PITT-GREENSBURG SNEAKS BY SOFTBALL, 5-4

CLERMONT, Fla. – Pitt-Greensburg College downed Emmanuel College, 5-4, Sunday morning in Day 1 softball action at the NTC Spring Games. Pitt-Greensburg opens the year with a 1-0 mark while the loss drops the Saints to 1-1.

After three scoreless innings, the Bobcats jumped out to a 3-0 lead with a two-out homerun in the bottom of the fourth inning. Freshman third baseman Jen Miller (Butler, Pa.) got the inning going with a one-out single to left and advanced into scoring position on a wild pitch. She moved to third after sophomore catcher Kelley McNally (Rockledge, Pa.) reached via an error before freshman shortstop Julia Pritchard (Patton, Pa.) belted a three-run blast into the wind to left field to give Pitt-Greensburg the 3-0 lead.

Pitt-Greensburg made it 4-0 in the fourth as freshman pitcher Jamie Schleicher (Pittsburgh, Pa.) reached base after getting hit by a pitch. Next up, junior centerfield Alyssa Panza (Cranberry Township, Pa.) delivered a hit-and-run single to right-centerfield to plate Schleicher all the way from first.

Schleicher tossed four scoreless frames in the circle before Emmanuel made some noise in the top of the fifth to get on the board. Freshman Kerry Sendrick (Medway, Mass.) drew a leadoff walk and came around to score the first EC run on an RBI single by sophomore designated player Ashley Skey (Brookline, N.H.). The Saints added a second run on an RBI groundout by senior first baseman Susie Kieselback (Wethersfield, Conn.) to cut the Pitt-Greensburg lead in half, making it a 4-2 game.

The Bobcats added an important insurance run in the bottom of the sixth on a sacrifice fly to bump their lead to 5-2. The run proved to be the game-winner as Emmanuel plated two runs in the top of the seventh to make things interesting. The first two batters for the Saints reached via Pitt errors and came around to score on a two-RBI double down the right field line by freshman second baseman Sydney Rogers (Southwick, Mass.) to make it 5-4. Schleicher was able to strand the tying run at second, recording the final out via a strikeout to go the distance for the complete-game win.

EC sophomore Megan Kieselback (Wethersfield, Conn.) suffered the loss going six innings allowing all five runs (two earned) on five hits while striking out six. Schleicher earned the win allowing four runs (two earned) on five hits while recording nine strikeouts.

The Saints return to action tomorrow afternoon at 3:30 PM when they take on John Carroll while Pitt-Greensburg plays later today against Penn State Brandywine.