An early season test last week resulted in a "C" for outcome, but an "A" for effort, for the Penn State baseball club.

During a spring break trip to Florida, Penn State (4-3) went 2-3 while participating in the Palm Beach Classic. Even with the sub-par finish, the team was satisfied with the level of play it showed.

"We played good teams down there," Penn State club baseball coach Dan Day said. "And we played good baseball. The pitchers did what they had to do, the hitters did what they had to do, and the defense was spectacular."

Penn State lost the first three games of the week before being victorious in the final two. The wins came against Div. III varsity squad Palm Beach Atlantic, 7-5, and the University of North Carolina at Charlotte club team, 4-3.

The losses were at the hands of the Virginia Tech club team, 7-5, and a pair to Illinois Valley, 5-4 and 9-5. Illinois Valley is a Div. II junior college team that is ranked ninth nationally.

The win against UNC-Charlotte could have been a fourth loss. Thanks to relief pitcher Steve Eberbach it ended up as a week-ending win.

Eberbach came into a tied game in the 10th inning, and, with runners in scoring position, struck out the three batters in the heart of the lineup -- all looking at the third strike. Penn State then won the game in the bottom of the inning on a Nate Decker RBI single.

"It was by far one of the most impressive innings I have seen," Penn State pitching coach Buck Kicinski said. "It was something you get on your feet for."

That pitching brilliance was the culmination of another solid outing for the Penn State hurlers, as all 11 pitchers were on the mound during the week.

In the win over Palm Beach Atlantic, starting pitcher Chris Rayburg, in his first start of the season, held a perfect game for 4 2/3 innings and ended up allowing just one hit. In fact, all five of Palm Beach Atlantic's runs were scored in the bottom of the seventh inning.

A second great start by Carmen Comunale was spoiled in a loss to Illinois Valley.

That loss was a tough one for Penn State. In the eighth inning of a tie game, Illinois Valley had runners at second and third. Day decided to load the bases with an intentional walk, but the first pitch was wild and the winning run scored.

Comunale pitched seven innings, allowing two earned runs on five hits while striking out two. In 12 innings this season, he has only given up three earned runs with eight strikeouts.

"We did have some trouble holding guys on [base]," Kicinski said. "But overall we did fairly well. I would give them a B since it was our first full week [of play]."

The offense was also on track for Penn State, with infielder John Ruhf having three multi-hit games and outfielder Jason Bunda and catcher Joe Kozlowski each hitting his first home run of the season.

In the last two losses, Penn State was beaten out of the gate and couldn't make up the difference.

"[Virginia Tech] jumped on us early and we weren't able to catch them," Day said. "We put together three solid innings, where if some things go the other way, we win."

Some things may have not gone Penn State's way, but the team is not looking at the mistakes of the week. The team is focused on carrying over the momentum gained from the wins and the good play into the rest of the season.

"The mistakes made were more mistakes that can be corrected by playing together," Bunda said. "[The playing experience] this early in the season can only help us."