STROUDSBURG, Pa.- Casey Best (Wilmington, Del./Concord) hit a pair of two-run home runs to tie the game at 4-4 and
Mairead Hopkins (West Chester, Pa./Rustin) walked it off for the fifth-seeded West Chester University softball team (33-18) as the Golden Rams stormed back for a 5-4 victory over an upset-minded Bowie State (27-20) squad on Saturday morning in a resumption of a game that began late on Friday night.
"I'm so proud of this team," opened head coach
Diane Lokey after the comeback victory. "It's been a grueling few days with the weather, but I think the sun was good for their soul in a way. The fight we showed was great to see, and we looked like a whole different team from what I was seeing last night."
Taylor Dawkins opened the scoring for Bowie State with an RBI single in the first and drove in two more in the third to give the Bulldogs the early advantage heading into Saturday morning.
Senior Lindsey George was sharp for Bowie State early on Friday evening, holding West Chester hitless and allowing just two walks while striking out two in three innings of work.
Danielle Ciliberto (Ambler, Pa./Wissahickon) got the start for West Chester and allowed three runs on four hits while striking out five through her first three innings of work.
Play resumed on Saturday morning in the fourth inning,, and the Bulldogs quickly added a run to their lead with an RBI double to left-center, stretching the lead to 4-0.
In the fourth inning, West Chester cut the deficit in half as
Casey Best (Wilmington, Del./Concord) blasted a two-run home run before duplicating this effort with another two-run shot in the fifth inning to tie the game at 4-4.
Asked about her two-home run day, Best said, "Going into this, I knew this could be my last game ever, and I didn't want it to be. It's been a really hard week with the weather the last few days, so the team has faced a lot of adversity and knew we needed to step it up, which is exactly what we did. Being fifth in the lineup is nice because it allows me to see the pitcher and talk to the people in front of me. Paige (Marabell) told me she was throwing inside, so I backed off the plate a little, and when she came inside, I was able to sit on it."
In the top of the sixth, Bowie State got runners on first and second with just one out before Ciliberto picked up back-to-back swinging strikeouts to keep the score locked at 4-4 heading into the home half of the sixth.
The score remained tied heading into the home half of the seventh before
Mairead Hopkins (West Chester, Pa./Rustin) completed the comeback with one swing, driving the first pitch of the home half of the seventh out for a walk-off home run as the Golden Rams completed a four-run comeback to advance to a meeting with East Stroudsburg at 1 p.m. on Saturday afternoon.
"I knew the pitcher was throwing first pitch strikes, so I knew I had to attack early, and that's exactly what I did," said Hopkins when asked about her walk-off. "We knew we had to bring the energy and fight for what we wanted. I thought we did a great job of staying positive and getting our energy up, and it made a big difference," said Hopkins.
"Casey bringing us back was pure senior leadership," said Lokey. "She had a great day today and took advantage of two big situations to really carry the team on her shoulders and help us keep going."
Ciliberto (18-7) earned the win in the circle, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits while striking out 10 in the comeback victory.
"' Danielle settled in really well," acknowledged Lokey. "She had to make some adjustments, and she did a nice job of that, and we played some great defense behind her."
George pitched the first five innings, allowing four runs on four hits and three walks while striking out two. Makayla Drakeford entered in relief and pitched a scoreless sixth before allowing the winning run on the first pitch of the seventh inning.
Up Next
West Chester will be back in action at 1 p.m. vs East Stroudsburg in another elimination game.
