Baseball Tours Havana, Plays Ciego de Ávila – GoPSUsports.com

The game was once again broadcast nationally in Cuba on Telerebelde. Penn State became the first United States team to play multiple Cuban National Series teams after playing Industriales Monday.

The game began with a similar pregame ceremony as Monday’s, as both teams carried their respective country’s flag out as they lined the base lines for the national anthems. Penn State was again supported in the stands by the Center for Marti Studies, the academic institution Penn State partnered with previously and for the trip. The crowd cheered great baseball plays regardless of which team made them.

Penn State Senior Associate Athletic Director for Finance/Business Rick Kaluza, who has experience umpiring in the Centre County region and Penn State club baseball, was once again allowed by Cuban baseball officials to umpire, rotating from second to first base. It is believed he is the first American to umpire games involving a Cuban National Series team. The four-person crew also included a female umpire, Janet Moreno Mendinueta, who had home plate for Wednesday’s game.

Ciego de Ávila’s team featured three national team members that had just returned from playing in the Premier 12 Tournament. Starting pitcher Victor Garcia also pitched for Cuba in the 2009 World Baseball Classic. Garcia struck out nine in five innings, allowing just two hits. RHP Dachel Duquesne finished the game, allowing just a hit and a walk with four strikeouts.

The Tigers scored a run each in the first and seventh innings. In the first, RHP Sal Biasi stuck out the first batter he faced, but Raul Gonzalez doubled, advanced to third on a wild pitch and scored on a groundout. In the seventh, Ciego de Ávila added another run with an RBI double by Luis Moiran.

Penn State was not without opportunities to score. In the fourth, designated hitter Greg Guers led off with an infield single, and with one out first baseman Tyler Kendall was hit by a pitch. The pair pulled off a double steal with two outs, but Garcia was able to get a strikeout to end the inning. In the eighth, catcher Ryan Sloniger led off with a single and Guers nearly homered to right field, but it was caught at the wall.

The Nittany Lions also drew applause with some strong defensive plays. Centerfielder Austin Riggins caught a fly ball to dead centerfield at the wall to end the first inning and left fielder Nick Riotto threw a runner out at home to end the fifth inning. Submarine-throwing RHP Jack Anderson drew a big crowd reaction with his first warm-up pitch.

Penn State will play a five or six inning closed scrimmage with Industriales Thursday and travel to Mayabeque Friday for the third game of the tournament, which will start at 2 p.m.

Tuesday did not include any baseball activities for the Nittany Lions, as the team participated in a lecture at the Center for Marti Studies on the life of Jose Marti and his writings on sports. Marti, Cuba’s national hero, lived in exile from Cuba in New York, where among his many writings he examined the role sports in society. Marti organized Cuba’s war of independence from Spain during his time in the United States.

After lunch, the team visited the Jose Marti Memorial in the Revolution Plaza. The site is one of the most treasured in Cuba. Several high-ranking government buildings surround the plaza.

Student-athletes, coaches and staff also had the opportunity to return to Old Havana. The team toured the area visiting shops, restaurants and interacting with locals. Many were excited to meet baseball players from the United States, with some recognizing the players and coaches from the national news, on which Penn State’s game against Industriales was one of the leading stories the previous evening and that morning.