The Youngstown State baseball team saw its 2023 season come to an end on Wednesday after dropping a 12-3 decision to Milwaukee in the opening round of the 2023 Horizon League Baseball Championship at Nischwitz Stadium in Dayton, Ohio.
The Penguins struck first with a single run in the bottom of the second inning before the Panthers scored three times in the top of the third. YSU got within a run at 3-2 with a single tally in the fourth before Milwaukee scored the next nine runs of the contest to pull away for the opening-round victory.
Youngstown State finishes the season at 19-36 overall while Milwaukee improves to 24-30. The Panthers advance to play top-seeded Wright State or second-seeded Oakland in the winner's bracket on Thursday.
Andre Good went 2-for-4 with a triple, an RBI double and a run scored while Ian Francis went 2-for-3 with an RBI double and a walk. Matt Thompson went 2-for-4 and scored twice while Padraig O'Shaughnessy was 2-for-3 with a walk in his final game as a Penguin.
YSU starter Travis Perry suffered the loss after allowing four runs on five hits with three strikeouts and five walks over five innings of work. Nick Perez was responsible for five runs on four hits in two thirds of an inning while Patrick Gumto was charged with three runs on four hits over 2.1 innings of relief. Casey Marshalwitz came on to work a scoreless ninth inning.
The Penguins went ahead 1-0 in the bottom of the second inning when Thompson hit a one-out single, advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored on a two-out RBI double by Francis.
The Panthers responded in the top of the third when Marcus Cline hit a two-out solo home run to even the score at 1-1. After Aaron Chapman drew a two-out walk and swiped second base, Nate DeYoung hit an RBI double down the right field line to give Milwaukee a 2-1 advantage. Later in the frame, Tommy Benson drew a bases-loaded walk to give the Panthers a 3-1 lead.
YSU cut Milwaukee's lead to 3-2 in the bottom of the fourth when Good hit a one-out triple to right center and scored on a wild pitch.
The Panthers pushed across a single run on two hits in the top of the fifth to take a 4-2 advantage. Chapman hit a leadoff single and came around to score on a one-out RBI double by Mark Connelly.
Milwaukee plated five runs on four hits in the top of the sixth inning to build a 9-2 lead. Cline hit a three-run double down the right field line, Connelly recorded an RBI single and Carson Hansen drove in a run with a sacrifice fly.
The Panthers added a single run on two hits in the top of the seventh to push their lead to 10-2. Luke Seidel hit a one-out double and scored on a two-out RBI single from Cline. Milwaukee tacked on two more runs in the top of the eighth when Jake Novak hit a two-run home run.
The Penguins scored the final run of the contest in the bottom of the eighth when Thompson hit a two-out double and Good followed with an RBI double to right field.
Cline went 3-for-6 with a home run, a double, five RBIs and two runs scored to pace the Panthers offensively. Connelly joined Cline with three hits while driving in a pair of runs.
Milwaukee starter Riley Frey earned the victory after surrendering two runs on six hits with six strikeouts over seven innings on the mound. Sam Mathews allowed one run on two hits in one inning of relief before Curtis Sheahan retired YSU in order in the ninth.
For news and updates on the YSU baseball program during the offseason, follow @YSUBaseball on Twitter.
