The Buckeyes remained home and took a break from Big Ten play as they faced the University of Pittsburgh Wednesday night for the first-ever Bark at the Park, where fans could bring their furry companions to Buckeye Field.

The game started late after a weather delay featuring rain, hail and lightning, preventing the teams from taking the field until an hour and a half past the original start time. The Buckeyes (24-17, 5-9 Big Ten) brought the thunder, though, as they won their fourth game in a row, beating the Panthers (13-28, 4-14 ACC) 3-2.

Ohio State struck first, scoring three in the bottom of the second. Senior third baseman McKenzie Bump put the game’s first point on the board after sophomore first baseman Hannah Church walked with bases loaded to send her home.

Senior second baseman Kaitlyn Farley was walked after Church to bring in another run for the Buckeyes before graduate left fielder Tegan Cortelletti hit her RBI to bring in the last Buckeye run of the game.

“I wasn’t trying to do too much with the ball. I mean, bases are loaded, so that’s obviously a high-pressure situation, but really just sticking to my plan that I had before, I went out there and then knowing that it was what got us to win the game is a really special feeling,” Cortelletti said.

Pittsburgh doubled twice in the top of the fourth, each time earning an RBI. The first double came from junior third baseman Desirae Martinez and the second from junior shortstop Ana Hernandez.

The Buckeyes pulled out all the stops on defense to keep their 3-2 lead throughout the rest of the game and keep their win streak alive.

“I just care about winning, and I know the whole team cares about winning,” Bump said. “If we have to play lockdown D[efense] one game and hit home runs every at bat the next game, then that’s what we’re going to do. Right now, we’re just trying to make sure that whatever we have to do, we’re fighting for it, and our big thing right now is working together.”

Next on the Buckeyes’ schedule is a 6 p.m., conference matchup against the Maryland Terrapins, at home, on Friday.

On Saturday, April 27th, 2024, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.; the Pittsburg Police Department will be a hosting site location for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s National Prescription Drug Take Back Day.

The DEA with its other law enforcement partners will collect tablets, capsules, patches, and other solid forms of prescription drugs.

For more than a decade, the event has helped Americans easily rid their homes of unneeded medications those that are old, unwanted, or expired that too often becomes a gateway to prescription drug addiction. This annual Take Back Day has removed more than 8,300 tons of medication from circulation since this initiation began.

Anyone wishing to dispose of unwanted prescription medication is encouraged to bring them to the Pittsburg Police Department, located at 201 N. Pine St., Pittsburg, Kansas, on Saturday.

This service is free of charge and individuals can remain anonymous. For more information about this service, or other hosting site locations, please visit the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s website at DEATakeBack.com.

Welcome to Penguins Perspectives, a weekly column by KDKA-TV Digital Producer Patrick Damp. Each Friday, Patrick will talk about the week that was, the week to come, what to watch for, and more.

PITTSBURGH (KDKA) – It is rare, but you remember it all too well: the Pittsburgh Penguins are not in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. 

When the season began, we were ready for combat. The short-lived but horribly disappointing Hextall era was behind us and Kyle Dubas took over the hockey operations department. 

He immediately laid the groundwork and like clockwork, a ton of bad contracts were off the books: Jeff Petry, Jan Rutta, and Mikael Granlund amongst others were turned into the reigning Norris Trophy winner Erik Karlsson. 

There were new additions such as Noel Acciari, Lars Eller, Ryan Graves, and Matt Nieto and we were ready for it. A season that would wipe away the stench of losing the longest postseason streak in North American sports. 

The hope turned out to be treacherous and we once again find ourselves in the same position we were just one short year ago – a point outside of the Stanley Cup Playoffs and plenty more questions than answers. 

Maybe, just maybe, there were clues that we didn’t see. 

More than anything, the biggest questions remains: what do you do now and where do you go from here? 

It’s easy to give into the temptation to say a rebuild is due. Two years of missing the postseason certainly doesn’t make things seem bright and optimistic. 

We’ve seen this film before and we didn’t like the ending. 

And yet…Crosby showed he still has greatness in him. Evgeni Malkin, after finally getting a competent winger in Michael Bunting, raised his game. Kris Letang accepted a lesser role with Karlsson on the roster and battled through what certainly had to be an injury to end the season. 

There’s also the thought that we aren’t quite out of the woods when it comes to the previous management. Jeff Carter remained but in a lesser role. Rickard Rakell was still here and did not live up to the contract he was signed to. 

We learned to live with the pain. 

All of this is to say, when it comes to this era of the Penguins, the end game is this offseason. 

There’s one more kick at the can left, but it can’t be strictly on the backs of the core, but so it goes. 

For Kyle Dubas, this summer has to be what he has already said: getting younger, faster, and deeper. It’s no coincidence over the last month that this team played some of its best hockey when younger legs such as Bunting, St. Ivany, Puustinen, O’Connor, and others were given bigger roles. 

It’s delicate, but it can be done. 

There’s no real definitive way to wrap this one up, it’s too soon and we don’t know what will come this offseason, but it’s sure to be another hugely consequential one. 

Standing pat is not an option, and outside of the big names, the team requires a facelift. 

Otherwise, we’ll be in for another cruel summer this time next year.