Lions swept by Brandywine in closely contested series

Hazleton, Pa. - THe Nittany Lions got some outstanding pitching last weekend, but that was not enough to get past Penn State Brandywine in a four game series Friday and Saturday. Hazleton took two losses at Brandywine on Friday afternoon by scores of 1-0 and 1-11. Saturday's home games were moved to Bloomsburg Area High School following the weeklong rain event and although the Lions threatened in each contest, both were decided by the score of 2-4 in favor of Brandywine who exited the series with a conference record of 10-2 while the Lions dropped to fifth in the eastern division standings with a record of 3-7. 

Hazleton got an outstanding pitching performance in the series opener from second year player Eli Tyrrell. Tyrrell threw a complete game, six innings for Hazleton but after allowing just two hits through five innings, a walk and a base hit in the sixth inning led to a game winning sacrifice fly for the Brandywine squad, spoiling an otherwise stellar outing for Tyrrell. After the tough luck defeat, Hazleton suffered their worst defeat of the weekend as the offense continued to struggle. Hazleton got their first run scored of the series but not before allowing seven runs to the Brandywine squad in their first three trips on offense as the home team went on to defeat the Lions 11-1. 

Satruday's games at John Babb field in Bloomsburg, Pa. were close throughout, but again Hazleton just couldn't get the sticks going against the Brandywine pitching. After falling behind 3-0 in game one on Saturday Hazleton cut the deficit to one score after a two-RBI single by fourth year player Eddie Wess in the bottom of the third inning. Brandywine tacked on an insurance run in the fifth inning but the Lions threatened in the final frame. Hazleton got the tying run on base, but once again, Brandywine pitching was able to shut down the offense to close out the game 4-2. First year hurler Jake Bobish pitched well in the loss, throwing seven strong innings and allowing two earned runs on 10 hits. 

Similarly in game two, Hazleton got a solid start from the hill with first year player Zach Brister going five innings for the Lions. Brister allowed single scores to the Brandywine offense in the first and third innings but exited the game after allowing the first two hitters to reach safely in the sixth. Hazleton escaped the frame with just a 3-0 deficit and battled back in the bottom of the sixth when a Brandywine error and a wild pitch led to two runs for the Lions, bring the score to 3-2 in the seventh inning. Once again, Brandywine tacked on a crucial insurance run, this time coming in the seventh inning and closed out the game by retiring Hazleton in order in their final at-bat.

Overall, the Hazleton offense tallied just eight hits in the series, making it tough for the pitching staff to come away with anything more than statistical success. Hazleton will look to reverse the recent trend of four straight losses when the Lions finish up their series with Penn State Wilkes-Barre on Tuesday, April 9. Although the two game set are Wilkes-Barre's home games, Tuesday's contests will be played at the Hazle Township Babe Ruth Field at 3:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.