STROUDSBURG, Pa. – The West Chester University softball team (20-16, 10-8) went on the road on Tuesday afternoon and picked up an important sweep over East Stroudsburg (23-15, 11-9) at Creekview Park. West Chester picked up its first regular-season sweep of ESU since April 2018 as the Golden Rams captured game one by a 4-3 final before winning the nightcap by an 8-2 final
Game One: WCU 4 ESU 3
WP: Maci Strechay (3-7)
LP: Sarah Davenport (14-7)
S: Danielle Ciliberto (3)
Mairead Hopkins (West Chester, Pa./Rustin) led off the game with a single and found her way home on a chopper in front of the plate off the bat of
Tess Kearney (Hatboro, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) after advancing to third on an East Stroudsburg error earlier in the inning, which gave West Chester an early 1-0 lead. A
Holly Muni (Hamilton, N.J./Allentown) walk helped West Chester load the bases with one out before a sac fly from
Ceara O'Neal (Hamilton, N.J./Steinert) plated
Julia Miller (Moorestown, N.J./Moorestown) and gave West Chester a 2-0 lead heading into the home half of the first.
Kinsley Proepper erased the deficit quickly in the home half of the first with a two-RBI double to left center, which scored a pair of early runners and tied the game at 2-2 before a Megan Chroniger ground out to second scored Proepper and gave the Warriors a narrow 3-2 lead with two outs in the bottom of the first.
In the fifth, Hopkins tied the game at 3-3 with a double in the gap before scoring the go-ahead run when she swiped third and came around to score on an errant throw, which went down the left field line to give West Chester a 4-3 lead heading into the home half of the fifth.
Maci Strechay (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) worked around a one-out single in the fifth and got the first out of the sixth before issuing a four-pitch walk to GiGi DeMito, which led to
Danielle Ciliberto (Ambler, Pa./Wissahickon) entering in relief. Ciliberto got the second out of the inning via a strikeout swinging before finishing the frame with a groundout to third to keep a 4-3 lead heading into the seventh.
Strechay exited in line for and earned the win on Tuesday afternoon, allowing three runs on seven hits and two walks, while striking out one in 5.1 strong innings as she improved to 3-7 in her rookie season. Ciliberto earned her third save of the season in relief, getting the final five outs of the game on just nine pitches, including a pair of strikeouts to finish off the 4-3 victory.
Sarah Davenport, who was named PSAC East and National Fastpitch Coaches Association (NFCA) Pitcher of the Week after her third career perfect game last weekend against Shepherd, allowed four runs (three earned)on three hits and a walk, while striking out six as she fell to 14-7 on the year.
The Golden Rams game one triumph is the team's first road win at Creekview Park since March 2023 and is the team's first win over the Warriors since the 2024 PSAC Tournament in Quakertown.
Game Two: WCU 8 ESU 2
WP: Alyssa Tooley (7-2)
LP: Tessa Guennette (8-4)
In the nightcap, Hopkins started the inning off with a single once again before scoring with two outs in the inning on an RBI single by Kearney. East Stroudsburg escaped the inning without any further damage and promptly loaded the bases in the home half of the first.
With the bases loaded, Proepper worked a four-pitch walk to tie the game at 1-1.
Jaelyn Silfies (Bangor, Pa./Bangor) got an important first out via a strikeout swinging of Megan Chroniger. Silfies got the second out via a ground ball off the end of Katie Master's bat, which was enough to score Maddin Grow, giving the Warriors an early 2-1 lead before Silfies got Maddy Pritchard to fly out to right to escape the bases-loaded jam with minimal damage.
West Chester did not trail for long as O'Neal started the second with a walk and
Sabrie Purnell (New Castle, Del./William Penn) followed with a single down the left field line, which after a wild pitch gave West Chester runners on second and third with no outs.
Kayla Fitzpatrick (Carle Place, N.Y./Sacred Heart Academy) tied the game with a sac fly before
Emma Zoldi (Newtown, Pa./Council Rock North) restored the lead with an RBI single to give West Chester a 3-2 lead heading into the home half of the second.
West Chester scored four runs on four hits in the third via RBI singles by Muni and Fitzpatrick along with a fielder's choice from O'Neal, which was enough to score the speedy Kearney ahead of the throw to the plate to chase East Stroudsburg starter, Tessa Guenette, from the game after 2.2 innings and take a 7-2 lead into the home half of the third.
Guenette struggled mightily in the nightcap, allowing seven runs on eight hits and a walk in just 2.2 innings of work. Faith Troyer entered in relief and escaped the third inning with just two pitches as she got Zoldi to fly out to left to keep the deficit where it was.
West Chester added a run in the fifth on a sac fly from Fitzpatrick for her fourth RBI of the afternoon to take an 8-2 lead into the home fifth.
Alyssa Tooley (Horsham, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham) entered in relief and earned her seventh win of the season, allowing just two hits, while striking out a pair in 2.1 innings of work, while Tessa Guenette suffered the loss, allowing seven runs on eight hits and a walk.
Silfies pitched the first two innings in the victory, allowing two runs on three hits and three walks, while striking out one. Ciliberto finished the game in the circle, allowing one hit and striking out one in 2.2 innings of work.
Up Next
West Chester will be back in action on Friday afternoon at home against Mansfield, beginning at 1 p.m., before visiting Shippensburg for a doubleheader on Saturday afternoon.
