Wednesday, March 30
McLane Stadium at Kobs Field | East Lansing, Mich.
4:05 PM
Michigan State University
12-10
12
vs
5
Youngstown State
9-15
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
R
H
E
Youngstown State
0
1
2
0
2
0
0
0
0
5
9
3
Michigan State
3
4
0
0
1
1
0
3
X
12
14
0
Photo by: Leann Espinoza
Spartans Topple Penguins, 12-5, Wednesday
3/30/2022 10:16:00 PM | Baseball
MSU beats Youngstown State in first-ever meeting on the diamond between border state foes.
EAST LANSING, Mich. -- Michigan State baseball bounced back from a disappointing game Tuesday in a high-hitting, high-scoring way Wednesday, beating Youngstown State, 12-5, at a wet and rainy McLane Stadium at Kobs Field.
Wednesday's game wrapped up an amended eight-game "homestand" for the Spartans, going 5-3 in the eight games, as MSU improved to 12-10 on the year. YSU slid to 9-15 with the loss.
The match-up between the Spartans and Penguins on Wednesday was the first-ever on the diamond between the border state foes.
Wednesday's inaugural meeting between the Spartans and Penguins started at 4:50 p.m. after a rain delay. However, once the game began, the Spartan bats were hot, knocking out 14 hits and scoring 12 runs, bouncing back from a tough 12-3 loss to Bowling Green on Tuesday.
"We had a tough day yesterday and we needed to come out and play better today and I thought we did that, so it was good to see," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "I think they do a probably better job than I do of putting one day aside and apart from the next, so a lot of credit to them. I think we put up a couple big numbers in the first, and I thought our energy and enthusiasm was really good, guys were excited to play today, even though we had a little rain delay, so I'm proud of them for being ready to go and playing well today."
MSU jumped out to a 3-0 lead after one frame and a 7-1 advantage after two innings, adding a run in the fifth and sixth before pulling away with a three-run eighth.
The Spartans' 12 runs was their sixth game this season with 10+ runs, while the 14 hits was their 12th outing with double-digit hits.
"It was a much better day for the offense today; scoring early, I think helped, and we jumbled the lineup a little bit, just to give guys a different look and maybe a different feel and get a couple new guys in there," Boss said.
A total of nine different Spartans had at least one hit in the game. One of the new guys in the lineup was redshirt-freshman designated hitter Sam Busch, who registered his first hit as a Spartan in the third inning, adding another single in the seventh to finish 2-for-4 with a walk and a run scored, making his first start and playing in his sixth game as a Spartan, coming in with just six previous at bats prior to Wednesday.
"I'm really happy for Sam Busch, he had a couple hits today," Boss said. "He's a hard worker and I know our guys were excited for him and fired up for him, so that was fun to see."
Sophomore outfielder Jack Frank led the offense going 3-for-4 with three RBI and three runs scored, including a solo home run in the sixth inning, going opposite field to left center.
"Jack Frank had a big day today, really took what he was given and got the barrel to the ball and hit a couple balls hard to the opposite field," Boss said. "All-in-all, it was good day for the offense."
Frank's home run was his third of the season, and is now tied for the team lead, joining fellow sophomores, infielder Trent Farquhar and Mitch Jebb. The three hits by Frank was his eighth multi-hit outing, also tying for the team lead, sharing it with junior outfielder Casey Mayes. Frank also takes over the team lead in average, now hitting .333 on the season.
"Honestly, I think most baseball players and especially me, just try to do the same thing every day, good, bad, indifferent, just try to just do the same thing in practice, do the same thing before the game and whatever happens happens," Frank said. "That's kind of the mindset you have to have, because you never know exactly what's going to happen. So I just came in here level-headed, and what happens, happens, and today was a good day."
Frank's three hits were part of MSU's 14 on the day, bouncing back from just five hits in Tuesday's loss.
"I think we've had a bunch of instances where we don't play as well and then we bounce back, and so I think it's a good thing to test yourself on early. It's really easy when you're winning, but when you lose, you get to see what you're made of after that," Frank said. "I think that's a really important thing to learn, and especially as we get into Big Ten games more, even inside the games, you get down a couple runs in the first couple innings, it's really important that you can bounce back thereafter."
The Spartan bats bounced back, as along with Frank and Busch, Jebb and redshirt-freshman catcher Christian Williams also had multiple hits. Jebb was 2-for-4 with four RBI, including three coming on a bases-loaded double in the second. Williams was 2-for- with three runs scored and two ribbies, the first coming on a single in the first and the last coming on a double in the eighth.
