Well, with the Illini gone, I decided to stick around and watch some ball ANYWAY.
Penn State who lost their very first game against the Buckeyes, have played with heart and have hung on, winning against Iowa, Michigan and yes, Illinois. Minnesota, on the other hand, have just come off a tough loss against the Buckeyes last night.
Big Ten officials and the managers decide to postpone game one half hour
Mother Nature seemed bound and determine to have something to say about the game, though The game was delayed for a half hour because it was sprinkling a little. The game got on (it was still raining) by 4:00.
Penn State scored first in the 3rd inning
It didn’t seem to be a high scoring affair. PSU tallied a run in the 3rd on a double and a hit. The Golden Gophers came back with two in the 4th with 3 hits and help from a PSU error. In the 7th, a walk and 3 singles, scored two for the Nittany Lions putting them up 3-2.
All this while, the rain kept coming. It was really only heavy sprinkle but by the bottom of the 7th, they delayed the game. I decided that was enough for me and I went back to the hotel.
Looking at Gametracker, it still shows the same score as when I left. I’m not sure what they decided to do yet. Remember, they were SUPPOSED to play another game tonight. The winner of this game was to play Ohio State. Given the weather, I doubt that’s going to happen.
I wonder what would have happened if they had started on time. The delay didn’t seem to serve any purpose other than push the game back. Maybe they could have gotten a few more innings in.
Penn State catcher Joe Blackburn
On a side note, I was lucky to meet the parents of Joe Blackburn. They seem like really nice people. Blackburn, a senior catcher for PSU, batted .366 in 52 games and has a helluva ‘do.
Update: From the Big Ten Tournament web page, it looks like the game was suspended to be continued tomorrow as is the Ohio State vs. Game 9 winner game.
Sunday, May 27
Game 9 — Penn State 3, Minnesota 2 (suspended in 7th) 10 a.m. GametrackerGame 10 — #6 Ohio State vs. Game 9 winner, 12:05 p.m. Gametracker
Game 11 (if necessary) — Game 10 winner vs. Game 10 loser, 30 minutes following the finish of Game 10
It will be a very busy day on Sunday indeed.
Oh, I almost forgot.. here are some photos I took today.