PITTSBURGH (Interstat) — Caden Dulin’s grand slam capped a seven-run second inning and sparked a 12-2 victory for the Pittsburgh Panthers over the Youngstown State Penguins on Wednesday at Petersen Sports Complex.

The Panthers (22-9) sent 13 batters to the plate in the decisive second frame, erasing an early deficit and cruising to their fifth straight win. The Penguins (5-25) managed just six hits and were plagued by defensive miscues and ineffective pitching beyond a strong relief outing from Aidan English.

Youngstown State squandered early opportunities, stranding two runners in scoring position in the top of the second. Pittsburgh promptly seized control in the bottom half against Penguins starter Dorsch. Kai Wagner led off with his fifth home run of the season, a solo shot to deep right field, to cut the deficit to 2-1.

The rally escalated with a single from Trey Fenderson, a walk, and a productive flyout. Anthony Baran tied the game with an infield single, scoring Fenderson. After a stolen base, Dom Derrick’s groundout gave Pittsburgh the lead, and AJ Nessler followed with an RBI single to make it 4-2. Nessler then stole second and scored on a double down the right-field line by Dulin, extending the lead to 5-2 and chasing Dorsch from the game.

Reliever Mikey Rodriques struggled to find the strike zone, issuing two walks to load the bases. Fenderson delivered again, lacing a two-run single through the left side to push the advantage to 7-2.

The game’s most important sequence came in the sixth inning, turning a comfortable lead into a rout. With the Panthers leading 7-0, Youngstown State relievers Almond and Lane Rhodes combined to walk the bases loaded with no outs. Dulin then stepped in and demolished a 1-0 offering from Rhodes over the left-field wall for a grand slam, his sixth homer of the year, blowing the game open at 11-2. Fenderson later added a sacrifice fly to complete the scoring for Pittsburgh.

Dulin finished 2 for 4 with a double, the grand slam and five RBIs, solidifying his status as the game’s top star. Fenderson contributed two hits and three RBIs, while Wagner homered and drove in a run.

The offensive outburst made a winner of Pittsburgh starter Antonio Doganiero (6-0), who was dominant over six scoreless innings. He allowed five hits, struck out seven and did not walk a batter. His counterpart, Dorsch, took the loss after surrendering five runs, four earned, on four hits in 1 2/3 innings.

Youngstown State’s lone bright spots came from reliever Aidan English, who threw three perfect innings of relief with a strikeout, and left fielder Brady Shannon. Shannon broke up the shutout in the seventh inning with a two-run homer to deep center off Panthers reliever Freddy Beruvides, his eighth of the season.

The Penguins’ offense was stifled otherwise, hitting into three double plays and striking out 11 times. The loss extends a difficult season for Youngstown State, which has now dropped 10 of its last 11 games.

Pittsburgh, which defeated Youngstown State 8-7 in a closer contest on March 25, has won 10 of its last 12 and will host California in a three-game series starting Friday. The Penguins return home to open a Horizon League series against Wright State on Friday.

The final score exceeded the projection of Interstat’s game simulator, which had forecast a 7-2 Panthers victory. Pittsburgh’s ELO probability to win was 88.90 percent.