The streak survives.
Penn baseball has won its last six games and is showing no signs of slowing down. The Quakers (11-5) took on Wagner (2-15) in a three-game series last weekend.
“Any time you can beat a team three times, it’s always a good weekend,” head coach John Yurkow said postgame. “I feel like a nice thing, too, is that we’re starting to get some contributions from a bunch of different guys.”
The first game was a high-scoring affair with Penn taking a 10-6 victory. In the second game, Penn won 5-3, and the final affair was dominated by the Quakers yet again, 9-4.
Senior shortstop Craig Larsen starred throughout the weekend, with an RBI single in the first game and then two more hits in the second contest to help secure the series win. Larsen also contributed his best performance in the final showdown with three hits and two runs. Additionally, the infielder extended his current hitting streak to eight games and his RBI streak to an impressive five games.
“He got a really big hit yesterday to put us up. It’s starting to carry over, and he’s seeing the ball a lot better,” Yurkow said of Larsen. “Craig’s a pretty talented kid, so having him in the middle of the order — if he starts swinging the bat like that — it’ll really help us here down the stretch.”
Another standout player was sophomore relief pitcher Danny Heintz, who, in the final game of the series, threw five consecutive strikeouts across a perfect 1.2 innings to help secure a series sweep for the Quakers.
“His last couple outings in the bullpen have been pretty impressive,” Yurkow said. “His strikeout numbers are starting to come up. … He’s starting to command his fastball better.”
Freshman catcher Asa Wilson bats against Wagner during the third game of the weekend at Meiklejohn Stadium on March 20.
One surprise over the weekend was the solid performance by Asa Wilson. The freshman catcher recorded the first home run of his career on Sunday and had a strong showing in the first game with two hits and a run.
“I think the biggest thing is continuing to try to limit self-inflicted mistakes, fielding the ball cleanly, limit[ing] freebies … cutting down on the strikeouts offensively,” Yurkow reflected. “It’s nice it’s starting to come around at an important time for us in the season.”
The Red and Blue will face off against Lehigh (12-6) on Wednesday at Meiklejohn Stadium at 3 p.m. They look to extend their winning streak to seven and then will jump into a three-game series at Columbia next weekend.
The Daily Pennsylvanian is an independent, student-run newspaper. Please consider making a donation to support the coverage that shapes the University. Your generosity ensures a future of strong journalism at Penn.
Donate