Box Score Box ScoreCALIFORNIA, Pa. – Senior
Megan Kelly one-out single in the bottom of the seventh with the bases loaded plated junior
Ali Vavala with the game-winning run, and only run of the contest, in a 1-0 victory for West Chester over Bloomsburg in the first round of the NCAA Division II Atlantic Region 1 Tournament Friday afternoon at Lilley Field.
West Chester (37-19) advances into the winner's bracket of the regional and will play host and 12th-ranked California (Pa.) Saturday morning at 10:30 a.m. Bloomsburg (27-18) will face Winston-Salem State at 1 p.m. on Saturday in an elimination game.
The Golden Rams strung together four consecutive hits following an out to lead off the seventh, finally getting to Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Eastern Division freshman of the year pitcher Taylor Parker.
Senior
Jill Murray started things off with a double off the base of the wall in left-center that came five feet from ending the game in dramatic fashion. Junior
Erin Quense blooped a single into left that Murray was unable to advance on as three Huskies' fielders converged on the ball, but could not come up with the catch.
After, West Chester head coach Diane Lokey pinch ran freshman
Shannon Gray at first for Quense and Vavala at second for Murray, senior
Kim Begley then hit a sinking liner to center that froze Vavala momentarily, before she advanced to third, and West Chester had loaded the bases with one out.
That is when Kelly stepped to the plate and lined a shot over the head of Bloomsburg's shortstop and into left field that forced home Vavala with the winning run. It was Kelly's second walk-off hit in as many weeks, following her seventh-inning home run against Gannon in the PSAC Tournament last Friday.
"I was just trying to stay calm," Kelly explained. "If something big was going to happen, I just wanted to let it happen. . It was good to get a win for
Kim Murl. She pitched awesome today. She is such a hard worker and a competitor."
Lokey struggled with the decision to pinch run for Murray in the seventh because she had already pulled her for a pinch runner in the fifth. However, the gamble paid off, and West Chester came away with the win.
"Could you tell I was taking my time with that decision," Lokey quipped. "Up to that point, she had two of our five hits that were on the board. But, when Begley got her hit, I knew that we would probably get back to the top of the order. I could also tell that (Parker) was starting to get nervous."
To that point in the game, Parker was masterful as both she and Murl were locked in a vintage pitcher's duel. Parker (14-9) had surrendered just three hits over 6.1 innings, and only two Golden Rams ever reahed scoring position. Murl (19-9), meanwhile, was working on 14 straight shutout innings against Bloomsburg, dating back to the regular-season finale. She scattered six hits over seven innings, while walking two and striking out three. Only three Huskies got into scoring position on Murl. One of those, Rachel Fredell, was thrown out at home by Begley in the second inning. That proved to be the play of the game until Kelly's heroics at the plate.
"I was really relaxed," Begley said. "I heard my middle infielders, J.P. (Norris) and (Jess) Schuck telling me where to throw the ball. I felt really fluid with the throw, and (Quense) laid down the tag. It just all worked out."
"Begley has a cannon," Lokey disclosed. "Sometimes it's not under control. But, luckily, we were practicing it yesterday. That's a senior. That's staying composed and in the moment and not getting all hyped up."
With the win, West Chester has now won eight of its last nine games at Lilley Field, dating back to 2011. Lost in the euphoria of the Golden Rams' NCAA Tournament-opening win was Lokey's 300th career victory at West Chester. The 11-year mentor is the school's all-time winningest coach already. West Chester improves to 5-6 all-time in the NCAA Tournament.