Farquhar was 1-for-4 with a run scored, redshirt-freshman Bryan Broecker was 1-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI in playing third base for the first time as a Spartan after playing catcher in his previous 17 games started. Junior infielder Peter Ahn was 1-for-4 with two runs scored, Mayes was 1-for-3 and sophomore infielder Brock Vradenburg was 1-for-1, coming on as a substitute in the late innings.
Pitching was also solid for the Spartans Wednesday, as freshman Aidan Arbaugh made his first collegiate start in just his second appearance on the mound, going 2.0 IP with a strikeout. Junior Wyatt Rush went 3.0 IP with a K. Junior Andrew Carson went 2.0 IP with two Ks and didn't yield any runs, earning the win to improve to 2-0. Sophomore Kyle Dunning went 1.0 inning with a hit and no runs, while sophomore Dominic Hann pitched a hitless, runless ninth.
The Penguins threatened in the top of the first, with a two-out single to center by Braeden O'Shaughnessy, but Frank came up throwing after the scoop and fired a frozen rope to Williams for the tag to nab YSU's Steven D'Eusanio to keep the visitors off the board.
MSU broke through with three runs in the home half of the first. Leadoff hitter Farquhar got the rally going with a walk, and Broecker drew a walk.
Two batters later, Williams singled down the line in right to plate Farquhar, and Frank followed with an RBI single of his own through the left side to drive in Broecker. After Jebb walked, junior outfielder Zaid Walker lined out to center, but it was deep enough for the sacrifice fly and knock Williams in.
The Penguins broke the ice in their scoring column in the second on a solo home run by Padraig O'Shaughnessy to close to 3-1.
MSU hung a four-spot on the board in the bottom of the second, all part of a two-out rally, as Broecker ignited it with a single, and Ahn followed with a single of his own, before Williams walked to load the bases. Frank reached on an YSU fielder error, allowing Broecker to score. Jebb took advantage of the extra play by belting a double to the wall in left center for the bases-clearing three-run double, and giving the Spartans a 7-1 advantage.
YSU countered with two runs in the third and two more in the fifth, to close to 7-5.
That would be the closest the Penguins got, as MSU plated a run in the fifth on a sac fly by Broecker to score Busch, and Frank's home run came in the sixth.
Ahn sparked the big inning in the eighth with a walk and stole second. Williams doubled to center to drive Ahn in, then Frank traded places with Williams with a double down the left field line. Jebb then singled up the middle to plate Frank for the final Spartan scoring.
Michigan State continues the week of non-conference foes by heading to Evansville, Indiana, for a three-game non-conference series at Evansville, Friday-Sunday, April 1-3. MSU and Evansville open the series on Friday at 7 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. CT, followed by a 3 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. CT first pitch on Saturday and wrapping up on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. CT.
Next week, the Spartans' lone midweek action is the 2022 Crosstown Showdown on Wednesday, April 6, resuming the Crosstown Showdown after a two-year hiatus. First pitch from Jackson® Field™ is slated for 7:05 p.m.
The Crosstown Showdown exhibition between the Lugnuts and Spartans began in 2007 as a celebration of baseball in Mid Michigan. From 2007-2019, the game was an enormous success, drawing over 100,000 total fans, averaging over 8,000 per game, airing on BTN in 2013, and bringing in the three largest crowds in stadium history, including a throng of 12,997 for the 2012 Showdown.
The game has featured 37 future Major Leaguers between the two teams, including current MLB superstars Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., and Bo Bichette, who faced off in a memorable pre-game Home Run Derby in 2016.
The week schedule is subject to change based on weather.
Along with any further schedule updates, fans can follow the games with links for live stats, live audio (when available) and live streaming from Big Ten Network+ at MSUSpartans.com.
Wednesday's game wrapped up an amended eight-game "homestand" for the Spartans, going 5-3 in the eight games, as MSU improved to 12-10 on the year. YSU slid to 9-15 with the loss.
The match-up between the Spartans and Penguins on Wednesday was the first-ever on the diamond between the border state foes.
Wednesday's inaugural meeting between the Spartans and Penguins started at 4:50 p.m. after a rain delay. However, once the game began, the Spartan bats were hot, knocking out 14 hits and scoring 12 runs, bouncing back from a tough 12-3 loss to Bowling Green on Tuesday.
"We had a tough day yesterday and we needed to come out and play better today and I thought we did that, so it was good to see," MSU head coach Jake Boss Jr. said. "I think they do a probably better job than I do of putting one day aside and apart from the next, so a lot of credit to them. I think we put up a couple big numbers in the first, and I thought our energy and enthusiasm was really good, guys were excited to play today, even though we had a little rain delay, so I'm proud of them for being ready to go and playing well today."
