Box Score 1 | Box Score 2 Lancaster, Pa. - The Penn State Abington baseball squad got a pair of victories earlier this afternoon against Lancaster Bible College to open up NEAC conference play in the 2013 campaign. Bill Parave and Brian Camp pitched the Nittany Lions to the pair of victories, while the offense exploded for double digit runs in both games, as the Blue and White came away with 11-4 and 10-3 victories over the Chargers.
 
Game one got underway with the Nittany Lions jumping ahead by two runs in the very first inning. After a pair of flyouts to open the game, Bill Parave singled and then advanced to second on a passed ball. This brought Mike Kerns to the plate, and Kerns managed to draw a walk. On the ball four pitch that sent Kerns to first, Parave also stole third, and then both runners advanced another base on an error by the catcher. Kerns then advanced to third on a wild pitch, setting the table for Dan Hill to single him in as the second run.
 
The Nittany Lions (11-14, 2-0 NEAC) then tacked on three more runs in the top of the fourth inning. The biggest hit was made my Dustin Kology, who doubled in Ted Smallwood to make the score 3-0. Mark McCouch followed that up with a sacrifice fly to center to bring home Will Erskine. The final run of the inning came with Kerns at the plate once again, this time off an RBI single by the senior catcher to score Kology and make the score 5-0 in favor of Abington.
 
Bill Parave, meanwhile, was absolutely dealing on the mound for the visitors. The senior righty sent the first thirteen batters he faced packing, including three by way of the strikeout. The Chargers (4-11, 0-2 NEAC) finally got to Parave in the bottom of the fifth, using an RBI single from Kody Godsey to finally get themselves on the board. Then, after Abington had brought a relief pitcher in to start the sixth inning, Lancaster Bible added on three more runs to bring themselves within a single run of their opponents. The Nittany Lions finally got out of the inning when they brought Kevin Faber into the game, and Faber got Godsey to ground out to third and get out of the jam.
 
With their opponents closing in, Abington looked to tack on a few insurance runs before the Chargers got their last at bats, and boy did they. An RBI single and an error from the shortstop brought in two runs to make the score 7-4, but the biggest hit of the day came from Bill Parave, who had stayed in as the designated hitter. With the bases jammed full of Nittany Lions, Parave blasted a rocket well over the outfield fence for a grand slam home run, sending Abington well in front by a score of 11-4. With all their momentum from the comeback attempt now gone, and facing one of Abington's best late-inning pitchers, the Chargers simply couldn't make up the deficit. Faber set down the first two Lancaster Bible batters with infield groundouts before the next two batters reached on an error and a single. It was no matter for Faber, however, as he closed out his save with another groundout to third to end the game.
 
 
Game two was more of the same for the Nittany Lions. Once again, the Blue and White claimed a first-inning lead, and once again it came via a huge home run. This time, it was Mike Kerns who rocketed a pitch over the outfield wall, scoring Bill Parave and Mark McCouch as well to stake Abington to an early 3-0 lead. Kerns continued to hurt the Chargers when he came up again in the second, this time coming through with the bases loaded for a two-RBI single and increasing the lead to five. In fact, the Nittany Lions scored single runs in each inning the rest of the way, totaling ten runs by the time the game had ended. In a show of how dangerous the Abington lineup is from one through nine, each run came via an RBI single from five different players: Jesse Goldstein; Bill Parave, Dustin Kology, Dan Hill, and Mark McCouch each provided the RBIs for the offense over the final five innings.
 
Meanwhile, Brian Camp was pitching flawlessly, and ended up going four innings and allowing just five hits while striking out four batters. Sean McNeill came in in relief to finish up the final three innings, allowing five hits and two earned runs while striking out two to preserve the 10-3 victory for Abington. In game one, Parave pitched five strong innings, allowing just two hits and one earned run while striking out three. Meanwhile, on the offensive side of the ball, it was Parave and Kerns leading the way on the day for the Blue and White. Parave finished by going five-for-eight total on the day with five RBIs, including his grand slam homer in game one. Kerns went three-for-eight with six RBIs, including the other home run for the Nittany Lions in the day's games.
 
Penn State Abington will be right back in action tomorrow, as they continue their NEAC road trip, this time to SUNYIT in New York. Game one of the doubleheader is set for 12:00 pm, and you can get all your updates on the Nittany Lions progress throughout the season right here at abingtonsports.com.