Quillman clouts two homers, no. 9 ranked Lady Lions earn 10th straight win.

Hazleton, PA - Penn State Hazleton picked up a pair of non-conference wins on Wednesday afternoon against NCAA Division 3 opponent Cairn University. Hazleton slugged their way to victory in game one with power hitting from the middle of the order and won by a score of 9-4. Game two showcased outstanding pitching and defense from the Lady Lions as they hung on to win by a score of 4-3.

Game 1: Penn State Hazleton 9, Cairn University 4 

Top 1: Cairn tested the Hazleton defense early with small ball that loaded the bases courtesy of a pair of Lions miscues. Kayla Rhome fired a pair of strikouts to stop a big inning for the Higlanders, but a momentary loss of control scored the runner from third on the hit by pitch. 

Bottom 1: Hazleton gets two runners aboard to start the inning, and with one out, Andrea Quillman hits a towering fly ball over the fence in right center field to retake the lead for the Lady Lions. Two batters later, Erin Dougherty puts her own power on display, with a frozen rope homerun to left field, giving Hazleton a 4-1 advantage.

Bottom 3: Quillman and Dougherty are at it again. This time, a pair of doubles from the Lions sluggers plate Hazleton's fifth run of the ballgame.

Bottom 4: Three straight Lady Lions reach base with one out. Brianna Grunza gets in on the action with a double to left center, scoring Leanna Lagowski and Sara Stauffer. Not satisfied with her already stellar afternoon, Andrea Quillman sends a fly ball to the outfield. This time, the Highlanders, corral the ball for an out, but Quillman picks up RBI number four on the sacrifice fly, giving Hazleton an 8-1 lead.

Top 5: Cairn chips away at the Hazleton lead with three straight hits capped by an RBI single off the bat of Brigid Shehan, cutting the lead to 8-2.

Bottom 6: The Lions pick up an insurance run to push the lead back to seven runs. Once again, Dougherty comes through at the plate to score Andrea Quillman with a hard hit RBI single to left field.

Top 7: Kayla Rhome picks up two quick outs in the first three batters of the inning. With two down and one runner aboard, Shehan again provides Cairn with offense. A towering homerun to right center field makes it a 9-4 ballgame, but Rhome swiftly retires the following batter to earn the win.

Behind the Box Score: 

• Quillman picks up her 13th multi-RBI game, going three for three with a double, homerun and 4 RBI.
• Kayla Rhome strikes out seven en route to her eighth win on the season.
• Dougherty picks up homerun number two on the season and extends her hitting streak to nine straight games.

Game 2: Penn State Hazleton 4, Cairn University 3 

Top 1: Cairn strings three hits together to again take the early lead. After singles by Jessica and Jocelyn Good, Brigid Shehan singles to bring in a run.

Bottom 1: Hazleton retaliates in the bottom half with a walk to Kaitlyn Kaluzny and three straight singles from Brianna Grunza, Quillman and Dougherty to plate two quick scores. Brandi Grunza hits a productive out to score Quillman from third, giving the Lady Lions a 3-1 lead.

Top 3: Jessica Good leads off the inning with a triple to right center field. Jocelyn Good sends a ball to center field for an out, but the play is deep enough to score Cairn's second run of the game.

Bottom 6: With one out in the inning, Quillman slams her second homerun of the afternoon, this time a solo shot to give the Lions a 4-2 advantage.

Top 7: After a leadoff walk, the Highlanders threaten the Hazleton lead, with a pair of singles to cut the lead to just one run. With two on and two out, Sara Stuaffer serves up a ground ball to end the rally and earn her third win of the season.

Behind the Box Score:

• Lady Lions outhit 10-8 in game two, but earn two key hits with runners in scoring position to out-produce the Highlanders.
• Lions defense secures 12 ground ball outs and 8 in the air, playing perfect behind Stauffer's efforts in the circle.
• Quillman belts homerun number seven and drives in RBI number 41 to lead the PSUAC in both categories.

Next Up: Hazleton looks to continue its winning ways against non conference opponents tomorrow night as they travel to the University of Scranton. First pitch to be thrown out at 6:00 PM.