MSU jumped out to a 3-0 lead after one frame and a 7-1 advantage after two innings, adding a run in the fifth and sixth before pulling away with a three-run eighth.
The Spartans' 12 runs was their sixth game this season with 10+ runs, while the 14 hits was their 12th outing with double-digit hits.
"It was a much better day for the offense today; scoring early, I think helped, and we jumbled the lineup a little bit, just to give guys a different look and maybe a different feel and get a couple new guys in there," Boss said.
A total of nine different Spartans had at least one hit in the game. One of the new guys in the lineup was redshirt-freshman designated hitter Sam Busch, who registered his first hit as a Spartan in the third inning, adding another single in the seventh to finish 2-for-4 with a walk and a run scored, making his first start and playing in his sixth game as a Spartan, coming in with just six previous at bats prior to Wednesday.
"I'm really happy for Sam Busch, he had a couple hits today," Boss said. "He's a hard worker and I know our guys were excited for him and fired up for him, so that was fun to see."
Sophomore outfielder Jack Frank led the offense going 3-for-4 with three RBI and three runs scored, including a solo home run in the sixth inning, going opposite field to left center.
"Jack Frank had a big day today, really took what he was given and got the barrel to the ball and hit a couple balls hard to the opposite field," Boss said. "All-in-all, it was good day for the offense."
Frank's home run was his third of the season, and is now tied for the team lead, joining fellow sophomores, infielder Trent Farquhar and Mitch Jebb. The three hits by Frank was his eighth multi-hit outing, also tying for the team lead, sharing it with junior outfielder Casey Mayes. Frank also takes over the team lead in average, now hitting .333 on the season.
"Honestly, I think most baseball players and especially me, just try to do the same thing every day, good, bad, indifferent, just try to just do the same thing in practice, do the same thing before the game and whatever happens happens," Frank said. "That's kind of the mindset you have to have, because you never know exactly what's going to happen. So I just came in here level-headed, and what happens, happens, and today was a good day."
Frank's three hits were part of MSU's 14 on the day, bouncing back from just five hits in Tuesday's loss.
"I think we've had a bunch of instances where we don't play as well and then we bounce back, and so I think it's a good thing to test yourself on early. It's really easy when you're winning, but when you lose, you get to see what you're made of after that," Frank said. "I think that's a really important thing to learn, and especially as we get into Big Ten games more, even inside the games, you get down a couple runs in the first couple innings, it's really important that you can bounce back thereafter."
The Spartan bats bounced back, as along with Frank and Busch, Jebb and redshirt-freshman catcher Christian Williams also had multiple hits. Jebb was 2-for-4 with four RBI, including three coming on a bases-loaded double in the second. Williams was 2-for- with three runs scored and two ribbies, the first coming on a single in the first and the last coming on a double in the eighth.
Farquhar was 1-for-4 with a run scored, redshirt-freshman Bryan Broecker was 1-for-3 with two runs scored and an RBI in playing third base for the first time as a Spartan after playing catcher in his previous 17 games started. Junior infielder Peter Ahn was 1-for-4 with two runs scored, Mayes was 1-for-3 and sophomore infielder Brock Vradenburg was 1-for-1, coming on as a substitute in the late innings.
Pitching was also solid for the Spartans Wednesday, as freshman Aidan Arbaugh made his first collegiate start in just his second appearance on the mound, going 2.0 IP with a strikeout. Junior Wyatt Rush went 3.0 IP with a K. Junior Andrew Carson went 2.0 IP with two Ks and didn't yield any runs, earning the win to improve to 2-0. Sophomore Kyle Dunning went 1.0 inning with a hit and no runs, while sophomore Dominic Hann pitched a hitless, runless ninth.
The Penguins threatened in the top of the first, with a two-out single to center by Braeden O'Shaughnessy, but Frank came up throwing after the scoop and fired a frozen rope to Williams for the tag to nab YSU's Steven D'Eusanio to keep the visitors off the board.
MSU broke through with three runs in the home half of the first. Leadoff hitter Farquhar got the rally going with a walk, and Broecker drew a walk.
Two batters later, Williams singled down the line in right to plate Farquhar, and Frank followed with an RBI single of his own through the left side to drive in Broecker. After Jebb walked, junior outfielder Zaid Walker lined out to center, but it was deep enough for the sacrifice fly and knock Williams in.
