With eight hits in eight innings and nothing to show for it, it looked as if T.J. Macy's first start of the year might be wasted.
The senior right-hander tossed seven innings of one-run, two-hit baseball but left Sunday's game versus Seton Hall unable to finish as the winning pitcher.
But a six-run outburst in the top of the ninth with center fielder Blake Lynd driving in the go-ahead runs propelled Penn State to a 6-1 comeback victory in the Big Ten/Big East Challenge finale Sunday in Clearwater, Fla.
"We believed in ourselves the whole time, and that's just the way baseball goes," said Lynd, who appeared in his first games for Penn State after transferring from Alvin Community College in Alvin, Texas. "We have a lot of chemistry on the team, and we knew if we stayed focused things can happen. That's the team we have -- we're never going to quit."
Macy and Seton Hall pitcher Joe DiRocco remained locked in a pitcher's duel for much of the game, but it appeared DiRocco might have the upper hand when center fielder Matt Smedberg doubled in the Pirates' only run in the bottom of the fifth to give them a 1-0 lead.
The Lions threatened in the top of the seventh, but Jordan Steranka was thrown out at home on a Rick Marlin hit, and Marlin proceeded to get picked off at second base. Two more batters reached base before Chris McGlynn replaced DiRocco and struck out Lynd to end the inning.
"It's just part of the game, but you have to stay focused and keep doing what you're supposed to do without trying to do too much," Lynd said.
In the ninth, Lynd stepped to the plate with one out and got his redemption on a two-run single to left-center.
"It was a great feeling, and I'm just thankful I had the opportunity," Lynd said. "Mike [Glantz] got a key walk, [Grant] Youngblood drove in a run to tie the game, and without that I wouldn't have had the opportunity."
Macy struck out eight batters before being pulled at the start of the eighth, and reliever David Lutz picked up where Macy left off by closing out the final two innings with no runs or hits allowed to earn the win.
With the victory, Penn State finished the weekend 2-1 in the Big Ten/Big East Challenge. The weekend began on a sour note with a 15-6 drubbing at the hands of St. John's on Friday, but the Lions bounced back behind pitcher Scott Kelley and beat Northwestern, 9-1, on Saturday for their first win of the year.
"The first game we came out flat and ended up taking a tough loss that we wish we could take back," Lynd said. "But we didn't get down, and we weren't going to let it get us down."
