APRIL 30, 2004
BOB ZIADIELYCOMING ADVANCES TO MAC FREEDOM TITLE GAME
(King's, Wilkes, DeSales to battle through loser's bracket)WILKES-BARRE -- The Lycoming College softball team entered the 2004 MAC Freedom Conference Championships as the number four seed. After the first day of competition, the Warriors are a game away from winning the title and gaining an automatic berth into the NCAA Division III National Tournament.
In a wild first day of action which saw six home runs in a three-game span, Lycoming made its presence felt from the start.
In the first game of the double-elimination tournament, the Warriors posted a 2-1 upset victory in 10 innings over top seeded host King's. In the second game, third-seeded DeSales stunned second-seeded Wilkes 8-4. Lycoming then knocked off DeSales 6-2 to reach the championship round.
In the first game of the tournament, King's took a 1-0 lead in the second inning when Lady Monarch slugger Stacey Preambo belted her 15th home run of the season. Lycoming knotted the score 1-1 in the third thanks to the bat of an unlikely hitting star. Warrior pitching standout Morgan Mantle entered the game with a .137 batting average and the Lycoming teams had yet to hit a home run the entire season. Facing a 3-2 count, Mantle drove a Sarah Genewski offering over the left field fence to tie the score.
Neither team wowuld score again though the ninth inning until the international tiebreaking rule was implemented. Christine Caroselli was placed at second base and moved to third on a bunt from Marianne Simpson. Two batters later, Jana Reitz's bloop single down the third base line would bring home Caroselli with what proved to be the winning run.
Mantle (9-5) was outstanding in limiting King's (33-8) to just one hit, Preambo's solo blast, in 10 innings while striking out 14 Lady Monarch batters. The Warriors improved to 17-14 with the victory. Nikki Kotula (11-2) was tagged with the loss in relief of starter Genewski. Kotula allowed three hits and walked four batters in four and one third innings of work.
In the second game, DeSales (19-12) smacked three home runs off Wilkes freshman pitching standout Laurie Agresti. The Wilkes rookie entered the game with 206 strikeouts in 120 innings and had only allowed one home run all year. DeSales took a 2-0 lead in the first inning when Nellie Kott hit a two-run home run. Wilkes (17-19) tied the game in the second inning on Kristin Henry's two-run home run. DeSales would take the lead for good with four runs in the third inning. Val Valach hit a solo home run to put the Bulldogs on top 3-2. After DeSales scored an unearned run, Jennine Mara would hit a two-run home run to put the Bulldogs on top 6-2.
DeSales added two more runs in the fifth when Valach singled and later score on an error, while Robin Rossiter scored on an RBI single from Danielle Jenson.
Valach was 3-for-4 and scored three runs while Kott went 2-for-4. Jenson (8-5) picked up the win, scattering nine hits in the game. Agresti (11-7) was tagged with the loss, allowing nine runs, eight which were earned, while striking out 12 batters. Andrea Dominick led Wilkes with two base hits.
In the final game of the first day, DeSales took a 1-0 lead in the first inning when Rachel Polaha singled and moved to second on a wild pitch. After moving to third on an infield out, Polaha would touch home on an RBI single from Mara.
Lycoming would answer with two runs in the second when Amy Curry Katie Kresge hit back-to-back doubles. Caroselli would later add an RBI double of her own to put the Warriors on top. Lycoming plated two more runs in the third when Jen Shaffer doubled and Jana Reitz singled. Melissa McCoy's infield grounder would drive in Shaffer before Curry singled home Reitz to push the Warrior lead to 4-2.
DeSales added a run in the fifth inning when Jenna Rau singled and eventually scored on a base hit from Valach. Lycoming would put the game away with two runs in the sixth inning. Kresge singled and moved to second on a bunt from Lauren Wilson. Caroselli singled in Kresge and later scored on a base hit from Marianne Simpson.
Amanda Gery (5-6) earned the complete-game pitching victory, scattering seven hits on the day. DeSales starter Elise Wilk took the loss, lasting 6.0 innings and yielding 11 hits and all six runs.
Caroselli led Lycoming (18-14) with a 4-for-4 effort and a pair of RBI while Curry and Kresge added two hits. DeSales (19-13) was paced by Polaha who was 3-for-3.
King's will face Wilkes Saturday at 9:00 a.m. with loser being eliminated and the winner moving on to a meeting with DeSales at 11:00 a.m. The winner will face Lycoming at 1:00 p.m. in the championship game. If Lycoming would lose, the same teams would square off in a deciding game at 3:00 p.m.
King's College
133 North River Street Wilkes-Barre, PA 18711
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Questions or comments to: Bob Ziadie, King's College Sports Information Director
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