Bradford, Pa. -- The University of Pittsburgh at Bradford softball team brought their regular season to a close on Sunday afternoon, sweeping Pitt-Greensburg in a pair of five-inning games on Senior Day. The Panthers shut out the Bobcats 8-0 in game one, before scoring 10 straight to overcome an early two-run deficit to win game two 10-2.
Prior to the start of the action, the Panthers took a moment to recognize six of their graduating seniors, while also honoring six seniors from Pitt-Greensburg. Chloe Cordova, Marguerite DeFranco, Rachel Przybysz, Ashley Stein, Daytona Wentzel and Sadie Wood were all recognized by coaches, teammates, family, friends, and fans for their seasons with the Panthers. This graduating class has been a part of teams that saw multiple seasons affected by the COVID-19 pandemic, reached the post-season 3 times, and were AMCC Regular Season Co-Champions in 2021.
Game One:
The Panthers took control of the opening game early, as they used a three-hit shutout from Ashley Stein to slowly build their lead before ending the game 8-0 in the fifth.
Stein made quick work of the Bobcats in the first, allowing just a one-out walk. The Panthers came to the plate after the quick frame and took advantage of an error and two walks to take an early 2-0 lead. Faith McLaughlin started the game with a single through the left side and then stole second. In the next at-bat, Marguerite DeFranco went down on strikes but was able to take off to first as the third strike was on a wild pitch. On the attempt to throw her out at first, the Bobcat catcher threw the ball away, allowing McLaughlin to score. The next two Panthers reached on free passes to load the bases, and after a fielder's choice saw a runner cut down at the plate, Pitt-Bradford scored a second run on another fielder's choice that did not record an out. Daytona Wentzel hit a soft chopper to short and Chloe Cordova was able to sprint home and beat the throw to the plate to double the Panthers' lead.
In the second, Stein allowed the leadoff batter to single to left, but after a fly out, induced a 6-4-3 double play to quickly end the inning. The Panthers started the second inning with a leadoff walk but were unable to take advantage of the free pass, as three straight Panthers were retired. Stein posted another zero in the third, working around a leadoff single to keep the Bobcats off the board.
The Panthers doubled their lead in the 3rd, scoring two more runs on 2 hits and a pair of errors. Lexi Peters started the inning with a single through the left side and then moved to second as Lindsay Steele reached on an error. Krislyn Clement stepped up after a fly out to right, and lined a double over the right fielder's head, bringing in Peters. Meghan Kapp came up next and hit a ground ball to third. Steele headed home on contact and scored the 4th run for Pitt-Bradford while Kapp reached on a throwing error. The Panthers looked to add more, as Rachel Przybysz hit a sacrifice fly to right, but a strong throw beat Clement to the plate, ending the frame.
Stein worked quickly in the 4th, posting another shutdown inning, allowing just a two-out single to center. The Panthers used the momentum to add to their lead in the bottom half, scoring two more times. McLaughlin started the inning with a single up the middle and then moved all the way to third as DeFranco reached on a throwing error. DeFranco moved into scoring position, stealing second base before Chloe Cordova hit a single down the right-field line to bring in both runners.
In the 5th, Stein set the Bobcats down in order, giving the Panthers a chance to end the game with two runs in the bottom half. Daytona Wentzel drew a walk to lead off the inning and after a strikeout, stole second and took third as the throw bounced into the outfield on the play. Kapp picked up another RBI, lining a single through the right side. After Przybysz drew her second walk of the game, McLaughlin ended the game, with a double down the left-field line to bring in Kapp.
Ashley Stein (3-5) recorded her second straight complete-game victory, allowing just r three hits on the way to posting her third career shutout. She limited Pitt-Greensburg to one runner per inning before the 1-2-3 5th. Faith McLaughlin was the offensive star for the Panthers. She finished the game 3 for 3 with 2 RBIs, 2 runs scored, a double, and a stolen base. Chloe Cordova and Meghan Kapp both registered one hit, drove in two runs, and scored another.