The Penguins broke the ice in their scoring column in the second on a solo home run by Padraig O'Shaughnessy to close to 3-1.
MSU hung a four-spot on the board in the bottom of the second, all part of a two-out rally, as Broecker ignited it with a single, and Ahn followed with a single of his own, before Williams walked to load the bases. Frank reached on an YSU fielder error, allowing Broecker to score. Jebb took advantage of the extra play by belting a double to the wall in left center for the bases-clearing three-run double, and giving the Spartans a 7-1 advantage.
YSU countered with two runs in the third and two more in the fifth, to close to 7-5.
That would be the closest the Penguins got, as MSU plated a run in the fifth on a sac fly by Broecker to score Busch, and Frank's home run came in the sixth.
Ahn sparked the big inning in the eighth with a walk and stole second. Williams doubled to center to drive Ahn in, then Frank traded places with Williams with a double down the left field line. Jebb then singled up the middle to plate Frank for the final Spartan scoring.
Michigan State continues the week of non-conference foes by heading to Evansville, Indiana, for a three-game non-conference series at Evansville, Friday-Sunday, April 1-3. MSU and Evansville open the series on Friday at 7 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. CT, followed by a 3 p.m. ET / 2 p.m. CT first pitch on Saturday and wrapping up on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET / 1 p.m. CT.
Next week, the Spartans' lone midweek action is the 2022 Crosstown Showdown on Wednesday, April 6, resuming the Crosstown Showdown after a two-year hiatus. First pitch from Jackson® Field™ is slated for 7:05 p.m.
The Crosstown Showdown exhibition between the Lugnuts and Spartans began in 2007 as a celebration of baseball in Mid Michigan. From 2007-2019, the game was an enormous success, drawing over 100,000 total fans, averaging over 8,000 per game, airing on BTN in 2013, and bringing in the three largest crowds in stadium history, including a throng of 12,997 for the 2012 Showdown.
The game has featured 37 future Major Leaguers between the two teams, including current MLB superstars Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., and Bo Bichette, who faced off in a memorable pre-game Home Run Derby in 2016.
The week schedule is subject to change based on weather.
Along with any further schedule updates, fans can follow the games with links for live stats, live audio (when available) and live streaming from Big Ten Network+ at MSUSpartans.com.
Team Stats
Pitching:
W: Carson, Andrew (2-0)
L: PEREZ, Nick (1-2)
Batting:
2B: O'SHAUGHNESSY, Padr. 1 ; GOOD, Andre 1
HR: O'SHAUGHNESSY, Padr. 1
RBI: D'EUSANIO, Steven 1 ; O'SHAUGHNESSY, Padr. 1 ; GOOD, Andre 3
Base Running:
RUNS: NASONTI, Lucas 1 ; O'SHAUGHNESSY, Brae. 2 ; D'EUSANIO, Steven 1 ; O'SHAUGHNESSY, Padr. 1
SB: NASONTI, Lucas 1 ; D'EUSANIO, Steven 1 ; FRANKEN, Chase 1
CS: FRANKEN, Chase 1
HBP: O'SHAUGHNESSY, Padr. 1
Batting:
2B: Williams, Christian 1 ; Frank, Jack 1 ; Jebb, Mitch 1 ; Mayes, Casey 1
HR: Frank, Jack 1
RBI: Broecker, Bryan 1 ; Williams, Christian 2 ; Frank, Jack 3 ; Jebb, Mitch 4 ; Walker, Zaid 1
SF: Broecker, Bryan 1 ; Walker, Zaid 1
Base Running:
RUNS: Farquhar, Trent 1 ; Broecker, Bryan 2 ; Ahn, Peter 2 ; Williams, Christian 3 ; Frank, Jack 3 ; Busch, Sam 1
SB: Ahn, Peter 1
HBP: Broecker, Bryan 1
Game Leaders
Hitting
cf/rf
AB
4
R
3
H
3
RBI
3
AB
4
R
3
H
2
RBI
2
AB
4
R
0
H
2
RBI
4
Players Mentioned
LHP/OF
/ Baseball
C
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
INF
/ BaseballOF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ BaseballINF
/ Baseball
OF
/ Baseball
RHP
/ Baseball
INF
/ Baseball
OF
/ BaseballC
/ BaseballPursuit to Greatness | Spartans All-Access
Monday, May 19
Jake Boss | Baseball Press Conference | April 17, 2025
Thursday, April 17
Jake Boss | Baseball Press Conference | Mar. 25 2025
Tuesday, March 25
Jake Boss | Baseball Press Conference | Mar. 11 2025
Tuesday, March 11