SHIPPENSBURG, Pa.- Riding a three-game winning streak, the 25th-ranked West Chester University softball team (19-8, 5-5) was back in action on Saturday at Shippensburg (16-10, 5-5). West Chester battled throughout the afternoon but saw its winning streak halted by the host Raiders as Shippensburg earned a 4-0 victory in game one before winning game two by a 5-4 final in eight innings.
Game One: Shippensburg 4 #25 WCU 0
WP: Alicia Ball (6-5)
LP: Alyssa Tooley (3-1)
Alicia Ball was dominant in the circle for Shippensburg, allowing just one hit and three walks while striking out 10 for her sixth win of the young season.
Shippensburg jumped out to an early lead in the opening game, scoring three runs in the second inning, including a solo home run to left and a two-RBI double to center to claim an early 3-0 lead.
The Raiders added another run in the fifth with a first-pitch solo home run, taking a commanding 4-0 lead over the Golden Rams.
Alyssa Tooley (Horsham, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) suffered her first loss in the circle, allowing three runs on five hits and a walk, while striking out two in 1.2 innings of work.
Danielle Ciliberto (Ambler, Pa./Wissahickon) entered the game in relief and finished the contest, pitching the final 4.1 innings, allowing one run on five hits, while striking out two.
Game Two: Shippensburg 5 #25 WCU 4
WP: Madalyn Dyer (5-0)
LP: Ciliberto (7-4)
Shippensburg took an early lead in the nightcap with a three-run fourth inning, thanks to an RBI triple followed by a two-run home run. The team then regained a four-run lead in the fifth with another solo home run.
West Chester roared back in the sixth as
Paige Marabell (Tunkhannock, Pa./Tunkhannock) drove in the first runs of the day for West Chester with a two-RBI double to left center before Ciliberto plated
Casey Best (Wilmington, Del./Concord) with a sac fly to center to make the score 4-3.
Madison Peck (Royersford, Pa./Spring Ford) completed the comeback with an RBI single to left, which scored
Kayla Fitzpatrick (Carle Place, N.Y./Sacred Heart Academy), who had entered as pinch-runner for Marabell.
Shippensburg threatened to retake the lead in the home sixth as the Raiders loaded the bases with one out, but Ciliberto entered in relief and escaped the jam with a double-play ball, keeping the score locked at 4-4 heading into the seventh.
In the seventh, both teams went down 1-2-3 before West Chester went down 1, 2, 3 in the top of the eighth to start extra innings.
In the bottom of the eighth, Shippensburg got the winning run it was looking for with a one-out double to left, walking off with a 5-4 victory over the resurgent Golden Rams.
Makenzie Edwards (Atco, N.J./Hammonton) earned the start and pitched the first 5.1, allowing four runs on five hits and five walks while striking out one. Cilberto entered in relief and suffered the loss, allowing one unearned run on two hits in the setback.
For Shippensburg, Dani Hayward got the start and pitched the first five innings, allowing two runs on five hits and a walk while striking out a pair. Madalyn Dyer earned the win with three scoreless innings in relief, allowing just one hit while striking out a pair.
Up Next
West Chester will be back in action on Tuesday at home against East Stroudsburg, beginning at 2 p.m.
