In the final game of the weekend, Michigan State University baseball won its first Big Ten series of the year, defeating the Nittany Lions 10-5 on Sunday.
Everything clicked for MSU, which had struggled with consistency the day before. The Spartans’ hottest hitter, Ryan McKay, finished the weekend 9-for-14 with three RBIs and four runs scored. The second baseman will have a strong case for Big Ten Player of the Week, now batting .386 with a 1.053 OPS.
Penn State out-hit MSU, but the Spartans capitalized at key moments. MSU exploded in the fifth inning, putting up four runs. After already scoring twice, first baseman Sam Busch doubled to right, scoring McKay, and Randy Seymour added an RBI groundout to make the score 6-1.
Gannon Grundman took the mound for his first start of the season and second of his career on Sunday, generating soft contact and allowing only one earned run. Grundman gave up three hits, striking out two, before Logan Pikur entered in the fourth.
Grundman had only six innings of work prior to Sunday and had mostly struggled. However, his outing on Sunday proved he can deliver when needed and get outs.
Pikur picked up where Grundman left off, pitching 3 1/3 innings. He allowed a handful of hits but pitched effectively, striking out one and walking two.
MSU’s Tyler Horvath has appeared in several ninth innings for save situations, making another appearance on Sunday. Horvath earned the save in two innings, with two strikeouts and two hits allowed, while Penn State capitalized on a Parker Picot error in right for an unearned run.
MSU loaded the bases early in the second, and Penn State walked in the first run. Junior Jacob Anderson then flied out to center, scoring Will Shannon on a sacrifice fly.
The Spartans added insurance runs in the eighth. After back-to-back walks, Berry singled to left, allowing Nick Williams to score from second.
In the ninth, MSU added two more runs, this time on a JT Sokolove double and a Ryan McKay single.
Throughout the weekend, MSU totaled 20 walks, including 10 on Sunday alone. Designated hitter Will Shannon walked three times and went 1-for-2 on the day. MSU currently ranks fifth in the Big Ten in walks with 120 total, averaging over five per game. McKay holds the top spot in the conference with 24 walks.
With the win, MSU improved to 16-7 and 3-3 in the Big Ten, holding the eighth spot in the conference. Penn State, with its third loss in four games, is now 16-7 with a 5-4 conference record, one spot above MSU. Oregon, the Big Ten’s only top-25 team, currently sits atop the conference, ranked No. 9 in the country.
Up next, the Spartans will stay on the road for a midweek matchup against Notre Dame. Next weekend, MSU will host Illinois for its first Big Ten series at home this season. Illinois is 12-9 with a 2-4 conference mark. Look for Joseph Dzierva on the mound for game one, which is scheduled for March 28 at 3:05 p.m.
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