BLOOMSBURG, Pa. (April 21, 2011) – The Kutztown University softball team has enjoyed responding to adversity and answering every challenge during the 2011 season.(BOXSCORE)
Now, following its 9-2 setback to host Bloomsburg University in a first round game of the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) playoffs Thursday afternoon at Jan Hutchinson Field, Kutztown faces the ultimate test Friday morning starting at 10 a.m. The Golden Bears have to beat Bloomsburg twice in order to keep their dreams alive of winning a PSAC title.
The start time of the game was moved up because there is a threat of wet weather beginning mid-afternoon that could possibly last throughout the entire weekend.
Kutztown (37-12 overall) was in the same situation last season. The Golden Bears pounded Bloomsburg in the must-win game, 10-3, and sprinted to a four run lead in the second game before the Huskies rallied to win, 7-5.
“We just have to come out and focus on taking everything one inning at a time,” Kutztown senior Krista Tedjeske (Summerhill, PA/Forest Hill) said. “We need to do all the little things right. They're a good team and we're a good team. If we come out and play our game, then I believe we can beat anyone on any given day.”
Trailing 3-0 after the first inning, the Golden Bears almost tied the game. Kutztown had two runners on base with one out when Tedjeske stepped to the plate. She lofted a ball to rightfield that continued to carry thanks to a swirling wind. The ball bounced in front of the fence. Katie Lynch (Willow Street, PA/Lampeter-Strasburg) scored to put the Golden Bears on the board. Brianna Knipe (Bethlehem, PA/Liberty) crossed the plate with the Golden Bears' second run after Jen Stow was safe on an error.
“I didn't think the ball was going out,” Tedjeske said. “The wind carried it that distance. I was just focused on hitting a line drive and moving the runners so that we could keep the inning going. I was surprised at how far the ball did carry though.”
Even though Bloomsburg extended its advantage to 4-2 in the second inning, the Golden Bears had chances to score in the third and fourth innings. Each inning ended with KU leaving two runners on base. Lynch extended her hitting streak to five games with a single in the second inning. Jackie Hetzler (Sewell, NJ/Washington Township) also had a hit for the Golden Bears.
However, the difference in the game was how Bloomsburg took advantage of four uncharacteristic Kutztown errors. Five of the Huskies' nine runs were unearned.
The Huskies finished with 13 hits. Playing Bloomsburg, ranked No. 1 in the Atlantic Regional rankings and No. 7 in the National Fastpitch Coaches' Association (NFCA) poll is hard enough. Giving the Huskies' extra outs is like trying to steal a piece of meat from a hungry lion.
“There was a lot of hard play and they came out after us,” Kutztown coach Judy Lawes said. “Luckily, we have another chance and we'll see how that goes. They outplayed us today. That's the beauty of this game. You can come out the next day and everything can be turned around. This is championship time and you have come with you're a game and that's what we have to do Friday.”
--KU--
