KUTZTOWN, Pa. – No. 23 Kutztown opened its 2026 regular season the first weekend of Feb., and won three of its four games down in Pembroke, N.C. Senior third baseman Morgan Slomkowski (Toms River, N.J./Toms River East) had a big part in that, leading the lineup to 20 runs in the four games. For her success, Slomkowski was named this season's first Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Eastern Division Athlete of the Week, announced Tuesday.
 
Slomkowski went 7-for-12 across four games in three days, collecting six RBIs and a pair of runs as the 16th-ranked Golden Bears got their season started with a 3-1 record. The senior had three doubles and a pair of walks while absorbing two hit by pitches at the plate, helping contribute to her .688 on-base percentage. She was perfect from the field on the North Carolina trip, making 11 defensive assists and recording four putouts while not committing an error from the third base side.
 
Slomkowski had her best day at the plate in a 2-for-3 performance with a double, a pair of RBIs, a run, and a hit by pitch in Kutztown's 6-0 shutout victory over Chowan. She aided the Golden Bears to three season-opening wins, including a shutout and a one-run victory in the latter two games.
 
Kutztown heads even further south this weekend as it takes the diamond for the second weekend of the season so far, competing in the Francis Marion Patriot Invitational in Florence, S.C. KU first takes on Flagler this Saturday, Feb. 21, at 1 p.m., then plays host Francis Marion at 3 p.m. On Sunday, the Golden Bears battle the Patriots at 11 a.m., before finishing off the weekend with the Saints at 1 p.m.