YSU baseball falls to Mercyhurst

The Youngstown State baseball team came up short in 5-1 non-conference loss at Mercyhurst on Tuesday afternoon at the Mercyhurst Baseball Field in Erie, Pa.

On a chilly and blustery day in Erie, the Lakers broke a scoreless tie with a single run in the bottom of the fifth inning before adding four runs of insurance in the home half of the eighth. The Penguins posted a single tally in the top of the ninth for the final margin.

Nathan Beckley went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored while Jay Wrona recorded an RBI double for YSU offensively.

YSU starter Tyler Heflin scattered three hits over three scoreless innings before handing the ball to Harun Pelja, who surrendered one run on three hits over two innings. Gavin Wilms (Salem) tossed two innings of scoreless relief while Lane Rhodes (Salem) and Phil Brennaman were each responsible for runs during Mercyhurst’s four-run rally in the eighth.

The Lakers broke through for the game’s first run in the bottom of the fifth as Casey Smith hit a leadoff single and scored on a two-out RBI single by Eric Chorba.

Mercyhurst pushed across four runs with two outs in the eighth inning to build a 5-0 advantage. A pair of walks and a hit batter loaded the bases before Chirs Juchno greeted Brennaman out of the bullpen with a two-run single to right field. Joe Trivisonno and Chorba followed with back-to-back RBI singles.

Youngstown State plated its only run in the top of the ninth as Beckley hit a leadoff double, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on Wrona’s two-out RBI double.

YSU will continue its nine-game road stretch on Thursday when it opens a three-game Horizon League series at Milwaukee. First pitch at Franklin Field is scheduled for 6 p.m.

Wisconsin loses LT to ACL injury

MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin offensive tackle Kevin Heywood is expected to miss all of the upcoming season after tearing his anterior cruciate ligament in spring practice.

Heywood, the Badgers’ projected starter at left tackle, hurt his knee in practice Thursday. Wisconsin coach Luke Fickell revealed the severity of the injury on Tuesday.

The Badgers had the same starting offensive line for each of its 12 games last year, with Jack Nelson at left tackle, Joe Brunner at left guard, Jake Renfro at center, Joe Huber at right guard and Riley Mahlman at right tackle. Brunner, Renfro and Mahlman are back this year.

Wisconsin also had the same starting offensive line for all 12 of its regular-season games in 2023, with Nelson at left tackle, Huber at left guard, Tanor Bortolini at center, Michael Furtney at right guard and Mahlman at right tackle. The only change that season came in the ReliaQuest Bowl loss to LSU, with Renfro getting to start after missing the entire regular season with an injury to his lower left leg.

Heywood was expected to take over this season for Nelson, who had started at left tackle each of the last three years. Heywood had participated in all 12 games for Wisconsin last year while playing special teams and making occasional appearances on offense.

Don Hasselbeck dies of heart attack

Former NFL tight end Don Hasselbeck, who won a Super Bowl in his nine-year career and was the father of two NFL quarterbacks, died Monday. He was 70.

Hasselbeck’s son, Matt, said his father died after going into cardiac arrest at his home.

The elder Hasselbeck was drafted in the second round by New England in 1977 after a standout collegiate career at Colorado. He spent six full seasons with the Patriots and led the team in catches in 1981 with 46, to go along with 808 yards receiving and six TDs.

He was traded to the Los Angeles Raiders early in the 1983 season and helped the team win the Super Bowl. He had two TD catches in the regular season for the Raiders and the 6-foot-7 Hasselbeck blocked an extra point in a 38-9 win in the Super Bowl against Washington.

Hasselbeck then spent the following season with the New York Giants and had a TD catch in a playoff win over San Francisco and finished his career with Minnesota in 1985.

Hasselbeck had 107 catches for 1,542 yards and 18 touchdowns in 123 career regular season games.

Two of Hasselbeck’s sons went on to play quarterback in the NFL, with Matt making three Pro Bowls and starting in a Super Bowl for Seattle following the 2005 season and Tim playing mostly as a backup..