Lives Stats for Friday | Live Stats for Sunday

KUTZTOWN, Pa. – The Kutztown University softball team might have had its 13-game winning streak snapped over the weekend against No. 15 West Chester, but it won't have to wait long to rebound with two Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) doubleheaders scheduled this weekend.

The Golden Bears (21-9, 4-2 PSAC) start off with a home doubleheader against Millersville University on Friday, April 8 at 2:30 p.m. at North Campus Field.  Kutztown then heads to Shippensburg University to take on the Raiders in another doubleheader, Sunday, April 10, with game one starting at 1 p.m.

Kutztown enters the weekend as the best-hitting team in the PSAC and No. 18 in Division II with a .334 batting average, its best in nearly a decade.  The Golden Bears are third in the PSAC in runs (160), hits (275), RBIs (138) and stolen bases (40).  KU currently sits tied for second in the East Division standings, trailing West Chester by two games.

KU is coming off a loss in a doubleheader to West Chester last weekend.  The Golden Bears dropped the first game in extra-innings, 2-1, before falling in the second game 8-0 after five. 

The Golden Bears have been led on offense by freshman Sara Keeny (Warminster, Pa./William Tennent), who is hitting .481 on the season, the sixth best mark in Division II and currently the third-best single-season mark in KU history.  Keeny has added 12 RBIs, 28 runs scored and 17 stolen bases as one of the top-freshman performers in Division II.  She is second in the PSAC in steals and tied for fourth in runs scored.

Danielle Amato (Henderson, Nev./Coronado) is second on the team with a .378 average (13th in PSAC for players with at least 50 at-bats).  She has contributed a team-high 18 RBIs with three home runs and 18 runs scored on the year.  Gabby Tareila (Limerick, Pa./Spring-Ford) and Danielle Sienko (Philadelphia, Pa./William Penn Charter) are right behind her, with Tareila batting .361 and Sienko .357.  Tareila has added 14 RBIs while Sienko has chipped in 13.  Rachel Lawes (Reading, Pa./Governor Mifflin) helps round out the offense, hitting .315 with 12 RBIs and six steals.  All four players are in the middle of career-seasons. 
  
Kutztown has nine players batting at least .300 and seven batters with double-digit RBIs.

The pitching staff is led by Savannah Nierintz (Clifton Heights, Pa./Upper Darby), who is seventh in the PSAC with 10 wins and tied for 11th in ERA with a mark of 1.96.  Nierintz has thrown 11 complete-games, with two shutouts and two saves.  Teammate Bridget Newman (Ardmore, Pa./Haverford) also has a 1.96 ERA to go with a 4-1 record over seven starts.  The staff as a whole has the second-most strikeouts in the PSAC (97).    

Millersville (17-11, 4-2 PSAC) enters the series tied with Kutztown for second in the PSAC East division.  The Marauders are riding a two-game winning streak after sweeping Shippensburg in a doubleheader last Thursday.  MU has won eight of its past 11 games. 

Millersville had been led on offense by Mandy Hammond, who is hitting .432 with 10 RBIs.  Heather Lutz, Megan McCurdy and Brittany Smith are all hitting at least .318 with double-digit RBIs.  As a team, MU is fourth in the PSAC in hits (227) and sixth in on-base percentage (.350).  Brianna Androas (8-7, 2.18 ERA) and Cassidy Pinchorski (9-4, 3.59) are the workhorses of MU's pitching staff. 

Shippensburg (11-16, 2-4 PSAC) comes into the weekend fourth in the PSAC East.  SU is also on a two-game winning streak, taking a weekend doubleheader from East Stroudsburg Saturday. 

The Raiders have been led on offense by Tara Bicko.  Bicko is hitting .385 with seven RBIs and 17 runs scored.  Taylor Pattillo leads MU in home runs (6) and RBIs (21) to go with a .322 batting average.  Taryn Wilson leads Shippensburg's pitching staff, holding a 5-3 record with a 2.62 ERA over 13 appearances. 

Kutztown won the season-series against Millersville last season, three games to one.  The Golden Bears split with Shippensburg, with each team taking two games apiece.

KU has already swept Shippensburg in its home doubleheader earlier in the year, winning game one, 3-2, before following it up with a 4-3, game two win.  It is the first matchup between KU and MU this season.