MANSFIELD, Pa. – Kutztown softball led the entire way both games in taking care of Mansfield for two victories Monday afternoon in a Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference East Division doubleheader. It was a makeup from a rain out, previously scheduled for Saturday.
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The Golden Bears (13-11 overall, 7-1 PSAC East) won the opener 7-2 and then doubled up their score and made quick work of the Mounties (9-15, 0-12) in the nightcap, winning 14-2, for their fifth win in-a-row.
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Sarah Harvey (Swanton, Vt./Missisquoi Valley Union) and
Brianna Stocklin (Deptford, N.J./Deptford Township) each finished with four hits on the day, with the latter recording her 100th career hit as just a sophomore. Stocklin also scored four runs and had two RBIs, while Harvey scored two runs and had three RBIs and started game one inside the circle.
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The Kutztown lineup combined for 27 hits, including a season-best 18 in game two.
Kate Ostaszewski (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan),
Hannah Reimel (Warminster, Pa./William Tennent) and
Sarah Harvat (Bangor, Pa./Bangor) all had three hits total.
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Like her sister did in game one,
Natalee Harvey (Swanton, Vt./Missisquoi Valley Union) started game two and threw all five innings, allowing just four hits and two runs, while striking out six to earn her third victory of the year.
Amanda Slabicki (Langhorne, Pa./Neshaminy) recorded her first collegiate win, coming on in relief in the fourth inning of game one.
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Kutztown is right back out there for a doubleheader as it hosts Millersville in PSAC East action tomorrow, April 4, with game one beginning at 2:30 p.m.
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Kutztown 7, Mansfield 2
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Kutztown, which hadn't played since a doubleheader sweep of Lock Haven last Wednesday, March 29, because of rain, came out firing offensively, scoring three runs in its first at-bats. Stocklin led off with a single to right and then scored two batters later on a double by Ostaszewski, the 50th of her career, fourth-most in program history. Later in the inning,
Kristin Geesey (Bainbridge, Pa./Elizabethtown) and Reimel had back-to-back run-scoring singles to push the lead to 3-0.
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Mansfield got on the scoreboard with a run in the bottom of the third. KU answered with two runs in the top of the fourth highlighted by an RBI sacrifice fly from Stocklin and a bases loaded walk by Harvey.
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After the Mounties got one back in the fifth, the Maroon and Gold tacked on two more in the seventh. Harvat had the big hit, a one-out, RBI triple, the first of this season and second of her career.
Jenna Martinez (Oracle, Ariz./Canyon del Oro) then recorded her second hit in as many games and third of the season, a run-scoring single up the middle that brought home Harvat.
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Kutztown 14, Mansfield 2 (5 inn.)
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Natalee Harvey (Swanton, Vt./Missisquoi Valley Union) shutout Mansfield over the course of the first three innings, while Kutztown had three runners touch home.
Sophia Collins (Lansdale, Pa./North Penn) picked up her second his this season in the top of the second, one which brought Geesey home for the first run of the game. KU scored two runs in both the third and fourth innings and found itself ahead 5-2 heading to the top of the fifth.
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The Golden Bears hit around the lineup and had 14 batters come to the plate in a nine-run fifth inning. There were nine hits, all happened with one out after the Mounties got the leadoff out. Harvat, Geesey,
Aysha Gibbs (Mount Joy, Pa./Donegal),
Alexa Stevens (Covington Township, Pa./North Pocono) and Stocklin all singled in consecutive at-bats.
Naya Darnowski (Manchester, N.J./Manchester Township) then doubled. After Ostaszewski singled the next batter,
Sarah Harvey (Swanton, Vt./Missisquoi Valley Union) connected on a two-run home run to left center field. Reimel and
Jessica Iavarone (Miller Place, N.Y./Miller Place) walked and then
Jenna Piatkiewicz (Fogelsville, Pa./Parkland) ripped an RBI single, her first career hit, to cap the KU scoring. All was done with one out.
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Harvey had the first two Mounties reach base safely in the bottom of the fifth, but retired the next three batters to finish off the game.
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