#9 Lady Lions make it 8 straight wins with sweep of Valley Forge

Drifton, PA - A day off on Monday did nothing to cool off the hot bats of the Lady Lions as they picked up two wins on Tuesday against NCAA Division 3 opponent University of Valley Forge. Hazleton scored early in both contests and continued to add timely hits as the games progressed, defeating UVF 9-0 in game one, and 10-0 in game two.

Game 1: Penn State Hazleton 9, University of Valley Forge 0 (Final, 5 Innings)

Bottom 1: The Grunza twins provided Hazleton with an early lead in game 1. Brianna Grunza drove a single to the outfield, bringing Sara Stuaffer and Kaitlyn Kaluzny who reach base safely in their first at bats to put the Lions up two. Two batters later, Brandi Grunza scored her sister on a sacrifice fly to center field, giving Hazleton an early 3-0 lead after one inning.

Bottom 3: First baseman Britani Esser singles to left field with the bases loaded, scoring Andrea Quillman and Brandi Grunza. Kayla Rhome scores on a defensive miscue to cap the three run inning.

Bottom 4: After two walks put the Lions in scoring position, Andrea Quillman ropes a line drive over the centerfielder into the spacious outfield. Quillman hustles her way around the bases to score the inside the park homerun and give the Lady Lions a 9-0 advantage.

Behind the Box Score:

• Quillman collects her fifth homerun of the season and 10th multi-hit game going two for three with three RBI.
• Kayla Rhome fires five strong innings, allowing just three baserunners and strikes out six to pick up win number seven.
• Sara Stuaffer extends her hit streak to seven straight games.

Game 2: Penn State Hazleton 10, University of Valley Forge 0 (Final, 5 Innings)

Bottom 1: Stauffer and Kaluzny reach safely to lead off the Lion offense. Two batters later, Quillman scores both, with an RBI double to center. Kaitlyn Kaluzny brings in Quillman with a productive out flyball to center field, giving Hazleton the early 3-0 lead.

Bottom 3: Hazleton sends 10 batters to the box in the inning pushing across six runs to put the game out of reach for good. With two on and one out, Britani Esser smashes a towering shot to left center, scoring Rhome, Brandi Grunza and herself with an inside the park homerun. Four batters later, Kayla Karchner delivers a two-run double, capping the six run inning.

Bottom 4: Leanne Lagowski plates Hazleton's final run with a line drive to center, bringing Rhome around from second base to put Hazleton up 10-0.

Behind the Box Score:

• Five Lady Lions pick up multi-hit performances.
• Britani Esser earns win number two, throwing 5 shutout innings, allowing just three hits and no walks.
• Quillman extends her hitting streak to 10 straight games.

Next Up: Hazleton squares off in a double-header at home against NCAA Division 3 opponent Cairn University. First pitch to be thrown at 3 PM at the Hazleton Campus.