Game Two:
The Panthers got off to a slow start in the nightcap, as the Bobcats scored two runs in the first before the Panthers finished the game with 10 unanswered over the final three innings to finish the game early once again.
Lindsay Steele started the game for the Panthers and ran into trouble early. After retiring the leadoff batter, Stein loaded the bases with two walks and a double. With the sacks full, Steele walked another batter to force in the first run and then saw a second score on a ground out to second base. She was able to escape further damage with a pop-up to short. McLaughlin started the bottom half with an infield single, but despite being able to move to third on a bunt and a wild pitch, was not able to score.
Steele ran into trouble again in the second as she walked the first two batters of the inning and then loaded the bases again after a popup as she hit a batter. With the bases loaded and one out, Steele was relieved by Krislyn Clement, who was able to get out of the jam with a shallow fly ball to center and an inning-ending strikeout. The Panthers threatened to cut into the lead in the bottom half, as Lexi Najdusak led off the inning with a walk and Meghan Kapp singled to center. Both runners moved to scoring position with a double steal, but the Panthers were not able to take advantage as the next three batters were retired, stranding the runners.
Clement was able to make quick work of Pitt-Greensburg in the third, as she allowed a two-out double, but stranded the runner at second, ending the second straight inning with a strikeout. The Panthers were able to take the momentum in the bottom half, rallying with two outs to score three times and take a 3-2 lead. Daytona Wentzel started the rally as she reached on an error with one out, and then moved to second on a wild pitch. Lexi Peters put the Panthers on the board, as she lined a single into right-center to bring in Wentzel. The Panthers then caught a break, as Lexi Najdusak popped up in the infield, but the ball was dropped, allowing runners to go to second and third with two outs. Meghan Kapp capitalized on the error, hitting a two-run single down the line and off of the third base bag.
In the 4th, Clement walked a pair of batters around a sacrifice bunt but battled to post a shutdown inning, as she retired the next two batters on a fly ball to center and a ground ball to second, ending the frame. The Panthers used the momentum from the shutdown inning in the 4th, scoring 4 times to extend their lead. Sadie Wood started the inning, dropping a bloop single down the right-field line. She moved to second on a sacrifice bunt and then scored as McLaughlin ripped a double down the left-field line. McLaughlin moved to third on a wild pitch and then scored the Panthers' 5th run on an RBI ground out by Wentzel. Chloe Cordova restarted the inning with a double to deep center field and then was able to jog home as LExi Peters blasted her 5th home run of the season to left field. The Panthers continued to threaten after the long ball, as LExi Najdusak laced a single to center, but Kapp followed with a deep fly ball to right that was tracked down near the fence for the final out.
Clement posted her second straight shutdown frame in the 5th, working around a one-out single to keep the Bobcats off the board. In the bottom of the inning, the Panthers rallied again, scoring three more times to push their lead to eight and end the game. Sadie Wood started the rally again, hitting a single up the middle, before scoring from first as Rachel Przybysz lined a triple to right. Przybysz was then able to score as McLaughlin reached on an error. Wentzel nearly ended the game, as she came up next and hit a double off of the fence in center field, but Chloe Cordova followed with a single up the middle to bring in McLaughlin and end the game.
Krislyn Clement (6-8) earned the victory after throwing 3.2 innings of scoreless relief work. She allowed 2 hits and 2 walks while striking out three. Starter Lindsay Steele received the no-decision after allowing 2 runs in 1.1 innings pitched. Lexi Peters finished the game 2 for 3, hitting her 5th home run of the season while driving in 3 runs and scoring two more. Meghan Kapp was also 2 for 3 and collected two RBIs. Sadie Wood and Faith McLaughlin also had multi-hit games and scored twice.
The Panthers finish their season with an 11-25 overall record and a 6-8 record in AMCC play. The sweep moved the Panthers up a spot in the final standings, as they earned the 5th seed in the upcoming AMCC Tournament. The Panthers will kick off their postseason in the 2nd game of the tournament against #4 LaRoche. The Tournament will be hosted by Penn State-Behrend in Erie, Pa. and will begin at 10:00 a.m. on Thursday, May 11th.
