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The Penn State baseball season saw its share of memorable individual and team performances in 2010. Here's your chance to vote on your most memorable win of the season! Voting will remain open until July 21 at noon at which time the "win of the year" will be revealed!
Season Opens with Two Straight Extra Inning Walk-Off Wins
The 2010 season couldn't have begun in more thrilling fashion with the Nittany Lions pulling out two consecutive extra-inning walk-offs at the Big Ten/BIG EAST Challenge in Florida.
February 26
Penn State 5, Cincinnati 4 (12 Innings)
Down 4-2 with two outs and none on in the bottom of the ninth, Penn State responded with three straight hits, capped off by Steve Snyder's two-run triple to tie the score at four. The story of extra innings was freshman pitcher Steven Hill, making his collegiate debut. He retired all eight batters he faced, including striking out the first on three pitches, this with runners on first and third and only one out. Joey DeBernardis put on the finishing touches in the 12th with a walk-off single to score Sean Deegan for the dramatic 5-4 victory.
February 27
Penn State 3, Seton Hall 2 (13 Innings)
One day after opening the season with a dramatic extra inning win, Penn State continued its heroics against Seton Hall, coming back to top the Pirates in 13 innings. The Nittany Lions trailed heading into the bottom of the eighth until Heath Johnson drove in the tying run with a sacrifice fly. That set the stage for Mario Eramo in the 13th, who provided Penn State's second walk-off single in as many days. Strong pitching began with Neal Herring going seven innings in his collegiate debut. The Lions combined to shut out the Pirates over the final eight innings - including seven shutout frames from relievers David Lutz, John Walter and Jesse Alfreno.
Convincing Win Over Preseason Top 40 Dallas Baptist
March 6
Penn State 10, Dallas Baptist 4
A seven-run second inning was all the Lions would need as they downed Dallas Baptist for their second straight win at the YMBL Cardinal Classic in Beaumont, Texas. The Patriots entered the game with a 7-2 record after being ranked in Collegiate Baseball's Fabulous 40 national preseason poll. Neal Herring one-upped his collegiate debut by allowing only one earned run in six innings against the perennial NCAA Tournament participants. Jordan Steranka hit his first home run of the season as part of the seven-run second.
Comeback Walk-Off Win Over Columbia
March 20
Penn State 6, Columbia 5, Coca-Cola Classic
Trailing 5-0 heading to the bottom of the fourth inning, the resilient Nittany Lions clawed back to 5-5 before breaking the deadlock in the bottom of the ninth when Joey DeBernardis hit his second walk-off single in less than a month. Steve Snyder got the scoring started in the bottom of the fourth with a bases-clearing two-out double to pull within 5-3. Jordan Steranka's seventh-inning RBI groundout evened the score at five while DeBernardis finished it off with a bases loaded single to score Sean Deegan, who led off the ninth with a triple. Steven Hill was the story on the mound, entering in the eighth with the go-ahead run at third and only one out. He induced two popups to end the threat before tossing a scoreless ninth for his second win of the season.
Big Ten Opening Win at Illinois
April 2
Penn State 16, Illinois 9
Penn State opened Big Ten play by scoring a season-high 16 runs on 18 hits to top Illinois in convincing fashion at Illinois Field. The Nittany Lions hit a season-high four home runs - led by two from Mario Eramo - on the way to their first Big Ten opening victory since 2006. In total, six different Lion hitters posted multiple hits, including four with three or more hits led by Jordan Steranka's 4-for-4 performance. One of Steranka's hits was a home run while Ben Heath swatted his eighth round-tripper of the year. Mike Wanamaker won his second game on the mound, riding a gutsy 7.2 inning effort in his first Big Ten contest since 2008.
10 Unanswered Runs Lead to Win Over Pa. Rival, #24 Pittsburgh
April 13
Penn State 14, Pittsburgh 8
Trailing 8-4, the Nittany Lions responded with five runs in the seventh inning and five more in the eighth on their way to a thrilling victory over No. 24 Pittsburgh at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. The Lions ultimately took the lead off Panthers' ace starter Corey Baker, who entered in the seventh inning and was touched up for three runs in 1.1 innings. Ben Heath once again spearheaded the Penn State offensive attack, going 3-for-5 with two solo home runs.
