WINTER HAVEN, Fl.- Looking to build off its momentum following a sweep of Jefferson last Sunday, the West Chester softball team (8-4) returned to action on Friday afternoon in Florida vs Southern New Hampshire. West Chester swept both games vs Southern New Hampshire (4-10), taking game one by a 5-2 final before capturing the nightcap by a 7-2 final in eight innings.
Game One: WCU 5 SNHU 2
West Chester wasted little time in flexing its offensive muscle in the first game of the day, scoring four runs in the second inning, courtesy of a two-RBI triple from
Hailey Melvin (Tabernacle, N.J./Seneca) before
Asia Barnard (Levittown, Pa./Neshaminy) singled her home to give West Chester a 3- 0 lead. Later in the frame, Barnard found her way around, scoring on an RBI single from
Kaitlyn Rittenbaugh (Donaldson, Pa./Pine Grove) to give West Chester a commanding 4-0 lead entering the third inning.
With a comfortable lead in hand, reigning PSAC East Pitcher of the Week
Mary Picozzi (Collegeville, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) went to work, keeping SNHU off the scoreboard until the fifth inning when the Penmen cut the deficit in half, thanks to a two-run home run to trail 4-2 heading into the bottom of the fifth.
While the Golden Ram bats remained quiet in the bottom of the fifth, West Chester got one of the runs back in the sixth when
Madison Melvin (Tabernacle, N.J./Seneca) singled back to the pitcher, scoring
Emily Kim (Bel Air, Md./C. Milton Wright) and giving West Chester its fifth and final run of the contest in the 5-2 victory.
Picozzi was sharp in the circle throughout the day, scattering just six hits and two runs (one earned) over the course of her seven innings of work with three strikeouts to earn the victory.
For SNHU, Jessica Johnston took the ball and the loss, going just 1.1, surrendering three runs on two hits with two walks before exiting in favor of Gwyn Hammond. Hammond only faired slightly better in relief, tossing the final 5.2, giving up two runs on five hits with one walk and one strikeout in the setback.
Game Two: WCU 7 SNHU 2 (8 innings)
In the second game of the afternoon, West Chester once again wasted little time in getting out to an early lead, scoring the first run of the contest in the top of the first via a sac fly off the bat of
Grace Aguilar (Frederica, Del./Lake Forest) to give West Chester an early 1-0 lead.
This early lead held up until the third inning when Southern New Hampshire scraped across a run of its own via a sac fly to right field, evening the score at 1-1. Over the next four innings, West Chester and SNHU would each threaten, however, each pitching staff proved to be up to the task as the game remained locked at 1-1 entering the late innings.
With neither side able to push across the winning run in the seventh, a phrase that has become very familiar to Golden Ram softball fans was uttered once again as the contest required extra innings to decide a victor.
In the top of the eighth, West Chester exploded offensively, scoring six runs on five hits, including a string of RBI singles as
Olivia Mock (Clifton, Va./Paul V), Trisha Kopinetz (Pine Grove, Pa./Pine Grove), and
Abigail Quinn (Cheltenham, Pa./William Penn Charter) all registered RBI singles while Aguilar and Kopinetz both delivered RBIs of their own via Sacrifice Fly's to give West Chester a commanding 7-1 lead heading into the home half of the eighth.
In the eighth, SNHU answered back and got one of the runs back, but the deficit was far too much to overcome as West Chester held on for the 7-2 victory and sweep of SNHU to begin its Spring Break in Florida.
Anna Torrens (Holmes, Pa./Ridley) got the start and went 5.0 surrendering just one run on five hits before exiting in favor of
Makenzie Edwards (Atco, N.J./Hammonton), who pitched a masterful final three innings, surrendering just one walk and one unearned run while striking out a pair to improve to 2-1 on the season.
For SNHU, Chloe Griffin got the start and went the distance in the circle, surrendering eight hits and seven runs (two earned) while walking two and striking out two in the loss.
Up Next
On Saturday afternoon, West Chester will travel down the road to face off against local school-Rollins College, with that doubleheader set to begin at 4 p.m.
