UNIVERSITY PARK — On May 20, Penn State’s baseball team concluded its season facing the visiting Iowa Hawkeyes. After dropping the first two games of the series, the Nittany Lions fought hard and walked off on freshman Connor Klemann’s single to the left side of the field scoring the game-winning run in freshman Jordan Bowersox.
It was an excellent note for the Blue and White to end on, as it was Penn State’s best finish since finishing third overall in the Big Ten and entering the tournament.
The Nittany Lions failed to make the playoffs for the third season in a row finishing with a 28-27 overall record and 12-12 in the Big Ten Conference. They share a tie of eighth place with the Hawkeyes and Illinois.
Penn State also must say its goodbyes to cherished seniors outfielder James Coates, first baseman Tyler Kendall, outfielder Greg Guers and pitchers Jared Fagnano, Nick Hedge and Jack Anderson. In addition to the players, two Penn State staff members are departing, as well. Student assistant coach Jordan Donmoyer and student manager Jesse Tull graduate with the group of stellar players.
The seniors left more of an impact than just from a statistical standpoint. Since joining the school in 2014, coach Rob Cooper has worked closely with the players who played under him for the first three years of his Penn State career. The 2016 senior class left an inspirational mark that will guide the program going forward.
“(The) senior group was such a good group to be around,” said Cooper. “(They) were unbelievable representatives of Penn State.
“They found a way to come out and win a game that, to most people, was meaningless, but they wanted to win. That takes a lot of mental toughness and shows what types of kids they are and what Penn State baseball means for them.
“We had a great competitive spirit. Our guys really made the choice to show up everyday and compete and have a great mindset. That is something that really carry over to the future and be our mantra and who we are.”
With the regular season ending, the Big Ten handed out its honors to the top players in the league. For the first time since 2012, Penn State players were selected for the prestigious recognition.
Anderson, Guers, freshmen Willie Burger and Justin Hagenman and sophomore catcher Alex Malinsky received recognition for their outstanding play. Guers and Anderson were named to the All-Big Ten team. Guers owned a .313 average and led the team with six home runs and 38 RBIs, while Anderson was in a three-way tie for first place in saves with 13. Malinsky received the Sportmanship Award and the first-year players were members of the All-Freshmen Team.
Cooper aims to take what they learned from 2016 and improve upon it with next year’s unique group. Moving the program forward from the competitive and mental aspects of the game is one of the team’s many goals for next season.
“It is up to us as a coaching staff to keep that going and there is lots for us to continue to get better at,” said Cooper. “I want to play in the Big Ten tournament, I want to play in the regional. There’s a lot of work for us to get done.”
Cooper is building something incredible with Penn State baseball, and it goes beyond the coaching staff. One of the biggest keys to the team’s rising success is finding players who are committed to the program and are willing to work hard.
“We are trying to do what all successful organizations do, surround yourself with highly motivated, competitive, morally strong people, and come together as a group to try and do something special,” said Cooper.
The future looks very bright for the future of Penn State baseball. Cooper is taking pride in the next group of young players and is looking forward to what they are going to bring to the organization next season.
“Watching them grow, fight through adversity, figure things out. We have a good group coming in that are from good families and I am excited to work with them.”
