SALISBURY, NC (February 27, 2010) – Nicole Colineri was right where she wanted to be with the game on the line: In the batter's box with the score tied. Colineri laced a one-out, two-strike single over the third baseman's head to score Nicole Hannum with the winning run as the Kutztown University softball team rallied for a dramatic, 3-2, victory over Lenoir-Rhyne Saturday afternoon in the second game of the Catawba tournament.
Colineri's game-winning hit helped Kutztown (7-2 overall) remain perfect in the weekend tournament and earn a well-deserved evening off. While the other schools were playing in the consolation rounds Saturday night, the Golden Bears were celebrating another perfect day by eating dinner at a buffet called Bryans.
“I was thinking that I needed to put the ball in play so that we can score the winning run,” Colineri said. “The pitcher got two strikes on me. I figured she was going to try and throw me something outside so I looked for it and I got what I was looking for. I was so excited when I got the hit.”
Colineri's hit helped earn Katlin Arbogast the win on the mound. The senior was a tour-de-force as she struck out 12 batters while pitching a complete game. Coupled with the seven strikeouts, she had in the Golden Bears' 3-2 win earlier in the day against Fairmont State, Arbogast struck out 19 batters on the day.
Katie Lynch continued her torrid hitting by going 2-for-2 with a run scored and a double. Nicole Henninger got the Golden Bears even in the bottom of the sixth inning when she belted a two-run home run that just barely cleared the right field fence. Lynch's double started the game-tying rally.
Hannum began the bottom of the seventh inning by reaching base safely on an error. Maria Schiavo followed with an infield hit to put runners on first and second. Maria Isgro laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt that advanced Hannum to third and Schiavo to second. That set the stage for Colineri's heroics.
The game was scoreless for the first four innings until Lenoir-Rhyne pushed across single runs in the fifth and sixth innings for a 2-0 advantage.
Kutztown will return to action Sunday morning at 10 a.m. against an opponent to be determined.
“This has been a good trip for us so far,” Colineri said. “We knew we had to come down here and play well. So far everybody's been pretty intense and making contributions. Now, we're focused on winning the entire tournament.”
-- KU--
