Game 1 Box Score
Game 2 Box Score
WEST CHESTER, Pa. – Freshman Missy Schwartz hit a walk-off three-run home run in the bottom of the eighth inning of game two as host West Chester University completed a doubleheader sweep over East Stroudsburg in a pivotal PSAC East softball twinbill at South Campus Complex Wednesday afternoon.
The Golden Rams won game one, 5-1, before taking the nightcap in dramatic fashion, 7-4, in eight innings.
West Chester (28-10, 11-3 PSAC East) remains in a tie for first place in the Eastern Division with Kutztown, who also swept Shippensburg Wednesday. The Golden Rams hold the tie-breaker over Kutztown, should the two end the regular-season in a tie, as a result of beating East Stroudsburg (17-24, 5-7) all four times this spring while the Bears split a doubleheader with the Warriors earlier in the year.
West Chester, who has already clinched its first PSAC postseason tournament bid, can clinch its first division title with a pair of wins at Millersville on Saturday.
Sam Ingersoll and Megan Harbaugh each walked to lead off the bottom of the eighth inning in game two with the score tied at 4-4. Schwartz then slammed an offering from Warriors’ pitcher Caitlin Monahan (7-11) over the left field fence for her second home run of the season and first career walk-off shot.
Schwartz, who started the game inside the circle, went 2-for-5 at the plate with four RBI. She tossed three innings in the start, before being relieved by Brooke Muth, giving up three earned runs on four hits. She walked three and struck out two.
Harbaugh went 3-for-4 in the nightcap, including her fifth home run of the season, with two RBI. Her solo shot in the third inning tied things at 2-apiece while her RBI single up the middle in the sixth knotted the score at 4-all.
Evelyn Anderson went 4-for-5 in the second game as West Chester’s two, three, four and five hitters in the lineup combined to go 10-for-17 with all seven RBI.
Muth (14-6) went the final five innings in game two, scattering three hits, walking one and striking out three. She did not allow a run in relief.
Ingersoll broke the school record for home runs in a single season with her 12th of the year during a four-run fifth inning in game one. Her two-run shot over the left-center field fence gave West Chester a 5-0 lead. Ingersoll finished the day 3-for-5 to up her batting average to .529 on the year. She has collected 64 hits on the season – one shy of teammate Erin MacNamee’s single-season school record set two years ago.
Muth went the distance in the circle in game one, yielding one run on seven hits, walking two and striking out three. Jackie Battaglino (10-13) pitched a complete game for East Stroudsburg in the loss. She gave up four earned runs on eight hits. She walked one and struck out four.
West Chester travels to Lock Haven on Thursday for a PSAC crossover doubleheader against the Bald Eagles. On Saturday, the Golden Rams travel to Millersville for its date with history.
