Kutztown 3, Bloomsburg 2 (8 innings) (HTML Box Score)

QUAKERTOWN, Pa. – Freshman Lindsey Kelley (Stafford, VA/North Stafford) drove in the game-tying run with two outs in the seventh inning and junior Colleen Smith (Islip Terrace, N.Y./East Islip (Hofstra)) hit a walk-off RBI single with two outs in the eighth inning as the Kutztown University softball team defeated Bloomsburg University 3-2 Friday morning in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) semifinals at Veterans Park.
 
The Golden Bears (28-21), who are a perfect 3-0 in the PSAC tournament and on a five-game winning streak, advance to the PSAC Championship game on Saturday, May 4 beginning at 12 p.m. Kutztown will need to lose twice to be eliminated tomorrow since it has not yet surrendered a game in tournament play.
 
Bloomsburg moves on to the elimination bracket and will face the winner of the California (PA)-West Chester game in a semifinal at 4 p.m. California (PA) and West Chester face off at 1 p.m. on Friday.
 
Trailing Bloomsburg 2-1 entering the seventh, Kutztown was down to its final out with no runners on base. Nicole Henninger (Reading, PA./Muhlenberg) drew a walk on a 10-pitch at-bat and was pinch-ran for by Rachel Lawes (Reading, Pa./Governor Mifflin). Brianna Knipe (Bethlehem, PA/Liberty) drove a single through the left side to put Lawes in scoring position on an 0-2 count. Also on an 0-2 count, Kelley followed Knipe with an RBI single to left field to score Lawes from second and tie the game at 2-2.
 
Mary Kociencki (Columbia, N.J./Sparta ) sat down Bloomsburg in order in the top of the eighth, bringing up the top of the lineup for KU. Jackie Hetzler (Sewell, NJ/Washington Township) hit a leadoff double to right center field.  Kutztown elected not to attempt a sacrifice bunt to move the runner over and kept the bat in Morgan Booth (Stroudsburg, PA/Stroudsburg)'s hands as Booth homered in her previous at-bat in the sixth inning.
 
Following a strikeout by Booth, Katie Lynch (Willow Street, PA/Lampeter-Strasburg) hit a fly ball to right field on the first pitch to move Hetzler to third with two outs. On the second pitch of the at-bat, Smith hit an RBI single to left center field to score Hetzler for the game-winning run.
 
Kutztown's Dominique Ficara (Swedesboro, N.J./Kingsway Regional (Hofstra)) and Bloomsburg's Cait Paine led their respective teams through a pitching duel in Friday's PSAC semifinal.
  
Ficara pitched 5+ innings for Kutztown and allowed five hits. Bloomsburg hit solo homers in the fourth and sixth innings to take the 2-0 lead.
 
Booth hit a homer with two outs in the sixth inning to cut the deficit to one to allow the Golden Bears to mount the comeback the following inning.
 
Paine had 15 strikeouts for the Huskies in the circle.
 
Kutztown is in search of its first-ever PSAC Championship in program history.