Penn State Wins First-Ever Series at Ohio State
In a must-win weekend, the Nitany Lions responded by taking two-of-three at Ohio State to get right back into the Big Ten Tournament race. Despite dropping the series opener, Penn State did hang tough against Collegiate Baseball National Pitcher of the Year Alex Wimmers. The Lions responded by outscoring the Buckeyes 32-16 over the final two games for their first-ever series win at Ohio State while handing the Buckeyes their first Big Ten series loss of the season.
April 24
Penn State 18, Ohio State 10
Penn State used a balanced offensive attack to plate a season-high 18 runs on 19 hits for an impressive win over the first-place Ohio State Buckeyes. Elliot Searer tied the Penn State single-game hits record with five while Ben Heath set a career-high with four hits, including his 13th and 14th home runs of the season. Louie Picconi and Mario Eramo homered while David Lutz threw 4.2 scoreless innings out of the bullpen for his second win of the season.
April 25
Penn State 14, Ohio State 6
Strong pitching from Ryan Ignas coupled with another offensive outburst led Penn State to its second straight win at Ohio State on a rainy Sunday afternoon. Ben Heath hit his third home run of the series and 15th of the season to pull within two of the Penn State single-season record while David Lutz made his 76th career appearance to tie the school's career mark.
Dominant Home Sweep of Michigan State by Combined Score of 49-13
Penn State rode the momentum from Columbus into a home weekend against Michigan State, winning its second straight series against a team in the Big Ten lead (either solely or tied). In the process, the Lions upped their Big Ten winning streak to five games, outscoring their opponents by a combined score of 81-29 in that span, (average of 16.2 runs per games). At one point, Michael Glantz reached base in seven straight plate appearances bridging Friday and Saturday.
April 30
Penn State 18, Michigan State 7
What started off as an early Spartan lead quickly changed as Penn State turned a 6-2 deficit into a convincing 18-7 win over Michigan State. The Nittany Lions batted around in the sixth, seventh and eighth innings, scoring 16 of their 18 runs over those frames. The Lions racked up a season-high 25 hits in the win, led by eight multi-hit efforts, including seven players with three or more hits. Michael Glantz and Elliot Searer led the way with four hits apiece.
May 1
Penn State 22, Michigan State 5 - Wounded Warrior Benefit Game
One day after tying a season-high with 18 runs, Penn State carried the momentum into Saturday, notching five first-inning runs on its way to a 22-5 win over Michigan State in the first-annual Wounded Warrior Benefit Game. The 40 combined runs over the first two games mark the most in consecutive Big Ten games in school history. The 22-run effort was also the most since Apr. 4, 2001 when the Lions bested Cornell 26-4. Wearing specially designed camo jerseys, Penn State batted around three times on the afternoon to up its series total to six. At one point, the squad batted around six times in the span of nine innings bridging the two games.
May 2
Penn State 9, Michigan State 1
Penn State wrapped up one of its best weekends in recent memory by topping Michigan State for its fifth straight Big Ten win. Ben Heath hit his 16th and 17th home runs of the season to tie the 32-year single-season school record while David Lutz made his first-career start and went the distance for the Lions' first nine-inning complete game since 2008. The victory gave Penn State its first series sweep of the season while in the process, scoring the most runs in a three-game Big Ten series in school history.
Top Iowa on the Big Ten Network for Sixth Straight Big Ten Win
May 7
Penn State 6, Iowa 2
Early-inning hitting coupled with strong pitching from Mike Wanamaker led Penn State over Iowa for its sixth consecutive Big Ten win. In a nationally televised contest on the Big Ten Network, the Nittany Lions did not disappoint, scoring six runs in the first three innings while riding a season-high eight innings and career-high 10 strikeouts from Wanamaker. With the win, Penn State pulled to within a single game of first place. Steve Snyder continued his torrid hitting, going 4-for-5 to tie a career-high along with a triple, RBI and run scored to pace the offensive attack. It marked his seventh straight multi-hit game.
Huge Ninth Against Michigan Leads to Sixth Walk-Off Win
May 21
Penn State 6, Michigan 5
Trailing by four runs heading into the bottom of the ninth and down to the game's final strike, Jordan Steranka capped a furious five-run Penn State rally with a two-run walk-off single for a dramatic victory over Michigan at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park. Penn State's sixth win in walk-off fashion eliminated any hopes the Wolverines had of winning the Big Ten Regular Season Title.
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