West Chester at Lock Haven
Game Details: Saturday, March 22 I 1/3 P.M.
Location: Lawrence Field (Lock Haven, Pa.)
Coverage Links: Live Stats I Video
Series: 25-16 (since March 2005)
WCU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
LHU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
West Chester at Jefferson
Game Details: Sunday, March 23 I 1/3 P.M.
Location: Jefferson Softball Field (Philadelphia, Pa.)
Coverage Links: Live Stats I Watch
Series: 16-3
TJU Links: NEWS I ROSTER I SCHEDULE I STATS
Last Time Out
West Chester opened PSAC East play with a split at Millersville on Tuesday afternoon, playing 10 innings in both games to decide a victor. In both games, West Chester used a seventh-inning rally to force extra innings, scoring four runs on four hits, including a two-RBI single by Mairead Hopkins (West Chester, Pa./Rustin) and a two-RBI double by Lauryn Kane (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh) before Kane gave West Chester the lead for good with a two-run home run in the top of the 10th. Makenzie Edwards (Atco, N.J./Hammonton) earned the win in relief in this game, tossing the final 6.2, allowing just two runs (one earned) on four hits and two walks while striking out eight to improve to 5-1 on the season.
In the nightcap, Paige Marabell (Tunkhannock, Pa./Tunkhannock) sent the game to extra innings with a two-out double to right, which scored Julia Miller (Moorestown, N.J./Moorestown) before Millersville won with a 10th-inning walk-off sacrifice fly. Edwards suffered a tough-luck loss in relief in this game, allowing one unearned run on two hits and a walk while striking out six in 5.1 innings of work.
Flock Talk
Marabell and Hopkins are first and second on the team in batting average at .397 and .385, with 10 home runs (six and four) between the two of them. Marabell leads the team in RBI with 24, with six doubles, one triple, and six home runs to her name while also scoring eight runs. Hopkins is first on the team in runs, scoring 19 after registering 25 hits, including seven doubles and four home runs. Miller has impressed early in her collegiate career, batting .364 (20-for-55) with three extra-base hits (two doubles, one triple) with nine RBI and 12 runs scored while also going 7-for-9 on stolen base attempts.
In the circle, Danielle Ciliberto (Ambler, Pa./Wissahickon) is 6-2 with a 2.35 ERA, a .96 WHIP, and a .219 opponent batting average with 40 strikeouts in 57.1 innings of work. The junior has yielded just six walks and has pitched three complete games, including one complete-game shutout, while also registering a save. Edwards is 5-2 on the mound with a 2.54 ERA, a 1.04 WHIP, and a .213 opponent batting average, adding two saves in 46.0 innings of work. Edwards has struck out 38 and walked just 11 early this season. Alyssa Tooley (Horsham, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) has impressed in limited appearances early in her career, going 2-0 with a 1.07 WHIP and a .207 opponent batting average in 15 innings of work while striking out eight against just four walks.
Late-Inning Heroics
West Chester played 20 innings on its first day of PSAC East play after tying both games in the top of the seventh with two out hits in both ends of the doubleheader. West Chester is outscoring its opponents 39-8 in the final two innings and 55-16 in the final three innings.
The League Slate
Saturday will be the second league doubleheader of the year for West Chester as the Golden Rams visit the Bald Eagles, who opened PSAC East play with a split at Mansfield on Wednesday and will play their East home opener against Millersville on Friday. West Chester will step out of league play on Sunday for a doubleheader at Jefferson before opening league play at home against Kutztown on Tuesday beginning at 1 p.m.
Power Surge
West Chester is outscoring its opponents 108-56 this season, including a 46-12 advantage during its Spring Break trip to Florida last week.
Road Warriors
12 of the Golden Rams' 13 wins have come away from home this season. West Chester is 5-2 in true road games, including a split at then top-10 foe Wilmington to open the year, and 7-1 in neutral site games after its Florida trip.
KNOCKING ON THE DOOR
With wins in eight of its last 10, including a seven-game winning streak in Florida, the West Chester University softball team was listed among teams receiving votes in the NFCA poll this week. The Golden Rams were the top-vote getter among those teams vying for a spot in the 2025 top 25 with nine votes.
Series History
Against Lock Haven, West Chester holds a 25-16 lead in the series dating back to March 2005. West Chester has won four of the last five against the Bald Eagles and eight of the last 10. The Golden Rams have picked up at least a split against the Bald Eagles in every doubleheader since a sweep at LHU in April 2014.
Against Jefferson, West Chester holds a commanding 16-3 lead since 2011, with wins in each of the last eight games and nine of the last 10.
Scouting Lock Haven (7-5, 1-1)
Lock Haven split its PSAC East opener at Mansfield on Wednesday afternoon, dropping the opener by a 4-1 final before bouncing back with a 9-5 win in the nightcap. The Bald Eagles will return to East play this afternoon against Millersville at 1 p.m. before hosting West Chester in a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon.
In the win over Mansfield, Keri Wesneski (2-0) got the win in relief, pitching four strong innings in relief of Abby Robertson and allowing just two runs on seven hits while walking one and striking out another. Wesneski started the scoring with a three-run triple to right in the second before Maria Fratangelo doubled home a run in the third and tripled home three in the sixth to help the Bald Eagles earn the 9-5 victory. Madison Melius added a solo home run in the fourth, while Riley Best chipped in an RBI single in the fifth to help lead the charge.
Blaire Balestrini leads Lock Haven offensively, batting .400 (16-for-40) on the year with seven RBI and eight runs scored, while Madison Hardy (.308; 12-for-39) leads the team in runs with 10 and is second in RBI with eight thanks to a team-best five home runs on the year. In the circle, Keiva Middleton, Talia Ross, and Wesneski all have two wins to their name on the season, entering Friday at 2-1, 2-2, and 2-0, respectively. Middleton has a staff-best 1.40 ERA, and opponents bat .289 against her in her 20 innings of work. Ross has thrown the most innings of any LHU pitcher, tossing 28.2 with two complete games, one shutout, and a save while posting a 2.93 ERA and a .266 batting average against.
Scouting Jefferson (4-14)
Riding a three-game winning streak after a split vs. Felician and a sweep of Chestnut Hill, Jefferson (4-14) heads into Sunday looking to run its winning streak to five and halt an eight-game losing streak against the Golden Rams as the Purple and Gold make the trip to the City of Brotherly Love.
Remy Smith and Lily Hutt are first and second on the team in batting average, batting .250 (15-for-60) and .242 (8-for-33) on the year. With four doubles and a triple, Smith also leads the team in runs with eight and RBI with seven, while Bridget Shields (.224; 11-for-49) has driven in seven runs of her own through 17 games.
In the circle, Delaney Alix has been a tough-luck loser many times this season, entering play at 2-5 on the year with a 0.76 ERA, a .97 WHIP, and an opponent batting average of just .189 with 51 strikeouts in 46.1 innings of work. Alix has thrown five complete games this year, along with one shutout. Hutt is 2-3 on the year with a 4.21 ERA, 1.85 WHIP, and an opponent batting average of .299 with 12 strikeouts and 22 walks in 34 innings of work.
