INDIANA, Pa. (May 13, 2011) —The Kutztown University softball team made “double trouble” for California University of Pennsylvania as it hit three doubles in its 3-2 victory over the Vulcans in the opening round of the NCAA Division II Softball Atlantic Regional Friday afternoon at Podbielski Field. (BOXSCORE)

Kutztown improved to 40-14 marking its fifth consecutive year winning 40 or more games. Cal fell to 28-13. In Friday's first game, host Indiana University of Pennsylvania (34-6) defeated Winston-Salem State University (29-13), 7-0. KU will play IUP on Saturday beginning at 11 a.m. Cal and WSSU who each have one loss, will play in the elimination game at 1:30 p.m.

Daily admission is $5 for adults, $3 for students and senior citizens, and $2 for children 12 and under. No pets are allowed at Podbielski Field. (NCAA TOURNAMENT PAGE/ DRIVING DIRECTIONS).

The Golden Bears excitement in their pregame drills never left their side in a close battle with Cal. Their voices were loud and any spectator could tell that they were enthused. What little bit of nervousness they had in them quickly evaporated when the first pitch was thrown. Kutztown came out swinging and was ready to play.

“I was talking with KU baseball coach Chris Blum before the game and I told him that I still had some nerves running through me,” Kutztown University head coach Judy Lawes said. “We laughed about it and said that it wouldn't be normal it you weren't a little nervous. I was confident in the team and excited to see them play.”

Coach Lawes wasn't the only one who was excited. Shortstop Brianna Knipe (Bethlehem, PA/Liberty) who is always ready to play, couldn't wait for the game.

“It was so important for our momentum and confidence to win this first game,” Knipe said. “I'm just so hyped. I just want to play and win. As soon as we stepped off the bus, the team had their game face on and you could tell we wanted it.”

The Golden Bears really got going in the third inning which was their explosive inning. KU's bats had already threatened the Vulcan defense but when Jackie Hetzler (Sewell, NJ/Washington Township) led off the inning with a double to left centerfield, the trouble for Cal had begun. Jennifer Stow (Glen Mills, PA/Garnet Valley) reached on an error, advancing Hetzler to third, where she scored off that error. With KU up 1-0, Nicole Henninger (Reading, PA./Muhlenberg) decided to join Hetzler in the doubles' club as she also crushed the ball to left centerfield, scoring Stow.

Cal scored two runs in the fourth inning but Knipe was there to save the day in the sixth inning when she led off with a single up the middle. Morgan Booth (Stroudsburg, PA/Stroudsburg) also singled and Heather Hannum (Horsham, PA/Hatboro-Horsham) reached on a fielder's choice to move Knipe to third. Hetzler singled to score Knipe, giving Kutztown a 3-2 advantage. Freshman pitcher Sam Derr made the slim advantage stand up as she tossed three scoreless innings of relief to earn her 20th win of the season.

“We hit the ball through the entire order and that was the difference,” Lawes said. “They were just focused today. Brianna is a great athlete and she is a gamer. She always shows up and you know that she is going to perform. I'm happy that things went well for her today.”

By seeing Knipe's outgoing and proud demeanor, one could never tell that she'd been in a bit of a slump over the past few weeks.

“It just feels good to contribute to my team,” Knipe said. “Everyone played fantastic and tomorrow we just have to stay up. We had a great game with IUP the last time and things didn't go our way. We're confident and we know this time, this game means a lot more.”

IUP eliminated Kutztown in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Championships on April 29. The Crimson Hawks defeated KU 3-1 but Kutztown is looking for a different outcome this time around.

“We know that we aren't that mismatched from IUP,” Lawes said. “We know their game so we just have to play ours. It's good to be in the winner's bracket, it gives us a little confidence and we'd love to go straight through without losing a game.”