WASHINGTON, Pa. -- The Washington & Jefferson College softball team opened the 2023 season with a doubleheader sweep of Penn State Greater Allegheny in a non-conference twinbill Thursday afternoon at Brooks Park. The Presidents took game one by a 10-1 score before completing the sweep with 11-3 decision in another five-inning run-rule win in game two.
Game One - W&J 10, Penn State Greater Allegheny 1 (5 Innings)
The Presidents pounded out 10 runs on 10 hits in the opener. W&J pushed out to a 3-0 lead in the second inning, using an RBI double by
Deanna Gratton (Monroeville, Pa./Gateway)
and a two-run home run by
Sydney Petrowski (Lemont Furnace, Pa./Connellsville).
The Presidents pushed four unearned runs across in the third inning.
Emily Schmucker (Latrobe, Pa./Latrobe) doubled in a run during the frame.
Julia DiPietro-Harvey (Pittsburgh, Pa./Taylor Allderdice) tripled to lead off the fourth and later scored on a RBI single by
Peyton Eckenrode (York Haven, Pa./Northeastern). Later in the fourth,
Austine Kinney (Brunswick, Ohio/Brunswick) doubled in Eckenrode and
Mackenzie Boyd (Beaver, Pa./Beaver).
That was plenty of run support for Petrowski, who allowed one run on three hits in five innings of work to log the win.
Schmucker and Eckenrode finished with two hits apiece to pace the offense in the opener.
Game Two - W&J 11, Penn State Greater Allegheny 3 (5 Innings)
In game two, the Presidents offense picked up right where it left off. W&J plated a pair of runs in the first inning, which included a RBI single by
Kasey Scears (Washington, Pa./Chartiers Houston).
Schmucker cleared the bases with a double to stretch the W&J lead to 5-0 after the second inning.
The big swing of the day came from
Izzy DiPietro-Harvey (Pittsburgh, Pa./Taylor Allderdice), who launched a 3-2 pitch over the left field fence for a grand slam in the bottom of the third inning. The
Izzy DiPietro-Harvey homer was the first hit of her collegiate career and came in her first collegiate start after she missed all of her freshman season.
PSGA pushed three runs across the plate in the top of the fourth to cut the W&J lead to 9-3. However, Eckenrode scored Gratton with a double in the bottom of the fourth and Scears doubled home Boyd in the fifth to finish off the 11-3 victory.
Jordan Hinz (Ellicott City, Md./Centennial) picked up the victory in the circle. Hinz allowed three runs on six hits in four innings. Hinz struck out five and walked one.
Kaylee Witner (Freeland, Pa./MMI Preparatory School) tossed a scoreless fifth inning with two strikeouts in her collegiate debut.
The Presidents finished with seven extra base hits in game two, which included six doubles.
Schmucker finished 3-for-4 in game two with two doubles and two RBI. Schmucker totaled five hits (four doubles) in seven at bats Thursday. Scears and Gratton added multi-hit efforts in the game two win.
ON DECK: W&J travels to Central Florida this weekend for The PFX Spring Games. W&J will play 10 games during its week stay in the Sunshine State. The Presidents face Manchester (Ind.) and Knox College (Ill.) in Winter Haven, Fla. on Sunday, March 19.
