THE STORY
• The Bloomsburg University softball team hits the road for a pair of Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Central doubleheaders at Pitt-Johnstown and Indiana University of Pennsylvania this weekend. The Huskies are 14-11 overall (3-1 in the PSAC Central) and have won five straight games and 10 of their last 11, while both the Mountain Cats and Crimson Hawks enter the weekend at 2-2 in the division. Bloomsburg will travel to Indiana, Pennsylvania, on Saturday for a twinbill with IUP, before heading to Johnstown for a battle with Pitt-Johnstown on Sunday.
SCHEDULE CHANGE
• Due to inclement weather in the forecast, the Huskies doubleheader at Pitt-Johnstown, originally scheduled for this Friday, April 5, has been postponed. The games will be made up on Sunday, April 7, with first pitch of game one scheduled for 1:00 p.m. from the V.E. Erickson Complex. IUP was slated to travel to Lock Haven Friday before returning home for Saturday's games with Bloomsburg, but that doubleheader has also been postponed to Sunday.
THE HISTORY: BLOOMSBURG vs. PITT-JOHNSTOWN & IUP
• The Huskies are 7-1 all-time against Pitt-Johnstown, including a 3-1 advantage over the Mountain Cats season ago. Bloomsburg split a pair of road games at Johnstown in late March, but swept a doubleheader at home in April.
Marissa Shelhamer (Bloomsburg, Pa./Central Columbia) had a pair of RBI in a 5-1 victory to cap the series. The Huskies have dominated the all-time series with IUP historically, holding a 61-12 advantage, but the two teams split a four-game series in 2018. Bloomsburg has won nine of the 12 meetings with the Crimson Hawks since the teams resumed PSAC Central play in 2016.
THE HUSKIES AT A GLANCE
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Danielle Barnes (Coopersburg, Pa./Southern Lehigh) went 3-for-5 with two runs batted in and four runs scored on the day as the Huskies waltzed to a pair of wins over visiting Bloomfield College Wednesday afternoon. The Huskies have now won five straight games and 10 of their last 11, and are 14-11 overall on the season. Sophomore hurler
Abby Wild (Collegeville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) was tremendous for the Huskies in game one, striking out six and allowing just one earned run on six hits in the complete game 9-1 victory, while
Tara Baney (Howard, Pa./Bellefonte) continued her recent hot stretch in the circle, fanning eight and allowing just one earned run on five hits in the 7-2 win in game two. At the plate,
Sammi Starr (Berwick, Pa./21st Century Cyber Charter) was 3-for-4 with two RBI and a run scored in game two, while Barnes went 2-for-3 with two runs scored. Fellow freshman DelPierre was 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored.
Nicolette Ray (Abington, Pa./Abington) had the big hit for the Huskies in game one, smacking an RBI single in the bottom of the sixth and later scoring to secure the six-inning victory.
• Wild and Baney have been brilliant over the past two weeks for the Huskies, combining to allow just 12 runs over the team's last 11 games. Wild ranks second in the PSAC with a 1.05 earned run average (ERA), and second in opponents batting average (.185). The sophomore 9-5 on the year with a team-high 78 strikeouts in 80.0 innings of work. Baney has been equally impressive as of late, allowing just one earned run over her last 31.2 innings of work. She is 5-6 on the year with a 2.96 ERA and 58 strikeouts in 68.2 innings pitched.
• The Huskies offense has been powered by a trio of freshmen in
Erin DelPierre (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin), Barnes, and Starr. DelPierre leads the team in batting average (.455) and runs batted in (17), while Barnes is hitting .259 with a team-high 23 runs scored, 11 RBI, and five stolen bases. Starr is batting .254 with a team-high four homers, 16 RBI, and 12 runs scored. Shelhamer has 12 RBI, 13 runs scored, and a team-high seven walks, and Taylor Winkleman is hitting .300 with eight RBI and 13 runs scored.
Kelsey Impink (Schwenksville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) leads the team in doubles with six and has 10 runs batted in.
SCOUTING THE CRIMSON HAWKS
• IUP enters Saturday's games at 6-17-1 overall, and 2-2 in PSAC Central, after a doubleheader sweep over Clarion on Wednesday. Renee Wall was 5-for-7 with two doubles, four walks and six runs scored on the day to power the Crimson Hawks offense, while Jenne Rhue went 4-for-8 with six RBI and three runs scored on the afternoon. Lauren Zola struck out five and allowed just two earned runs in the game one victory, while Megan Risinger earned the victory in game two.
• Kaitlyn Beers leads the IUP offense with a .343 batting average, while Wall is hitting .313 with a team-high .482 on-base percentage, 17 runs batted in, 17 runs scored, 14 walks, and two home runs. Olivia Gregorich is .317 at the plate with 15 RBI and 10 runs scored, and Lauren Goetz is hitting .290 with 11 runs batted in a team-high eight stolen bases.
• Zola has started 11 games in the circle for the Crimson Hawks and has 40 strikeouts and a 4.56 ERA. Brooklyn Kotula has made five starts and has a 4.15 ERA and 28 strikeouts, and Risinger has made seven appearances and fanned six batters.
SCOUTING THE MOUNTAIN CATS
• Pitt-Johnstown comes into the weekend at 10-10 overall, and 2-2 in the PSAC Central, after sweeping a pair of games with Clarion last Saturday. Pitcher Ashley Pagliei tossed a one-hitter two power the Mountain Cats to a 9-1 victory in game two, while Kristen Coffay notched the win in game one after striking out five in the complete game effort. Morgan Cannin went 2-for-3 with a run scored in game one, and Kristie Radvan knocked in three runs in game two.
• Coffay has been the anchor of the Pitt-Johnstown rotation this season, compiling a 4-5 record in nine starts with a 2.61 ERA and 30 strikeouts in 59.0 innings of work. Pagliei is 2-3 with a 6.07 ERA and 10 strikeouts, and Alyssa Hileman has appeared in five games and has a 1.88 ERA and nine K's.
• Jade Stubblefield has been excellent at the plate for the Mountain Cats this season, posting a .436 batting average with two homers, 14 RBI and 14 runs scored. Radvan leads the team in runs batted in with 19 and also has two long balls, while Cannin is hitting .297 with 14 runs scored.
LOOKING AHEAD
• Bloomsburg wraps up a six-game road trip next Tuesday, April 9, with a doubleheader at Millersville. The Huskies return home next Friday, April 12, for a PSAC Central battle with Clarion, before hosting Mansfield in a divisional matchup on Saturday, April 13. First pitch in game one with the Marauders is set for 4:00 p.m.
