QUAKERTOWN, Pa. –
Hannah Reimel (Warminster, Pa./William Tennent) lives for moments like that. The senior stepped up to the plate in a tie game with two outs and a runner on in the top of the seventh inning, knowing her team needed runs. Reimel delivered a two-out, two-run home run to give her team a 13-11 lead, one which
Haley Gravish (Hamburg, Pa./Hamburg) finished in the bottom-half as Kutztown softball defeated Shippensburg Thursday morning in a winner's bracket game at Veterans Park in Quakertown.
In a matchup of unbeaten teams in the field and the No. 3 and No. 4 teams in the Atlantic Region, the Golden Bears (33-20 overall) had the last and final laugh in an exciting, back-and-forth, thrilling game that took all of two hours to finish.
Trailing 11-10 heading into the seventh after the Raiders (33-18) stormed back with six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, the Maroon and Gold had their backs against the wall with two outs from the first two batters of the frame.
Naya Darnowski (Manchester, N.J./Manchester Township) kept the hopes alive with a double to left center field and then came around to tie the score after another double by
Emily Henn (Matamoras, Pa./Delaware Valley). Then up stepped the seasoned veteran in Reimel, who took a pitch over the left field wall for what proved to be the game-winning hit.
"I just love those types of moments," said Reimel. "I just go up there and don't think. Just kind of black out. I love hitting with the game on the line and stepping up to deliver for my team is all I want to do. It felt so good to help us get that win."
Just as the game had gone through the first six innings, Shippensburg threatened and put the first two batters on base in the bottom of the seventh. After Gravish induced a fly out to the third batter, Raiders catcher, Morgan Lindsay, who homered twice earlier in the game and had three long balls against the Golden Bears in the regular season finale last Saturday, came to the plate.
While many outside of the playing field thought KU should walk Lindsay and make someone else try to beat them, Gravish wanted to pitch to the senior. And the junior pitcher got her to foul out to
Morgan Slomkowski (Toms River, N.J./Toms River East) at third base on three pitches for a second big out. With the tying run still at second and the winning run at the plate, Gravish finished the job and recorded another foul out to secure the win.
"Haley told [head] coach [
Judy Lawes] that she wanted to pitch to her (Lindsay)," Reimel said. "She was up for the challenge and got her out. She pitched a heck of a game and really battled."
Gravish ended up throwing 158 pitches, a career-high.
After a scoreless first inning, no other inning went without a run. Kutztown got out to an early, sizeable lead with four runs in the top of the second and three more in the third to go up 7-0. Slomkowski and
Brianna Stocklin (Deptford, N.J./Deptford Township) each doubled in runs and
Alexa Stevens (Covington Township, Pa./North Pocono) had an RBI single all in the second, and
Brianna Hughes (Hatboro, Pa./Upper Moreland) ripped a three-run home run to center field to highlight the third.
Lindsay and Brianna Wilmot both connected on long balls in the third and four innings, respectively, and the Raiders trailed 7-3.
But the KU bats got right back after it in the fifth as Stevens hit a two-run HR and Henn singled in a run and the Golden Bears found themselves ahead 10-3.
Just when it looked like the game would be decided, even in mercy rule fashion, Shippensburg answered with two runs in the fifth and then six in the sixth.
Kutztown will now take on West Chester Friday morning at 10 a.m., back at Veterans Park, in the winner's bracket final. The winner of that game will advance to the championship game on Saturday.
