Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Penn State
Bucknell Baseball Receives Strong Pitching, but Falls to Penn State, 2-0
4/18/2012 8:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 18, 2012
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Senior left-hander Mike Franklin limited Bucknell to four hits and Penn State scored single runs in the seventh and eighth innings as the Bison lost to the Nittany Lions by a 2-0 score Wednesday evening at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. The loss snapped a three-game winning streak for Bucknell, which is now 19-20 on the season. Penn State improved to 16-20.
Both teams received solid pitching performances in the swiftly played game that took less than two hours to complete. Franklin improved to 3-2 on the year as he logged his first complete game of the season and gave up four singles in the process. He faced the minimum three Bison in five different innings, struck out 10 and walked just one.
Senior Jack Boehm earned the start for Bucknell and gave up four hits and a walk in 2.2 innings before giving way to classmate Russell Seidell. Seidell got Jordan Steranka to ground out to second to work out of a two-on and two-out jam.
Seidell (2-2) retired the first four hitters he faced and kept Penn State off the board until the seventh inning. JC Coban led off with a single, moved to second on a failed pickoff attempt and then scored on a two-out single by Steve Snyder.
Seidell, who pitched 4.1 innings, allowed six hits and struck out two, was removed from the game in the eighth after allowing a leadoff triple to Steranka. Marcus Garone entered and a wild pitch allowed Steranka to come across the plate and make it 2-0.
Bucknell did bring the tying run to the plate in the top of the ninth when Rob Krentzman reached on an error. However, Franklin retired Gerry Runyan to end the game.
Bob Donato, Krentzman, Runyan and State College native Scott Glass were the Bison to record hits Wednesday. Bucknell had more than one runner reach base in an inning only once, when Krentzman and Runyan posted back-to-back one-out singles in the seventh.
Snyder (3-for-3), Aaron Novak (2-for-4) and Coban (2-for-3) combined for seven of the Nittany Lions' 10 hits.
Bucknell and Penn State have played a number of close games in recent years. Four of the last six meetings between the teams entering Wednesday's contest had been decided by one run.
The Bison will return to action this weekend when they play a four-game series at Army. Doubleheaders are scheduled for both Saturday and Sunday at the Black Knights' Doubleday Field.
