Lady Lions win 30 games in historic 2015 season
Penn State Hazleton softball recently wrapped up a historic season, finishing the 2015 season with a 30-17 overall record (13-3 regular season conference record), a second place finish in the Penn State University Athletic Conference and a sixth place finish in the United States Collegiate Athletic Association Small College World Series. The Lady Lions proved themselves a offensive juggernaut throughout the 2015 season, leading the USCAA in runs scored, hits, doubles, RBI, and home runs. The 30 wins, marks the highest win total ever achieved, making it one of the most successful seasons in campus history, filled with highlights and heartbreak.
Regular Season:
The Lady Lions looked significantly different from the previous 2014 season. Hazleton returned just five players from last year's team, raising questions about how the Lions would fair this season. Those questions were quickly answered as new faces took full advantage of the opportunities before them. Both old and new faces meshed together as the team earned valuable experience in Florida, winning three of nine games against a host of NCAA and NAIA teams down south. The team returned to the frigid temperatures of Pennsylvania ready to run down conference opponents in pursuit of a championship. During their opening stretch of games in April, Hazleton went 12-2, including a 10 game win streak. Their only losses during that period were to PSU Brandywine, a team that would prove themselves a thorn in the Lady Lions side. Hazleton would go on to finish the regular season at 25-12, including a 10-9 record against NCAA or NAIA opponents and a 13-3 PSUAC record, good for third in the conference.
Postseason:
Hazleton's stellar record earned them a number three seed in the PSUAC double elimination championship. They won their first two games against PSU Beaver and Shuylkill, but fell in a thrilling game against Brandywine, a game in which the Lions held the lead until the final two innings of play. The Lady Lions would rebound with a win against Mont Alto and earn a rematch against Brandywine in the Championship Round against Brandywine at Beard Field in University Park. Hazleton would again claim an early lead, but Brandywine had the Lady Lions number in 2015, defeating them for the fourth straight contest, this time by a score of 11-8, handing the Hazleton squad a runner up finish in the conference.
Despite the loss, Hazleton's excellent body of work earned them a second consecutive trip to the USCAA Small College World Series in Akron, Ohio. At the tournament the Lady Lions finished with a 2-3 record, with two losses to fourth seeded Briarcliffe College, and one loss to sixth seeded New Hamshire Technical Institute. The Lady Lions picked up wins to advance in the loser's bracket, defeating rival PSU Shuylkill and seventh seeded St. Joseph's College of Brooklyn. The win against St. Joe's set a record for Hazleton as they capped their tremendous season with an all-time high mark of 30 wins, the most in the program's history.
Top Performers of 2015:
#15 Andrea Quillman: The sophomore third baseman was selected as a PSUAC First Team All-Conference and USCAA All-American, while being named Player of the Year in the PSUAC. She set school records with 14 home runs and 77 RBI, both of which led the PSUAC and the USCAA. Quillman hit .524 on the season while scoring a total of 55 runs, the most of any player in the USCAA. During a 13 game hitting streak in early April, the third baseman went 27 for 44 giving her a .613 batting average over that span of games. During that same stretch of play, Quillman smashed 20 extra base hits including 7 home runs, collected 31 RBI and scored 24 times. In 164 plate appearances, Quillman struck just five times all season, and was held without a hit in just six games out of 47 played.
# 20 Sara Stauffer: The freshman centerfielder/pitcher was also a PSUAC First Team All-Conference and USCAA selection in her inagural season with Hazleton. Batting at the top of the order for much of the season, Stauffer hit .429 with seven home runs and 36 RBI. Stauffer's 67 hits on the season, were second to only Quillman amongst all USCAA competitors. On April 26 against PSU Fayette, Stauffer pounded two home runs, going five for five at the plate, and scoring four times while being just a triple shy of the cycle. Sara also led the team with 1.93 earned run average, collecting seven wins on the season along with a USCAA best two saves.
# 2 Brianna Grunza: In her first season at Hazleton, the junior shortstop's play earned her a First Team All-Conference nod by the PSUAC and was named Second Team All-American by the USCAA. Grunza led the team with 70 assists defensively and swung the bat to a .381 batting average, scoring 46 runs, while hitting 4 home runs. Grunza's 59 hits in 2015 were good enough to rank her fourth in the USCAA and ninth best in total RBI with 39 driven in. In a win over Wilkes Univesrity on April 21, the shortstop drove in a season high five RBI including a grand slam to lead her team to victory, just one of her many clutch performances in 2015.
#12 Kayla Rhome: Hazleton's ace in the circle pitched in 24 games for the Lady Lions in 2015 garnering First Team All-Conference honors in the PSUAC and a USCAA All-American Honorable Mention. Rhome's 14 victories on the season tied for most in the PSUAC and her seven shutouts in 2015 was second best in the nation. The freshman phenom fanned a PSUAC best 106 batters, ranking her third in the USCAA in strikeouts.
#9 Erin Dougherty: The sophomore caught in 42 of Hazleton's 47 games in 2015 earning her PSUAC Second Team All-Conference honors. The sophomore recorded 209 put-outs behind the plate ranking her second nationally. Dougherty hit .291 on the season with three home runs while driving in 40 RBI, a total good enough for sixth best in the USCAA. Erin's production was equally good in the classroom earning her honors as a USCAA Academic All-American.