May 5
3 PM -- Game 11
Lock Haven 5, Kutztown 2
1 PM -- Game 10
Lock Haven 7, Kutztown 5 (15 inn.)
11 AM -- Game 9
Lock Haven 3, Bloomsburg 1
May 4
4:30 -- Game 8
Bloomsburg 3, California 0
2:30 -- Game 7
Kutztown 3, Lock Haven 0
Noon -- Game 6
Bloomsburg 3, E. Stroudsburg 2
10 AM -- Game 5
California 3, Edinboro 1 |
May 3
4:30 -- Game 4
Kutztown 6, E. Stroudsburg 1
2:30 PM -- Game 3
Lock Haven 1, Bloomsburg 0 (9 inn.)
Noon - Game 2
E. Stroudsburg 1, Edinboro 0 (8 inn.)
10 AM - Game 1
Bloomsburg 5, California 0
|
KUTZTOWN, Pa. - Lock Haven University defeated Kutztown 5-2 to win its second straight PSAC Softball Championship behind workhorse pitcher and tournament MVP Kristin Erb.
Erb, who pitched 22 innings over two games earlier in the day, struck out five in the complete-game four-hitter. She did not allow a run until the seventh inning - her 29th and final inning of the day. She was also 1-for-4 at the plate, driving in two runs. Julia Popovich was 2-for-4 with an RBI and Erica Eisenbise and Krystin Montoro were 2-for-3 with an RBI each.
LHU broke a scoreless tie in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI single by Eisenbise. Erb knocked in two on a single in the fifth. LHU stretched its lead to 5-0 on RBI singles by Montoro and Popovich in the sixth.
KU scored its runs in the seventh on a two-run home run by Krista Cameron, her 16th of the season.
Lock Haven improves to 45-3. It is LHU's second-straight PSAC championship, and the third in school history (1982).
Rachel Weidensaul (14-7) took the loss. She struck out three over six innings.
Kutztown falls to 42-16. The Golden Bears finish second in the PSAC Championship for the fourth time, the first since 1996. KU has never won the conference tournament.
KU will serve as host of the NCAA Division II Mid-Atlantic Regional, May 10-14. Lock Haven claims the PSAC's automatic berth into the NCAA Regional tournament.
Championship Game 1:
Kristin Erb hit a two-run home run in the bottom of the 15th inning to give Lock Haven the 7-5 win over Kutztown and force a deciding championship game.
The game winning homer capped an incredible game between the two teams, as Lock Haven needed the win to force a decisive game 11. The teams were scoreless through seven extra innings, what is normally a regulation game, before Erb sent the two-out pitch from Kaitlin Arbogast over the left field fence.
Kutztown led 5-2 heading into the bottom of the seventh inning, and Arbogast got the first two outs before Julia Popovich singled. Erb followed with a single, and a walk by Devin Glezen loaded the bases.
Amanda Roosa blooped a single to left field, where Maria Schiavo dove and almost made the catch, but couldn't come up with it. Roosa and pinch runner Brittany Pavelsky scored. The Lady Eagles tied it on a single through the left side by Ilia Lopez.
Kutztown's best chance to score in extra innings came in the 11th. Kathy Gregg singled to start the inning and Willmer beat out an infield single. After a sacrifice, Erb got the next two batters to ground out. KU had just one base runner after that.
Erb, who was 4-for-7 at the plate, pitched 15 innings, allowing 15 hits and a career-high five earned runs. She struck out eight. Her opponent, Arbogast, went 14.2 innings, allowing 17 hits and seven runs. She struck out 11. Arbogast's streak of 21 straight decisions without a loss was snapped. She falls to 27-8.
Roosa was 3-for-7 with four RBI.
Steph Denlinger was 3-for-7 with an RBI, her PSAC single-season record 69th of the season. Kathy Gregg was 4-for-6.