On Friday, Mar. 29 at 2 p.m., the Penn State Wilkes-Barre baseball team faced Penn State Brandywine in a double header on Wilkes-Barre's home field.
Game One
In the first inning, #26 senior Joey Polanowski got the first out from a grounder at short stop. The second out came from #10 Travis Jones, who received the ball at third. The final out resulted from a throw by #24 freshman Jakob Baltrusaitis in center field to second base. The Mountain Lions did not score any runs in their turn at bat.
The second inning proved to be a long one for Wilkes-Barre, Brandywine challenging the Mountain Lions. The first out was yet again made by Joey Polanowski at short stop. The second was made by #13 sophomore Zachary Chamberlain, who stood at the mound and struck out the batter. The third out came from a grounder to second base #4 sophomore Enai Fernandez.
The at-bat in the bottom of the second gave the Mountain Lions the chance to make some runs. After players #9 sophomore Walter Ninotti and Jakob Baltrusaitis got on base, they advanced to second and third when #20 freshman Kevin Rivera was walked. With bases loaded, #21 freshman Chris Coyne made an RBI, bringing Baltrusaitis in for the first run.
The top of the fourth was another long inning for the Mountain Lions, but they got the out necessary to get in to bat. The first out came from a ground ball to third, fielded by Travis Jones. The next two outs came from a double play, the ball first grounded to Enai Fernandez at second and then thrown to first to the waiting baseman.
More runs were brought in during the bottom of the fourth, starting with Joey Polanowski, who made it home after Walter Ninotti hit a grounder. Soon, the bases became loaded. After Chris Coyne got walked, #6 Jay Shemanski was brought in for the third run of the game. Ninotti also contributed to runs during the inning, capturing Wilkes-Barre's third.
During the top of the fifth, #1 freshman Cody Belles struck out the batter.
One run was made for Wilkes-Barre in the bottom of the fifth, brought in by #19 senior Matthew Major after Enai Fernandez doubled to center field. The second out was made after a high fly ball was fouled to Matthew Mager at first. The third out resulted in a grounder to second base.
The final score of the game was 28-6 Brandywine. Scorers of the game were Jay Shemanski with one, Matthew Mager with one, Jakob Baltrusaitis with two, and Walter Ninotti with one.
Game two
The second game started with the Mountain Lions on the field. The first out was made when catcher #11 sophomore Andrew Mentzer made the throw down to Enai Fernandez at second. The next two outs were made by pitcher #5 freshman Ethan Bechel, who struck out both runners.
No runs were made until the bottom of the third inning, when Travis Jones scored from a hit by Joey Polanowski, who grounded between second base's legs.
In the top of the fourth, Jakob Baltrusaitis contributed to the outs by making the first on a caught pop fly to center. Travis Jones made the second after catching a pop fly at third base. The last out was made by Jay Shemanski, who caught a fly ball in right field.
The rest of the innings proved a challenge for the Mountain Lions. The game ended in the fifth inning, with a final score of 17-1 Brandywine. Travis Jones made Wilkes-Barre's run.
Written by Kyler Burke