MIDDLETOWN, Pa. – After taking game one on Friday, Penn State Harrisburg's baseball team completed the three-game sweep of United East foe Wells thanks to a pair of convincing victories in doubleheader play on Saturday afternoon, March 26. The Lions took the opener 10-1 before closing things out with a 16-4 win in the nightcap.

GAME 1

Penn State Harrisburg (8-10, 5-0 United East) used a balanced combination of run production and strong pitching to defeat conference foe Wells (6-11, 2-3 United East) 10-1 in the first outing of a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon.

Zach Gettys earned the win, allowing just one run on two hits and striking out six batters. Maddux Ryan was 3-for-3 with a double and two RBI, Matt Parks and Dallas Hite each went 3-for-4 with a pair of runs scored, and Chase Smith drove in a pair of runs and scored three more.

Hite set the tone right off the bat, leading off the game with a solo home run in the bottom of the first inning. Before the frame was through, Brendan Henn doubled the advantage thanks to a double to right center that plated Smith. After Gettys sat down the Express in order to begin the second, Ryan pushed the lead to three when he scored on a wild pitch.

Wells broke through and used a two-out double followed by an RBI single to get on the board in the third but the Lions answered right back in the bottom half when Ryan's two-out single to left field drove in Parks and Smith. In the bottom of the ensuing frame, Kevin Lehner got in on the homering act with a solo shot to left field, as did Smith with a two-run bomb in the bottom of the sixth.

Reliever Kieran Kearns took over for Gettys in the top of the seventh and promptly struck out the side to end the game.

GAME 2

Penn State Harrisburg (9-10, 6-0 United East) completed the weekend sweep of conference opponent Wells (6-12, 2-4 United East) in impressive fashion, coming away with a 16-4 win in the second game of a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon.

Hunter Merritt earned the win on the bump, while the Penn State Harrisburg offense racked up seven extra-base hits, including a pair of home runs and five doubles. Matt Parks, Dallas Hite, and Brendan Henn all had multi-hit outings.

The Lions put up three in the first and another in the third but the most damage came in the bottom of the fourth, as the Blue & White scored six runs on three hits, a walk, and a pair of Wells errors. Hite hit his second homer of the day early in the frame and Matt Isaac hit a rocket of a bomb that landed on the top of the batting cage in left center field.

The Express took advantage of a couple of Penn State Harrisburg miscues and scored four unearned runs but the visitors were unable to match the Lions' output in the long run, as the home team put up at least one run in every inning save for the second.

NOTABLES

- Zach Gettys earned the game-one win, going six innings and allowing just one run on two hits. He also struck out six batters.

- Kieran Kearns struck out the side in his lone inning of work in the opener.

- Maddux Ryan went 3-for-3 with a double, two RBI, and a run scored in game one.

- Matt Parks was 3-for-4 with two doubles, a pair of RBI, and two runs scored in the first outing.

- Dallas Hite went 3-for-4 with a home run, an RBI, and two runs scored in game one.

- Chase Smith finished 2-for-4 with a home run, two RBI, three runs scored, and a pair of stolen bases the first contest.

- The Lions racked up three home runs and five doubles in game one.

- Hunter Merritt went five innings in game two, striking out six and allowing no earned runs.

- Tyler Stabley did not surrender a hit in his one inning of relief work in the second outing.

- Danny Eden, Dallas Gilbert, and Everett Horton threw the final three innings of game two and did not allow a run.

- Hite hit his second home run of the day in the nightcap, going 3-for-4 with three RBI and two runs scored.

- Parks finished 4-for-6 with two more doubles, two RBI, and three runs scored in game two.

- Brendan Henn was 2-for-4 with a double, three RBI, and a run scored in the second outing.

- The Blue & White tallied two homers and five doubles in the nightcap.

WHO'S NEXT?

The Lions head to No. 9 Rowan for a key non-conference tilt on Wednesday afternoon, March 30. First pitch is set for 3:30 p.m.

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