Box Scores - L 7-2 (9 inn.) / L 17-10
EAST STROUDSBURG - Kutztown's 7-2, nine-inning victory in the opener was the prelude to a 17-10 slugfest in the nightcap as the Golden Bears held off East Stroudsburg University for a pair of PSAC East softball wins on a cold, damp Tuesday afternoon at Zimbar Field.
Kutztown (38-7-1, 13-1) scored five runs in the top of the ninth in the first game to deny ESU's upset bid of the ninth-ranked team in Division II. ESU (18-17, 4-8) scored its runs in the first and second inning, on a leadoff home run by sophomore SS Brittany Racek and an RBI sacrifice bunt by freshman DH Caitlin Rosenbaum, before Kutztown tied it at 2-2 in the third on a home run by Kim Morrison.
That was all the scoring in the first eight innings, as ESU senior Jennifer Bensinger dualed with three Kutztown pitchers - starter Kaitlin Arbogast (0.2 IP, one run), Monica Glomb (3.1 IP, one run) and Mary Hoch (5.0 IP, no runs) who eventually earned the victory.
Krista Cameron drove in the go-ahead run for the Golden Bears in the ninth, the first blow in a big doubleheader for the Kutztown third baseman. Krista Tedjeske followed with an RBI double and Heather Hannum drilled a three-run homer to give Kutztown a 7-2 cushion and secure the victory.
In the second game, Kutztown pounded eight home runs - three by Cameron, two each by Hannum and NCAA Division II career leader Steph Denlinger, and one by Ashley Fitzgerald - to put away the Warriors in a game that was as competitive as possible until the fifth inning.
The Golden Bears jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first inning on the 75th career home run by Denlinger, who holds Division II records for home runs and runs batted in and tied the mark for career walks against the Warriors. ESU got the runs back in the bottom of the inning when Racek doubled and scored on a bunt by junior OF Kara Darcey, and freshman 3B Rachel Gieringer plated Darcey with an RBI double.
KU added another run in the third on Denlinger's second homer of the game, but the Warriors tied the score at 3-3 as Racek scored on a base hit by senior C Amanda Feist. Hannum's first home run of the game (and second of the day) gave Kutztown a 4-3 advantage in the fourth before ESU seemingly broke the game open.
The Warriors scored six runs in the fourth to take a 9-4 lead, with the big hits coming from the bats of Racek (two-run double) and Feist (three-run homer), while senior 1B Kerri Jakobsen and Rosenbaum also doubled and Darcey had an RBI single.
Kutztown wasn't done, however, as Fitzgerald and Cameron hit back-to-back homers after ESU pitched around Denlinger to open the fifth to quickly pull KU within 9-7. Denlinger had a two-run single later in the inning and Cameron closed the frame with a three-run shot, her second home run of the inning, to put 10 runs on the board in the fifth and make the score 14-9.
Hannum added to the lead with a solo homer in the sixth, while ESU scored its final run of the game in the bottom of the inning on an infield single by Gieringer that brought sophomore OF Alicea Ashe home from third.
Cameron completed the scoring with her third homer of the day, a two-run shot, which gave her six RBI in the game and seven on the afternoon. Denlinger was 3-for-4 with five RBI and scored four runs in the second game and Hannum had three home runs, five RBI and four runs in the doubleheader.
Racek led the Warriors at the plate, collecting four hits on the day including a 3-for-5 effort with two RBI and three runs in the second game. Darcey and sophomore OF Jamie Mingis both had two hits in game one and Feist and Gieringer had two hits in game two.
ESU hosts Shippensburg in its home finale on Friday at 2:30 p.m. and travels to Millersville on Saturday to complete the PSAC East schedule. The top three of the five teams in the division will make the PSAC playoffs, with the Warriors tied for third with West Chester at 4-8 entering the final week of the regular season.
