On Friday, Penn baseball opened its 2026 season against No. 24 Texas A&M. After coming short of the Ivy League tournament title last spring, the Quakers were looking to rebound and set the tone with a win in their season opener. Unfortunately, the Aggies swept the weekend series and sent the Quakers home with a 3-0 loss to start the year.
Lockdown defense from both teams
Texas A&M (7-0) pitcher Shane Sdao started the first game of the series hot and denied Penn’s first three hitters with two flyouts and a strikeout. Penn senior pitcher Jake Moss was quick to respond, giving up just one hit before sending the Quakers (0-3, 0-0 Ivy) back to the plate. From there, the game featured a duel between Sdao and Moss, and the two went back and forth to keep the score tied for inning after inning, and the game ended with a low score of 1-0 in favor of the Aggies.
The second game played out similarly. In the third inning, freshman infielder Jay Secretarski hit a single, and later, junior outfielder Gavin Collins followed with a hit to send Secretarski home for Penn’s first run of the season, giving them a 1-0 lead. In the next four innings, the two teams failed to gain much momentum on offense, combining for just four hits and a final score of 2-1 Aggies.
Though the third and final game of the series ended in a blowout, Penn’s strong defense kept them in the first two games.
Dramatic ninth-inning heroics from the Aggies
Unfortunately for the Quakers, Texas A&M pulled off some ninth-inning heroics to secure the win in the first game. In the final inning of the opener, infielder Boston Kellner doubled down the center, allowing infielder Sawyer Farr to score and give the Aggies the walk-off victory.
Penn couldn’t catch a break. In game two, the Quakers held a 1-0 lead through six innings before A&M’s star outfielder Terrence Kiel II lined a hit down the right-field line, allowing Kiel II to score and tie the game at 1-1. After a scoreless 10th inning, the Aggies would go on to finish with another walk-off victory to seal the second game.
Bright spots for Penn
Going into the series, it was clear that Texas A&M would be a tough opponent. Still, aside from the final game, Penn went toe-to-toe with the Aggies and had multiple opportunities to come out on top.
Senior shortstop Davis Baker led the offense with multiple hits, while Collins went 3-for-5 in game two and drove in Penn’s only run. Secretarski notched his first collegiate hit in his first start, and sophomore infielder Michael Powell, junior catcher Qwynn Ahearn, and junior outfielder Gavin Degnan all contributed key singles.
On the mound, Moss and junior pitcher Marty Coyne both impressed in their starts, combining for strong strikeout totals and limiting the Aggies to just 11 hits across two games. Coyne was rewarded for his career-high nine strikeouts in the second game with an Ivy League Co-Pitcher of the Week nod. Though Penn didn’t find the start they were looking for, the team’s pitching and defense offers encouraging signs for the season ahead.
Another three-game series awaits for the Quakers as they travel to Mercer next weekend.
