Pioneers Deal Lions Pair of Losses
CLAYSBURG, Pa. – The Penn State Altoona baseball team suffered two defeats on Monday evening, when the Lions lost both ends of a doubleheader with Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference opponent Alfred State College at Claysburg-Kimmel High School.
Alfred State (16-10, 3-1 AMCC) held Penn State Altoona (10-14, 2-2 AMCC) to just three runs in 16 innings on the day, as the Pioneers won by scores of 9-1 and 11-2.
Game One: Alfred State 9, Penn State Altoona 1
Alfred State broke a scoreless tie in the top of the fourth and remained on top the rest of the way, while limiting the Lions to just one run on five hits.
Zach Ingold (Pittsburgh, PA/Baldwin) was 2-for-3 with his second home run of the season and a double. Benjamin Ettien (Media, PA/Penncrest), Tyreke Green (Altoona, PA/Altoona), and Jake Hillard (State College, PA/State College) also had one hit apiece.
Jimmy Mento (Gates County, NC/Gates County) started on the pitching rubber and took the loss, after going five innings and surrendering four earned runs while striking out four. Kyle Latham (Milton, GA/Cambridge) pitched 2/3 inning out of the bullpen, and Cole Suba (Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings in relief.
Alfred State made it 2-0 in the top of the fourth on a two-run home run by Jordan Hughes. A throwing error later allowed Zach Young to score, and Devin Mersmann came home on a sacrifice bunt to make it 4-0. Hughes' RBI double in the fifth increased the Pioneers' lead to 5-0.
Ingold led off the bottom of the fifth with a homer to right field, getting the Lions on the board.
But Alfred State added to its lead with four more runs in the sixth and ultimately dealt Penn State Altoona an eight-run loss.
Game Two: Alfred State 11, Penn State Altoona 2
Game two followed a similar script to game one, as the Pioneers got more strong pitching and clicked on offense. Alfred State established a 7-0 advantage through two-and-a-half innings and finished with a lopsided win over the Lions.
Hillard went 3-for-5 with a double and an RBI, and Ingold was 2-for-3 with a walk. Alex Hlivia (Pennsylvania Furnace, PA/State College) finished 2-for-4 with a run scored.
Sam Homan (Altoona, PA/Bishop Guilfoyle) was saddled with the loss, after pitching four innings and striking out five batters along the way. Michael Labisi (Mountainside, NJ/Governor Livingston) pitched three innings in relief, and Sean Wing (Staten Island, NY/St. Peter's) finished the game by tossing the final two frames.
Alfred State scored in the top of the first inning when Connor Kiefer stole home, and his two-run home run in the third made it 3-0. Later in the third, an error allowed Elijah Barinas to score, before Jordan Hughes' two-run single and Zach Young's RBI groundout extended the Pioneers' advantage to 7-0.
Penn State Altoona got on the board in the bottom of the third when Hlivia reached on an infield hit, moved up to second on a groundout, and scored on Hillard's double down the left-field line.
Alfred State added three runs to its total in the top of the seventh, as Barinas' two-run single to left and Caleb Walker's RBI base hit to right made it 10-1.
The Lions picked up a run in the bottom half of the seventh. Green drew a walk to lead off the inning, stole second base, and later advanced to third on a fielder's choice. Corey Chamberlain (Claysburg, PA/Claysburg-Kimmel) picked up an RBI with his grounder that brought Green home from third, making it 10-2.
But Alfred State scored once more in the top of the ninth, after Devin Mersmann tripled to left and scored on Anthony Snyder's groundout.
Next up, Penn State Altoona baseball is scheduled to travel to Huntingdon, Pa., on Thursday, April 10, to face non-conference foe Juniata College in a single, 9-inning game starting at 3:30 p.m.
