MILLERSVILLE, Pa. – The Kutztown University softball team closed its regular season on Sunday with a pair of victories over Millersville University on the road. KU's 4-1 and 9-1 wins sealed it the second-seed in the Eastern Division for this week's Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament.
 
The Golden Bears (28-13, 10-6 PSAC) will take on the second-seed in the Central Division, Lock Haven University (31-15, 14-6) in the first round of the PSAC Tournament on Wednesday, April 27 at 3 p.m. at Veterans Park in Quakertown, Pa. Ticket prices are set at $10 per day. Children under 12, as well as PSAC students with a valid ID, are admitted free.
 
Savannah Nierintz (Clifton Heights, Pa./Upper Darby) threw two complete-game victories and combined for 13 strikeouts on Sunday. They marked her 15th and 16th wins of the season as she allowed six hits in game one and three in a five-inning game two.
 
Nierintz was one of three Golden Bears to go 2-for-3 at the plate in the opener. After Millersville took a 1-0 lead in the first, Blayse Cholish (Peckville, Pa./Valley View) drove in a sacrifice fly in the sixth to tie the game at 1-1 heading into the seventh.
 
KU opened the seventh with three straight singles, as Rachel Lawes (Reading, Pa./Governor Mifflin) hit the game-winning RBI single to score Gabby Tareila (Limerick, Pa./Spring-Ford) for a 2-1 lead. Both Tareila and Lawes also went 2-for-3.
 
Tamara Jennings (Philadelphia, Pa./Nazareth Academy) hit an RBI double and Lawes scored on a passed ball to give KU insurance runs.
 
The RBI double kick-started Jennings' day, as she followed with a 3-for-3 game in the nightcap. Leadoff hitter Sara Keeny (Warminster, Pa./William Tennent) went 2-for-3 as KU's top-five hitters in the lineup accounted for 8-of-10 KU hits.
 
Danielle Amato (Henderson, Nev./Coronado) hit a grand slam in the top of the first inning on a 3-0 count to stake KU a 4-0 lead. It was her fifth home run of the season. She later added a sacrifice fly for a five-RBI game. Jennings, Keeny and Cholish also added RBI in game two.
 
Nierintz had seven strikeouts to one walk in game two.
 
Looking ahead to the postseason, if KU wins its opening game against Lock Haven, it will play at 3 p.m. on Thursday, April 28. If KU falls to Lock Haven, KU will play in an elimination game at 12 p.m. on Thursday.