Softball sweeps Ursinus Bears in double header: Hurlers Aileen Reilly and Morgan Clauser blank Ursinus in back to back wins
By Elizabeth Hilfrank, Staff Writer
Senior Stephanie Zengel became the second person in Centennial Conference history to attain fifty career doubles in the Bullets double header against Ursinus.
The Gettysburg softball team swept seventh-ranked Ursinus College in a double header Sunday, defeating the Bears 3-0 in the first and 5-0 in the second.
The two pitchers of the games, sophomore Aileen Reilly and first-year Morgan Clauser allowed a total of only five hits in the combined games.
Reilly achieved her eleventh win Sunday, and this statistic places her in the number one standing for the Centennial Conference. She also holds a number one placement in strikeouts, with a total of sixty-eight thus far. The wins brought Reilly up to four shut outs in her season.
Reilly was awarded the title of Centennial Conference Pitcher of the Week after her twenty strike out streak over the course of the twenty-five innings played during the team’s trip to the Fastpitch Dreams Classic in Myrtle Beach over spring break.
At the start of the season, the conference saw her as key returnee due to her election to the All Centennial Conference first team last year.
Clauser enters her first collegiate season placed second in the conference standings for number of wins (nine) while also holding a number one seed in earned run average.
Pitching is not the only area that contributes to Gettysburg’s top standing record of 20-4 and 7-1 within the conference.
“Today’s games were made up of a total team effort with strong defense, great pitching, and timely hits,” said sophomore Wendy Folfas. “We have great team dynamics, respect for each other and confidence in each other’s abilities.”
Folfas contributed to Sunday’s success with two run scoring hits. She was also a Centennial Conference player of the week during the spring break trip.
In other first place conference standings, senior Stephanie Zengel reigns prominent with a .447 batting average. Scoring a double on Sunday, Zengel became the second person in Centennial Conference history to attain fifty career doubles.
Zengel, who was named the Centennial Conference Player of the Year last year, was the Conference’s player of the week March 28, as she hit a home run, three RBIs, four runs and three doubles during the Bullets’ four games that week.
Not to mention junior Jamie Abell ranks first for runs batted in, with a total of twenty-two for the season. Abell was the Centennial Conference athlete of the week April 4.
Sophomore Mykaela Twitchell ranks in a six-way tie for third in the top ten list with three home runs this season. Two of those out-of-the-park hits were Sunday.
As the season reaches its peak, the team aims to maintain its work effort that has brought them so much success thus far.
“Each student athlete contributes daily to our success through their training and commitment to our team first mentality,” said head coach Annette Shepard. “As we begin to face tougher teams those two ingredients are vital to our moving forward.”
The team has six games left in the season before playoffs begin.
“Our next six opponents will be a challenge and it’s one our team is looking forward to,” said coach Shepherd.
At the start of the season, the Bullets were voted the Conference favorite as eight of the nine Conference coaches voted them number one.
The team hopes for the prediction to come true.
“The team is really motivated to get back to Conferences,” said junior Samantha Misurell. “Last year we lost in the finals and we’re using that motivation to win it all this year.”
Misurell hit a double Sunday to aid in the win.
“We got a taste of Conferences last year, but now we want to taste what a championship feels like,” Misurell said.
The Bullets will head to Annville, PA this Tuesday, April 12 for a double header against Lebanon Valley College at 3:00 p.m. and 5:30 p.m.
