MIDDLETOWN, Pa. – Penn State Harrisburg used some contagious hitting and an outstanding relief effort from Kara Boyd (Alexandria, PA/Juniata Valley) to pick up the team's second win of the young season; a 14-8 come-from-behind victory over Miami Hamilton on Thursday, Mar. 8. After being held scoreless in the team's three prior games, the ladies exploded with an 11-hit outburst and scored their highest run total of the year.
The sun was hot in Myrtle Beach, SC and so were the Lions' bats early on. Senior Emily Pae (Harrisburg, PA/Susquehanna) had a stellar day at the plate and singled in the Lions' first run of the contest in the top of the first inning. With runners on second and third, freshman Gabby Wolfe (New Milford, PA/Blue Ridge) laced a double to left center, scoring Pae and senior Paige Zechman (Robesania, PA/Conrad Weiser) to give her squad an early 3-0 advantage.
Miami Hamilton used a blue and white error to get on the scoreboard in the bottom of the first. Jessica Flick (Fairfield, OH/Fairfield) followed it up with an RBI groundout and cut the deficit to one run.
Their big inning came in the bottom of the second when the Harriers used a combination of hits, passed balls, a walk and an error to put five more runs on the board and give them their first lead of the game at 7-3.
Penn State Harrisburg chipped away a bit in the top of the third, scoring two runs on a Wolfe sacrifice fly to left field and a single by senior Brittany Kringer (Hazleton, PA/Hazleton). The tide really turned when Kringer moved to first base and Boyd entered the circle as the bottom of the stanza got underway.
The junior was lights out. She pitched the game's final five innings and surrendered just three hits, two walks and one unearned run to go along with her four strikeouts. While Boyd kept the deficit manageable, the sticks came to life again in the top of the sixth.
Senior Breanna Green (Turtlepoint, PA/Port Allegany) got the rally started with a pinch hit single and the blue and white took advantage of three ensuing Miami Hamilton errors. Junior Danielle Ringel (McKees Rock, PA/Sto-Rox) brought in Green with a single and two more runs scored on the second Harrier error of the inning to give Penn State Harrisburg its first lead since the opening stanza. Pae kept it going and delivered with another single that scored Zechman and Boyd and made it 10-7 Lions.
It was more of the same in the top of the seventh. A bases loaded walk of Ringel plated Kringer and after doubling earlier in the inning, senior Rachel Vettori (Palmyra, PA/Palmyra) came home on a wild pitch. Ringel and junior Katherine Bernardi (Fredericksburg, PA/Northern Lebanon) scored on another error, the Harriers' fifth of the game, to cap the Lions' scoring.
Miami Hamilton was able to tack on one last run in the bottom of the stanza but it proved far too little too late. After going three contests without scoring a single tally, Penn State Harrisburg's double-digit score fest was a welcome sight that helped get the blue and white back on track.
Pae was red hot at the plate. The Susquehanna grad went 3-5 and knocked in three RBIs to go along with her stolen base and two runs scored. Wolfe went 1-4 and also recorded three RBIs. Zechman scored a game-high three runs.
The Lions finished up their spring break in Myrtle Beach on Thursday afternoon. Now they return to Middletown for their home opener against Penn State Altoona on Thursday, Mar. 15.