Penn State looked to leave its road trip to the Lone Star State with a victory against Texas Tech in its series finale on Sunday afternoon. The Nittany Lions lost the two previous games by a large margin, so their pitching simply had to perform better.
Penn State’s pitching woes continued as the squad was routed in seven innings and was swept with a 14-4 loss against Texas Tech.
However, the Red Raiders quickly poured in early runs once again. With the worst team-ERA in the Big Ten at 7.99, the blue and white’s pitchers have barely given its offense a chance at winning games.
Right-hander Isaiah Shayter couldn’t find his control and Penn State’s offense was in another big hole. Tracer Lopez drew a five-pitch one-out walk, then Connor Shouse smacked a double to right, which set up runners on the corners for cleanup hitter Logan Hughes.
The junior delivered with a sneaky double down the right field line, driving in both runners and giving Texas Tech another early 2-0 lead. Shayter escaped the opening frame with only two runs plated, but the Red Raiders scored three more in the second.
The freshman began the inning by walking Davis Rivers and he quickly advanced to third off a single into the left-center gap by Robin Villeneuve. With runners on the corners and still no outs, Kyeler Thompson tapped an infield single to the left side of the diamond and Davis scored.
With a 3-0 lead, the Red Raiders were still searching for more. After both runners advanced into scoring position off a bunt, Shouse plated Villeneuve from third with a fielder’s choice ground ball to shortstop Preston Yaucher.
The bases were loaded after Shayter walked Hughes on four pitches and more offensive small ball scored another run. Linkin Garcia tapped a ball back to Shayter on the mound and he opted to throw Garcia out at first, which extended the Red Raiders’ lead, 5-0.
After Shayter walked the next batter on four pitches, Coach Mike Gambino turned to his bullpen and brought in right-hander Kyle Emmons. The junior stopped the bleeding and forced a fly out to right fielder Jack Porter.
Right-hander Jonny Lowe was cruising through Penn State’s lineup until the third inning. Left fielder Justin Turcovski drew a lead-off walk and Yaucher tapped a one-out infield single. Having a little momentum, center fielder Cohl Mercado walked and designated hitter Michael Anderson knocked a two-RBI single into center.
Texas Tech pulled Lowe and brought in reliever Heeryun Han. The junior retired the next two Penn State batters and preserved the 5-2 lead.
Emmons delivered a pivotal shutdown inning and the Nittany Lions cut further into the Red Raiders’ lead in the fourth. Facing right-hander Kayson Raineri, Porter lifted a lead-off double into the left-center gap.
The sophomore then threw a wild pitch and Porter advanced to third. First baseman Jesse Jaconski grounded out to second baseman Lopez, but Porter plated.
The blue and white were now down just two runs and Emmons retired the Red Raiders in order later in the inning. The offensive momentum kept rolling as Penn State plated another run across in the fifth.
Yaucher lined a lead-off double down the left field line and while the next two Nittany Lions were retired, third baseman Bryce Molinaro delivered with two outs. Texas Tech brought in right-hander Will Jordan to face the biggest bat in Penn State’s lineup.
The Drums, Pennsylvania, native dropped a single into left center and scored Yaucher from second, bringing the Nittany Lions within one run. While the Nittany Lions couldn’t capitalize off an error by the Red Raiders in the sixth, Texas Tech’s offense jumped all over right-hander Dimond Loosli.
The Red Raiders plated four runs in the frame and effectively pulled away from the blue and white. Right-handers Mason Horwat and Ben DeMell couldn’t stop the bleeding either and Texas Tech scored five more runs in the seventh to end the game.
Penn State’s pitching staff surrendered 13 hits and 11 walks, while also recording just three strikeouts. With the sweep, the Nittany Lions fell to 4-9 on the season.
Up Next
Penn State stays on the road and faces Georgetown for a three-game series with the opener at 4 p.m. Tuesday.
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