College baseball is officially back in the Shenango Valley and the team is off to a hot start! Heading into the weekend, the Shenango Baseball Lions were rocking a 3-1 fall record and were ready to add to that, taking on Carnegie Mellon University in the first annual "Fall Ball Classic." It was a beautiful Saturday morning for baseball, despite the weather being a little chilly. That didn't deter the fans though, as over 300 people attended Saturday's festivities. The day started with a kids' baseball clinic and finished with Shenango baseball taking both games in convincing fashion.
When asked about the day, AD Brandon Padget had the following to say, "Today was a big day for Penn State Shenango Athletics. It was exciting to have many of the Shenango Sluggers in attendance to throw out a first pitch, as they helped provide this amazing opportunity to our baseball program. I am so extremely proud of everyone that helped make today such a special event. From the baseball coaching staff and players hosting an outstanding clinic for youth baseball players in the area, to the amazing work from the Student Success and Athletic Department workers, and of course, all of the student-workers and volunteers that came out and played such a huge part in making today a success! I have to highlight Brendan Henne and Cassandra McCowin for all their hard work and preparation for this event. We absolutely could not have made the impact we wanted to make without their work on the front end and during the game day experience. I also must highlight the coaches and players, who prior to a double-header, took the time to put on a one hour clinic. This type of selflessness and dedication is exactly what we want to be known for within Penn State Shenango Athletics, so thank you, all of you. I hope that the success of today's event will continue to show our community how serious we are about athletics, and how much we truly do want to see it continue to grow at Shenango!"
Both games were one-sided affairs, with Shenango jumping out to early leads and keeping the pedal to the medal the whole way through. Game 1 ended on a "walk-off" home run by Dominic Fornataro that enacted the ten-run mercy rule., giving Shenango a 12-1 win. The offensive output was lead by JA Quahliero who knocked in two RBIs while scoring two runs himself. Tyler Capan smacked a triple off the left-center field wall and drove in three runs. One the mound, Jacob Werner went four innings, striking out three. Nate Evans finished the game on the rubber, going one inning and striking out three.
Game 2 was much of the same with Cameron Caldararo crushing a Grand Slam and the rest of the squad piling on to take home another win, 11-1. Teagan McCurdy added two RBIs and Bayden Pipoly had a single and a double while driving in one. Nick Osborne took the mound for the Lions, going four innings and striking out four. Will Perry came on in relief, going two innings with two punchouts.
The Shenango Lions will be back in action this Saturday, September 28th, when they take on the same Carnegie Mellon Tartans at Pullman Park in Butler, PA. The first game will start at 12:00 PM.