Throughout this Maryland baseball season, while the team’s lineup has so often failed to recreate last season’s success, second baseman Nick Dunn has been a bright spot, leading the team with a .344 average.
That made his 0-for-4 performance in Friday’s loss to Michigan State the most glaring part of the team’s three-hit, nine-strikeout dud. Dunn leads Maryland in nearly every offensive category, and if he switched off, the Terps’ hopes for a late push for Big Ten tournament contention would seem all but nonexistent.
But Dunn’s first swing Saturday sent a ball toward the Red Cedar River past the right field fence in East Lansing, Michigan. His third swing sent his 10th home run of the year out of the yard for the second time in the contest. And when Dunn reached the dugout, there appeared to be an air of expectation rather than elation as he high-fived his teammates, who barely moved from their places.
This is what Dunn has been tasked with all season, keeping the Terps lineup afloat in what is likely the MLB prospect’s final year in College Park. Dunn’s three-RBI, three-hit day backed up starter Hunter Parsons’ strong outing in a series-leveling 8-2 win over Michigan State.
After Dunn’s first-inning solo shot, the Terps (18-24, 4-9 Big Ten) added to the lead in the second inning thanks to the wildness of Spartans starter Mason Erla. Right fielder Randy Bednar walked, catcher Justin Morris singled and Erla hit shortstop AJ Lee with a pitch, loading the bases with one out.
Then, Erla (5-3, 4.21 ERA) walked Dunn to drive in the Terps’ second run, and reliever Caleb Sleeman walked left fielder Marty Costes before allowing a two-run single to first baseman Kevin Biondic. The four-run outburst gave Maryland a 5-0 lead over the Spartans (16-22, 7-6).
Dunn homered again in the fourth and Biondic had another RBI hit in the seventh to put Maryland up 7-2.
The Terps entered the contest hitting .231, well below last season’s mark of .274. Before the win, the squad sat in 11th place in the Big Ten.
In starter Hunter Parsons’ last five starts, Maryland has averaged just 2.2 runs per game, forcing the junior to be nearly perfect to win games.
With his most offensive support since a 13-1 win over Ball State on March 4, Parsons (4-2, 3.01 ERA) showed hints of faltering, like uncorking a wild pitch in the fifth to set up shortstop Kory Young’s RBI single, before resettling himself.
Parsons flashed all three of his pitches for strikes, punching out four and allowing five hits in his seven innings. He supplied at least seven frames for the seventh time this season as he transformed from an early-season weak point to the linchpin in a rotation recently disrupted by a concussion to Friday starter Taylor Bloom.
Biondic threw a scoreless eighth and ninth innings, and Dunn scored his fourth run of the game in the ninth on a passed ball.
Saturday’s win gives Maryland a chance at its first series win since topping Northwestern at the end of March and is just the team’s second win its last nine games. With the Big Ten tournament the Terps’ best chance at qualifying for a second straight NCAA Regional, they still have ground to make up in the standings.
One game or series doesn’t mask the problems Maryland faces, but Saturday’s win, highlighted by Dunn and Parsons, displayed what many expected the Terps to look like this year, but have lacked the consistency to reach most weekends.
