Dougherty, Quillman go deep, but Hazleton drops double-header at Brandywine
Media, PA - The Lady Lions battled Brandywine (8-5, 4-0 PSUAC) in two tightly contested Penn State University Athletic Conference games on Monday afternoon, but came out on the losing end in the double-header. A walk-off hit broke a 7th inning tie in favor Brandywine giving them a 5-4 win in game 1. Erin Dougherty and Andrea Quillman homered in game 2, but Hazleton (5-8, 0-2 PSUAC) surrendered two runs in the bottom half of the 6th inning, falling to Brandywine by the score of 7-5.
Game 1: Penn State Brandywine 5, Penn State Hazleton 4 (Final)
Top 3: Sara Stauffer singled with 2 outs to start the rally in the 3rd. Kaitlyn Kaluzny doubled to score Stauffer and Brianna Grunza followed with a double of her own, driving in Grunza and giving the Lady Lions a 2-0 advantage.
Bottom 3: Three hits to start the inning knotted the game at 2-2. Alexa Iacono led off with a single and scored on a triple by Lindsey Dellavecchio. A single by Julia Allman drove in the tying the run before Brandywine was retired in the 3rd.
Bottom 4: Brandywine took the lead 3-2 with 3 hits in the inning. Alexa Iacono drove in the lone run with her second hit of the game following a double by Lauryn Geduldick and a single by Danielle Spina.
Top 5: A double by Brianna Grunza scored Sara Stauffer who reached base on a free pass. Andrea Quillman came to the plate and singled in Grunza to give Hazleton a 4-3 lead.
Bottom 6: Lauren Geduldick doubled to lead off the inning. With 1 out, Danielle Spina singled to tie the game 4-4.
Bottom 7: After holding the Lady Lions scoreless in the top half, Julia Allman singled and reached second base on an error by the Hazleton shortstop. Robyn Gannon came to bat and cashed in the winning run on a double, ending the game 5-4 in walk-off fashion.
Katie DeStefano pitched the complete game for Brandywine giving up 4 runs, 2 walks and striking out 3 in 7 innings pitched. Danielle Spina went 3 for 3 at the plate with an RBI and a run scored to lead the offense for Brandywine.
Kayla Rhome struck out an impressive 11 batters for Hazleton but failed to earn her 3rd win in as many outings. Rhome allowed 5 runs on 11 hits in the losing effort. Sara Stauffer continued to hit for the Lady Lions, going 2 for 3 in game 1 with 2 runs scored. Brianna Grunza went 2 for 4 with 2 RBI and a run scored to lead the offense.
Game 2: Penn State Brandywine 7, Penn State Hazleton 5 (Final)
Bottom 1: Lindsey Dellavecchio singled to lead off the inning and moved to scoring position on groundout to the pitcher. A ground ball by Katy Steffen, led to an error by the Hazleton 3B, scoring Dellavecchio and giving Brandywine a 1-0 lead after the end of the 1st.
Top 3: With 1 out in the inning, singles by Satuffer and Kaitlyn Kaluzny put the Lady Lions in scoring position. Brianna Grunza doubled in Stauffer, but a double-play by Brandywine ended the threat in the 3rd with the score tied 1-1.
Top 4: Hazleton's Erin Dougherty led off the 4th with a go ahead home run. After singles by Brandi Grunza and Kayla Rhome, Sara Stauffer pushed across the Lions 3rd run on a groundout to the pitcher increasing the Hazleton advantage to 3-2.
Bottom 4: Robyn Gannon singles to lead off the inning. Katy Steffen supplied Brandywine with a home run to square the game a 3-3 through 4 innings.
Top 5: Andrea Quillman belts a 2-run homerun following a Kaluzny single to reclaim the lead 5-3.
Bottom 5: 3 hits in the allow Brandywine to match Hazleton with 2 runs of their own. Robyn Gannon drove in Dellavecchio and Spina with a 2 out double leaving the game tied at 5-5.
Bottom 6: After shutting down the Hazleton offense in the top half of the inning, a single and stolen base by Lauryn Geduldick, put Brandywine in scoring position. A single by Katie DeStefano scored the go-ahead run. 3 consecutive singles by Brandywine pushed an insurance run across the plate on a stolen base by Danielle Spina, increasing the lead to its final outcome at 7-5.
Brandywine's Danielle Spina survived the Hazleton offensive output to gain the win in the circle. Spina gave up 5 runs on 10 hits while striking out 4 in 7 innings of work. Lindsey Dellavecchio went 3 for 4 with 2 runs scored, and Katy Steffen drove in 3 runs going 1 for 3 with a home run to lead Brandywine's offense.
Hazleton's Kayla Karchner pitched 6 innings in game 2, giving up 7 runs on 12 hits and striking out 2. Sara Stauffer remained hot at the plate with 3 hits in 4 at-bats with a run scored and an RBI.
Next Up: The Lady Lions look to rebound from a disapointing sweep on Monday as they travel to face NCAA 3 opponent Baptist Bible College on Thursday.