Box Scores
L 3-2 (10 inn.)
L 1-0

Season recap with Coach Fuduric

SHIPPENSBURG – Junior Laura Suits threw two complete games, holding Shippensburg to three earned runs on nine hits on the afternoon, but the Lady Raiders prevailed in a pair of one-run games as East Stroudsburg University's 2013 softball season concluded on Saturday afternoon.

Shippensburg (30-9, 12-4), ranked No. 20 in the NFCA coaches poll, won the opener 3-2 in 10 innings, and used a solo home run by Rachel Shumway after a 15-pitch at bat in the fifth inning for a 1-0 win in the second game.

Sophomore 2B Jamie Smith hit a game-tying home run with two outs in the fifth inning of game one, the first of her career, for ESU (18-20, 4-12).

Junior catcher Rebecca Smith finished the season ranked fifth at ESU in slugging percentage (.613), tied for second with 18 extra-base hits, tied for third with seven home runs and tied for eighth with 73 total bases.

Suits threw 15.2 innings on the afternoon, recording 12 strikeouts and three walks, for her 10th and 11th complete games of the season.

Game 1

Jamie Smith tied the game at 2-2 with her homer in the fifth, and neither team scored again until the 10th, when Kiersten Darhower hit a two-out single to score the “international tiebreaker” runner from third base after a sacrifice bunt for the game-winning hit for Shippensburg.

ESU opened the scoring in the second on a two-out single by freshman SS Haley Thomas, who was 5-for-6 with five RBI in a doubleheader against Kutztown on Friday. Sophomore OF Kasey Meckes and sophomore OF Cara Woods both singled to start the inning.

Shippensburg bounced back with two in the third, and ESU left two runners on base in the top of the fourth before Smith tied it in the fifth.

Suits stranded the go-ahead run at third in the bottom of the fifth, then pitched 1-2-3 innings in the sixth and seventh to send the game to extra innings. ESU had a chance to score the go-ahead run in the top of the 10th after a sacrifice bunt moved freshman OF Sierra Wagner to third, but Ship reliever Emily Estep (5.0 IP, 1 hit, 7 strikeouts) got out of it.

Game 2

Makenzie Lynn held ESU to two hits, a two-out double by freshman 3B Kellie Mignoli in the second inning and a leadoff single by Jamie Smith in the sixth.

Shumway's home run with two outs in the fifth, on the 15th pitch of the at bat, accounted for the only scoring.

Suits held Shippensburg to three hits over 6.0 innings, struck out three and walked one. She threw 9.2 innings in the opener and struck out nine, tied for a season-high and two off her career-high.


Game Notes

* Suits led ESU's pitchers in ERA (3.07), innings (116.1), strikeouts (74) and opponents batting average (.277). She completed 11 of her 15 starts and pitched in 25 games.

* Suits moved into 9th on ESU's career strikeout list with 163.

* Rebecca Smith hit .336 with 10 doubles, 1 triple and 7 home runs for her 18 extra-base hits. She also led the Warriors with 24 RBI and 26 runs.

* Fr. OF Sierra Wagner hit .309, ranks 3rd in ESU's freshman record book in runs (21) and 4th in on-base percentage (.370) and hits (38).

* So. OF Kasey Meckes finished with a .306 average, followed by Woods (.290) and So. 1B Cara McNeil (.281). McNeil was second on the Warriors with 18 RBI.

* Sr. OF Jennifer Denaro was hit by 15 pitches, 2nd-most behind Shannon Dietrich (16) in 2007. She also drew 13 walks and had a team-high .417 on-base percentage.