgame autographs, birthday celebrations for the team mascot, and opportunities for kids to run bases after Sunday’s game.
