PSUGA Baseball Opens Conference Play vs. PSU-Fayette
After getting rained out this weekend, the PSUGA Baseball Team is set to open conference play when they battle PSU-Fayette tonight at 6 p.m. After facing tough competition early in the year, they are excited to start the run for their fifth PSUAC title in the last eight years.
McKeesport, Pa. – After a rained-out weekend of baseball, the Penn State Greater Allegheny Baseball Team (3-8, 0-0) will open up conference play on Monday when they take on Penn State Fayette (1-2, 0-0) at 5:30 p.m. PSUGA Baseball has faced some tough competition early on in the season and are excited to start conference play as they make a run for their fifth Penn State University Athletic Conference Championship in the last eight seasons.
Their last game came on March 18th when they took on #4 ranked Mercyhurst in a doubleheader at Pullman Park. The offense had trouble getting things going as they dropped both halves of the doubleheader losing 14-5 and 14-0. All of PSUGA’s runs came in the fifth inning of game one of the doubleheader when they had three bases loaded walks and an RBI single.
Week 1 PSUAC Hitter of the Week Adam Jacko (North Versailles, Pa./East Allegheny) had a great weekend hitting .455 with two RBI and two walks combined between the two doubleheaders. Against Mercyhurst, Jacko went 2-5 with 1 RBI and 1 walk including the RBI single to cap off the five-run bottom of the fifth against Mercyhurst.
Pitching has stepped up so far this season having good outings against some of the toughest teams that PSUGA will face all season. Matt Smith had the best outing of the opening weekend of PSUGA’s home schedule going 6.2 innings giving up five runs while walking three and striking out 1 against Fisher College. He was able to hold the Falcons to just two runs through the first six innings of play before allowing four runs in the top of the 7th to seal PSUGA’s fate.
Despite the team’s current 3-8 record, they have been playing a lot better then the record suggests. Through the first 11 games they are hitting .263 as a team and have scored 48 runs. 14 of those runs were scored against Mercyhurst, who is the #4 ranked team in all of Division II Baseball. The middle of the lineup has done exceptionally well this season combined between Dylan Ernst (McKeesport, Pa./McKeesport), Zack Pollack (Cecil, Pa./Cannon-McMillan), and Josh Arroyo (Tao Alta, Puerto Rico/Levittown Baptist Academy). The trio have combined to drive in 21 of the teams 48 runs and have collectively hit .242 (8-33) over their last four games.
Penn State Fayette last took the field on Monday March 19th when they took on Allegany College of Maryland. Fayette would get mercy-ruled in the sixth inning falling 13-3. Kody Thomas had the best day for Fayette going 2-3 with a run scored in the game but was one of only five Fayette lions to pick up hits.
PSUGA has seen a lot of success against Fayette going 9-1 against them since the 2010-2011 season. After not playing Fayette a year ago, the last meeting between these two teams was in the 2015-2016 season when the teams split a doubleheader with PSUGA winning the first game 5-4 and Fayette taking the second game 7-1. Prior to the loss in the second game of that doubleheader, PSUGA had a nine-game winning streak against Fayette since the 2010-2011 season.
First pitch for Monday’s contest is scheduled for 5:30 p.m. on the campus of Penn State Fayette located at 2201 University Dr., Lemont Furnace, PA 15456. It will be the PSUAC Conference opener for both teams.