Scott Gummo has accomplished something special this season. Just don't tell him that.

"It doesn't mean nothing to me, and it shouldn't mean nothing to nobody else," he said.

Consistent is the most appropriate word to describe the Penn State third baseman, who is currently in the midst of the best hitting stretch of his career. Riding an 11-game hit streak, the redshirt senior continues to provide the catalyst for an offense.

He's either hitting well or he's not hitting at all. True to form, he got the slump out of the way in the early part of the schedule, proving that his timing at the plate is as cyclical as the seasons.

Gummo, a notoriously slow starter, needed until April last season before he began tearing the cover off the ball. This year, it only took the first two weekends to get going. The coaching and pitching staffs alike could not be more grateful for the slugger's emergence.

"He did that last year, started off kind of slow," Penn State pitching coach Jason Bell said. "He's real streaky and right now he's having good at bats."

When Gummo consistently struggled at the dish, the team went with him, proving that he is the catalyst. He maintains that offensive success is a collaborative effort, but the numbers Gummo is putting up are hard to ignore.

Penn State (4-13) started the season 0-7 before he began his streak. During the team's sixth game of the season, he singled in the top of the seventh against West Virginia. Before that harmless swing, he had a .174 batting average, just a lone homer and five RBI. Since then, he's upped his totals to .295 with three dingers and 11 RBI.

"Well, I'm seeing the ball really well and hitting streaks, I don't know, they're lucky when you really get down to it," Gummo said. "You can go 4-for-4 and hit bloopers, or you can go 0-4 and hit seeds all over the place."

He said things began clicking that weekend when he adjusted to being outdoors. Last year, his struggles stemmed from injuries the year before.

At the end of his sophomore campaign, he tore a hamstring. Last fall, he needed knee surgery.

"I was still in a lot of pain. I shouldn't have been playing at first," he said. "I just tried to keep my mouth shut. Eventually it got better."

It showed. Penn State baseball coach Robbie Wine said he didn't heat up until the conference season. Except for those first five games this spring, it's carried over.

Healthy this past offseason, he worked out four hours a day and worked out in the cage, dropping 10 pounds for his final season. He didn't do it just for himself. He knew this team was capable of winning the Big Ten and earning a trip to NCAA Tournament in June.

"This is my senior year, and I want to be prepared for it," Gummo said. "I know we have a chance to win the Big Ten."

The regimen appears to have paid off, but he's waiting for the team to come around with him. Focusing on the team's struggles other than his own play, he didn't even know about his hit streak until this past weekend.

For that to happen, he may have to keep us this torrid pace, whether he wants to admit it or not.