Auburndale, FL --- The WPI baseball team closed out Spring Break play with two high-scoring splits against Penn State-Abington at the RussMatt Invitational on Saturday. The Engineers (5-5) won game one 16-14, while the Nittany Lions (5-5) grabbed game two, 18-14.
In game one, Joe Salvon (West Springfield, MA) homered and finished with five RBI, Kyle Johns (Milltown, NJ) belted a grand slam, and Jeffrey Brennan (Amsterdam, NY) notched three hits to lead WPI at the plate. Eric DePiero (Beverly, MA) was the winning pitcher with a four-inning, one-run, and five-hit stat line, while Matt Penkala (Warren, RI) earned the save, throwing one scoreless inning allowing one hit. For the Nittany Lions, Zach Morales (Barrington, NJ) was 3-for-5 with five RBI.
In the nightcap, PSU's Montana Milward (Pitman, NJ) drove in six runs with a pair of doubles while also pitching a scoreless, hitless ninth inning to seal the win. Josh Baar (Burlington City, NJ) got the victory on the mound, throwing three innings in relief, allowing five runs (four earned) on three hits. For WPI, Brennan had three hits and three RBI, finishing the day going 6-for-8 with five RBI and seven runs scored.
GAME ONE
A wild game one featured a combined 33 hits, 30 runs, and 10 errors, but the Engineers came out on top, rallying from a 13-3 deficit to win 16-14.
WPI scored an unearned run in the top of the first, but PSU quickly took over the lead, with a two-run Zach Morales (Barrington, NJ) homerun in the bottom half.
The 2-1 lead ballooned to 8-1, as Penn State scored six runs off of five hits in the bottom of the second. Milward led off the inning with a solo homerun, while doubles from Tim Petrucelli (Delran, NJ) and Justin Fogel (Yardley, PA) and singles from Eric Stradling (Yardley, PA) and Tim Petrucelli (Delran, NJ) also plated runs.
WPI made it 8-3 in the top of the third, as singles from Johns, Andrew Cash (Marlboro, MA), and Gavin George (Salem, NH) led to a pair of runs.
Penn State responded with another big inning, plating five runs off four hits to take a 13-3 lead. A Fogel double started the scoring, while Morales added a single to score two. Petrucelli followed with an RBI triple and then scored on a wild pitch for the fifth run of the frame.
WPI then started its comeback, scoring three runs in the top of the fourth and five in the fifth. Salvon's two-run blast cut the deficit to 13-6 and after an RBI hit by pitch from Salvon, Johns' grand slam made it 13-11.
Though PSU added a run off a balk in the bottom of the fifth to make it 14-11, the Engineers went ahead for good in the top of the sixth, scoring five runs off three hits. Doubles from Brennan and Salvon each plated two runs, while a DeRoma single sent home the fifth run of the inning, as WPI led 16-14.
PSU had a pair of hits in the sixth and one more in the seventh, but Penkala induced a game-ending double-play to seal the victory for the Engineers.
GAME TWO
Another wild affair followed the game-one marathon, as the teams combined for 32 runs on 28 hits, with Penn State Abington taking the nightcap.
The Nittany Lions jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the top of the first as doubles from Fogel and Morales each drove in runs. PSU extended it to a 6-0 advantage with four more runs in the top of the third. RBI singles from Petrucelli and Baar made it 4-0, while runs also scored on a Montana Milward (Pitman, NJ) walk and Eric Rollins (Collingswood, NJ) sac fly, putting them up six.
The teams each recorded solo runs in their next at-bats, both scoring on wild pitches to make it a 7-1 ball game. WPI and PSU then both traded big innings, as an eight-run fourth for the Engineers made it 9-7 before the Nittany Lions scored seven in the top of the fifth to go back up 14-9.
In the WPI fourth, RBI singles from George and DJ Brooks (Danvers, MA) started the scoring, while Brennan belted a three-run double. Bases loaded hit by pitches to Hand, Cash, and Jake DelMonte (Southington, CT) made it 9-7 WPI.
PSU used just two hits to score seven in the top of the fifth, a two-RBI double from Milward and an RBI single from Baar. Bases loaded walks to Stradling, Fogel and a sacrifice fly from Morales put the Nittany Lions back on top, 14-9.
A five-run bottom of the fifth for WPI saw the game tied at 14-14. An RBI infield single from Johns started the scoring, while Cash drove in three on a double to right center and later scored on an error.
Penn State wasn't done scoring three runs on three hits in the top of the sixth to go up 17-14. After back-to-back singles from Petrucelli and Louis Rossner (Delran, NJ), and a hit batter, Milward got the big hit in the inning, doubling to left center to plate three.
The Nittany Lions made it 18-14 with a solo homer from Fogel in the top of the seventh and Milward retired the WPI side in order in the bottom of the seventh to end the game.
WPI heads north for its home opener, hosting Brandeis, weather permitting, on Tuesday beginning at 3pm. Penn State also plays at home on Tuesday, hosting Gwynedd Mercy at 3:30pm.