ABERDEEN, Md. – In their first meeting in 10 years, the State College Spikes set a new franchise record with 10 stolen bases and outpointed the Aberdeen IronBirds, 7-6, on Tuesday night at Union Field at Ripken Stadium.
CJ Richmond and Dominic Pellegrin each swiped three bases, while Kolt Myers and Tyree Reed took two apiece to enable the Spikes (3-4) to surpass their previous record of nine steals in a game, set on August 29, 2024 at home against West Virginia.
State College took the lead in the first when Reed walked, stole his two bases and scored on Andrew Wiggins’s groundout. The Spikes then flashed power in the second with back-to-back ground-rule doubles from Myers and Richmond, followed by a walk to Pellegrin, a double steal, and Jacob Croxford’s sacrifice fly.
Aberdeen (2-5) responded with a pair of runs in the third before Alex Mendoza Jr. and Wiggins each produced RBI singles in the fourth. Pellegrin then knocked in a run with a single in the fifth and, after Kan Taguchi triple and scored on Dalton Bargo’s sacrifice fly for Aberdeen in the fifth, was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded in the seventh.
Spikes pitching then had to hang tough late, but Parker Burgess escaped a bases-loaded, no-outs situation with three straight strikeouts in the eighth and Gavin Killion (1) withstood a two-run, two-hit, one-walk inning in the ninth to lock down the save.
In addition to being a big part of the historic base-stealing effort, Richmond preserved the win with a diving play to snare a Nelson Zapata groundball for the final out.
It was the first meeting between the Spikes and IronBirds, two old New York-Penn League mates, since August 31, 2016, and the Spikes’ first visit to Union Field at Ripken Stadium since July 23, 2015.
Zach Kilby (1-1) earned the win with 2 1/3 innings of one-run relief, allowing two hits while striking out four batters.
IronBirds starter Pierce Quinn (0-2) took the loss after yielding five runs over four innings of work.
Bargo led the Aberdeen offense with three runs batted in.
Wednesday night, the Spikes and IronBirds meet for the middle game of their three-game series at Union Field at Ripken Stadium with a 7:00 p.m. start time. Right-hander Parker Detmers (0-0) will open up on the mound for State College, while right-hander Michael Orbeganzo (0-0) makes the start for Aberdeen.
After a six-game road trip through Sunday, the Spikes will come back to Medlar Field at Lubrano Park for the first six-game homestand of their 20th Anniversary Season from Tuesday, June 16 through Sunday, June 21, hosting the Canadian Junior National Team for a trio of games in the MLB Draft League International Series before a three-game series with the Thunder.
Highlights include the three-night Salute to Canada in honor of our visiting neighbors to the north, with a Salute to Canadian Music on Tuesday, June 16, a Salute to Maple Syrup on Wednesday, June 17, and Runner-Up Celebration Night featuring a Silver Medal Giveaway for the first 500 fans on Thursday, June 18, along with the first Bark in the Park Night of the 2026 home schedule on Friday, June 19 and BuccoMania Night as part of the 20th Anniversary Celebration on Saturday, June 20.
Tickets for all six-games in the homestand from June 16-21, along with every remaining home game on the 20thAnniversary Season schedule, are available by calling 814-271-1711 or by visiting the Spikes Ticket Office from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday, with hours during home game days of 9 a.m. to the end of the game Monday through Friday and 10 a.m. to the end of the game on Saturday and Sunday.
Fans can also buy and download single-game tickets, and view the 2026 promotional schedule, by visiting StateCollegeSpikes.com.
Catch all of the action of the Spikes’ game against the IronBirds on Wednesday via the Spikes Radio Network presented by Penn State Sports Medicine, Official Healthcare Provider of Penn State Athletics with Joe Putnam on the call. The broadcast starts with Spikes Live! presented by Mount Nittany Health on the air from Union Field at Ripken Stadium starting at approximately 6:45 p.m.
Audio streaming of every Spikes game, home and away, is available on StateCollegeSpikes.com.
