Box Score
CALIFORNIA, Pa. – Following more than a 19-hour rain delay, West Chester University and Lock Haven University resumed their halted first-round NCAA Division II Softball Tournament contest under overcast skies and mild temperatures.
West Chester (35-19) downed Lock Haven (28-15), 10-1 in six innings, and advances to take on regional host Cal. Lock Haven will play Chowan later Saturday afternoon. West Chester established a new single-season record for wins while Lock Haven dropped its seventh straight contest.
Kim Murl singled home J.P. Norris in the top of the sixth, and Jill Murray followed with a ground out that plated pinch-runner Kim Begley, giving the Rams a 9-1 lead. West Chester tacked on another run to complete a three-run sixth.
Murl finished 3-for-3 with four RBI and three runs scored. Erin Quense was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBI while Megan Kelly was 2-for-3 with a two-run double. West Chester scored 10 runs on 15 hits and made one error. Lock Haven one run on six hits, and they committed two errors.
Utterback (21-9) went the distance, allowing one run on six hits. She struck out seven and did not walk a batter. Brianna Jennings (20-8) suffered the loss for the Lady Eagles.
The first rain delay yesterday originally postponed action in the third inning. That stoppage lasted exactly 30 minutes. The two teams took the field and tried to continue. However, another cell of storms hit western PA at 3:16 p.m., and officials had to stop the game once again. About 10 minutes after 6 p.m., officials came to the conclusion that continuation of the tournament game would not be possible until Saturday morning.
West Chester's Kim Murl hit a three-run home run to left field in the top of the first, and Megan Kelly hit a bases-loaded two-run double in the third to highlight the Golden Rams' first four innings in which they built a 7-1 lead, before play was halted. Official game time was 22 hours, 6 minutes.
GAME NOTES: West Chester’s 35 wins is a new school record, surpassing the 34 wins in 2011 … West Chester improves to 2-4 all-time in the NCAA Tournament … West Chester won its first NCAA Tournament contest for the first time in three trips … Murl’s four RBI tied her season best set twice before … Murl’s three hits tied Tara Colantuno for most hits in an NCAA Tournament game while her three runs scored and four RBI are the most by a Golden Rams player in an NCAA Tournament game … West Chester’s 10 runs and 15 hits are the most in an NCAA Tournament game as well … the win also marked the first time WCU eight-run ruled an opponent in the NCAA Tournament.
