BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – Following a 10-2 defeat in game one to snap its seven-game winning streak, the 15th-ranked East Stroudsburg University softball team bounced back with a 6-1 victory in game two on Wednesday afternoon at Jan Hutchison Field.
The Warriors (32-8, 14-4 PSAC East) now hold a two-game lead over Shippensburg for first place in the PSAC East after taking on Bloomsburg. The Huskies (21-14, 10-8 PSAC East) sit in fourth place after the split.
With 14 regular season games remaining, ESU freshman
Sarah Davenport broke the single-season program record for strikeouts with her sixth strikeout against the Huskies. She now 189 in just 107 innings of action, currently leading all of NCAA Division II in strikeouts per 7 innings. In 23 appearances, Davenport has recorded at least 10 strikeouts in nine outings.
Pitching Notables
- Davenport (W, 17-3) continued her stellar freshman season with a victory in game two. She allowed just three hits, gave up one run, while striking out 13 in the complete game win. She saw her scoreless streak snapped after 28.2 innings after an RBI single in the bottom of the 5th inning.
- Paige Zigmund (L, 14-3) started game one and pitched two-plus innings. She allowed four hits and three unearned runs, striking out three, while walking one.
- Abbie Landrum pitched the final 3.2 innings in game one, allowing three earned runs (7 total) and 10 hits.
- The 2024 season marks the fourth consecutive season ESU's single-season strikeout record has been broken. Katie Zaun fanned 166 batters in 2022 to break Monica Sobolesky's (2004) previous record of 154. Paige Zigmund broke Zaun's record last season with 186 punchouts.
Batting Notables
How It Happened – Game 1
- The contest went scoreless until the bottom of the 3rd. BU juiced the bases with an error, single, and a walk, as Landrum entered the contest. The Huskies went on to score four runs via a sacrifice fly, an RBI single, an error, and another RBI single.
- ESU got a run back in its next at-bats in the top of the 4th. Ridgell drove in Weirich with an RBI single, cutting the deficit to 4-1.
- Landrum kept the Huskies off the scoreboard in the bottom half of the inning, as ESU tacked on an additional run in the top of the 5th. Weirich connected on an RBI double to score Lipkins, as ESU trailed 4-2.
- The Warriors did not get any closer in game one, as Bloomsburg smacked a 3-run home run to take a 7-2 advantage.
- BU ended game one early with three runs in the bottom of the 6th. The Huskies tallied back-to-back RBI doubles and followed with an RBI single to reach the eight-run rule after five innings.
How It Happened – Game 2
- ESU regrouped and started the game two on the right foot, as Weirich sent a sacrifice fly to score Vicendese in the top of the 1st. Davenport was dealing, allowing just a single through the first three innings, while recording seven strikeouts early.
- The Warriors broke the game open in the top of the 4th, with five runs on five hits. Kate Donaghue (FC), Pritchard (2B), Lipkins (1B), and Vicendese (1B) drove in runs during the inning, along with Katie Master crossing home plate on a wild pitch.
- The Huskies snapped Davenport's impressive 28.1 inning scoreless streak in the bottom of the 5th. A one-out double and an RBI single allowed Bloomsburg's lone run to score.
- Davenport retired the final eight batters she faced and fired four consecutive strikeouts for her 17th win.
Up Next
- The Warriors (38-8, 14-4 PSAC East) head to West Virginia to face Shepherd (18-18, 8-10 PSAC East) on Friday. First pitches are scheduled for 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m.
