GRANVILLE, Ohio - Penn State Harrisburg's baseball team opened NCAA Tournament action with a 14-6 setback to the regional hosts from No. 13 Denison at Big Red Field on Friday afternoon, May 20. 

HOW IT HAPPENED

Penn State Harrisburg (30-16) fought back from an early deficit to draw even midway through the team's first NCAA contest on Friday afternoon before running out of gas against nationally-ranked and top-seeded Denison (34-9). 

Josh Lantz went 2-for-3 with two runs scored, while Chase Smith finished 2-for-5 with a double and a pair of RBI. Matt Isaac went 1-for-3 with an RBI and a run scored, while Drew Sassaman scored two runs of his own. 

The Lions fell behind 2-0 in the bottom of the first inning but answered back in the top of the second when Sassaman took advantage of a Denison error and scored with two outs to cut the deficit in half. 

The Big Red put together their first big inning of the day in the fourth, tacking on an initial run before a three-run home run pushed the home team's advantage to 6-1. 

The Blue & White started chipping away in the fifth when Lantz and Isaac led off the frame with back-to-back singles and Joe Licolli moved them along with a sacrifice bunt. Smith inflicted the damage with a double to right center that drove in both runners and drew the visitors to within three.

Zach Gettys retired Denison in order in the bottom of the fifth and the bats got back to work in the top of the sixth when Kevin Lehner and Maddux Ryan singled in back-to-back at-bats before a Sassaman fielder's choice plated the former. Lantz reached base after being hit by a pitch and Isaac drove in Sassaman with a sac fly to right field. Licolli came up big with a two-out single that scored Lantz to tie things up.

Denison followed it up by putting together its second big inning of the day in the seventh, using a solo home run to reclaim the lead before tacking on four more before the end of the stanza. The Big Red eventually added two more insurance runs in the eighth to secure the victory. 

NOTABLES

- Penn State Harrisburg dropped to 2-7 all-time in NCAA Tournament play.

- Josh Lantz went 2-for-3 with a pair of runs scored.

- Chase Smith finished 2-for-5 with a double and two RBI.

- Matt Isaac was 1-for-3 with a pair of RBI.

- Drew Sassaman scored a team-high two runs.

- Zach Gettys got the start, going six innings and allowing six runs on eight hits to go along with a pair of strikeouts.

WHO'S NEXT?

The Lions will take on William Paterson in an elimination game on Saturday morning at 11 a.m. A victory would send Penn State Harrisburg to another elimination game at 6 p.m. tomorrow evening.

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