MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. – After a rough outing against King's in which the Lions committed six errors, Penn State Harrisburg exploded offensively and exacted revenge in a 14-0 romp over Penn State Hazleton on Wednesday, Mar. 6. The Blue & White forced a split in doubleheader action for the third consecutive day.
Senior captain Kara Boyd (Alexandria, Pa. / Juniata Valley) was stellar in her third outing of the week, throwing a one-hit gem against the opposing Lions. To date, Boyd is 3-0 and has struck out 21 batters in addition to giving up just six hits.
Harrisburg started strong against King's in the day's first contest, putting runners on second and third base in the top of the first despite failing to score them. Sophomore captain Gabrielle Wolfe (New Milford, Pa. / Blue Ridge) put down the Monarchs quickly in the bottom of the stanza.
King's got two in the next inning and four more in the third before the Lions fielding fell apart in the fourth. Penn State Harrisburg committed four errors in the bottom half of the stanza, leading to eight runs.
The ladies took stock of their subpar performance in game number one and made Penn State Hazleton pay in the second outing of the day. Boyd turned in her best offensive performance of the young season, going 4-4 with three singles, a double and four runs scored. Senior Katherine Bernardi (Fredericksburg, Pa. / Northern Lebanon) was also perfect from the plate, going 3-3 with a game-high five RBIs. Freshman outfielder Rachel Fisher (Lebanon, Pa. / Cedar Crest) was also strong at the plate as she went 3-4 with two doubles and three runs scored.
Boyd started things off by doubling in the bottom of the first. Fisher reached base on an error and Boyd took advantage, scoring to put Harrisburg on the board first. Fisher scored on a throwing error two batters later. With runners on second and third, Bernardi laced a double, scoring freshmen Sydney Eelman (Lititz, Pa. / Warwick) and Rieley Loch (Madison Township, Pa. / North Pocono).
The Lions went right back to work in the bottom of the second when Loch notched two RBIs when she doubled to right field and scored Boyd and Fisher. Bernardi drove her in thanks to another double, this one to straightaway center, and then scored herself on another Hazleton error. After two innings, the Blue & White led comfortably, 8-0.
But Penn State Harrisburg wasn't done. In the bottom of the third, the ladies got a two-out rally going when Eelman's single scored Boyd for the third time. Bernardi stayed hot and picked up two more RBIs thanks to a single that scored Wolfe and Fisher. Freshman infielder Jennifer Bear (Lebanon, Pa. / Cedar Crest) topped it off with a single to the right side that plated Eelman and Bernardi.
Boyd quickly worked through Hazleton in the top of the fourth and Wolfe added some insurance in the bottom half with an RBI groundout that scored Boyd from third base.
Hazleton's lone hit came in the top of the fifth. Boyd shook it off and went back to work, picking up two strikeouts and a ground ball out. She sealed the victory with a nasty changeup that left the opposing batter swinging way out in front.
The Lions exacted a bit of revenge after Hazleton downed the Blue & White 4-2 in the season opener on Monday afternoon. Penn State Harrisburg's record currently sits at 3-3 on the season. The ladies' final day of Spring Break action takes place Thursday, Mar. 7 when they take on York (Pa.) and Eastern. Harrisburg blanked Eastern 8-0 on Monday.
