STROUDSBURG, Pa.-Winners of six of its last eight and three in a row, the West Chester University softball team (26-17, 14-10) took to the road on Friday afternoon to square off against No. 14 East Stroudsburg (36-12, 19-8) in a key battle not only for positioning in the PSAC East but also in the Atlantic Region, as the season nears its final week. West Chester led for much of the day in game one but fell victim to a late-game comeback, falling by a 4-3 final before dropping the nightcap by a 5-1 final.

Game One: ESU 4 WCU 3

East Stroudsburg scored the first run of the game by either side in the home half of the third via a fielder's choice, but West Chester countered quickly with an RBI single by Mairead Hopkins (West Chester, Pa./Rustin) in the top of the fourth, tying the game at 1-1.

Casey Best (Wilmington, Del./Concord) followed Hopkins with a walk, which loaded the bases with two outs for Paige Marabell (Tunkhannock, Pa./Tunkhannock). Paige Zigmund won the latest installment of the battle of the Paige's, escaping the bases-loaded jam with a strikeout of Marabell to keep the score tied at 1-1 heading into the home fourth.

In the fifth, back-to-back singles by Emma Zoldi (Newtown, Pa./Council Rock North) and Madison Melvin (Tabernacle, N.J./Seneca) gave West Chester runners on the corners with one out, which led to the Golden Rams taking their first lead of the game on a sac fly to left by Kaitlyn Rittenbaugh (Donaldson, Pa./Pine Grove). Grace Aguilar (Frederica, Del./Lake Forest) kept the inning going with a single of her own but the Warriors escaped the jam to trail by just one (2-1) heading into the bottom of the fifth.

In the bottom of the sixth, East Stroudsburg threatened to tie the game and potentially retake the lead as the Warriors had runners on second and third with just one out in the frame. Danielle Ciliberto (Ambler, Pa./Wissahickon) got a crucial second out via her fifth strikeout of the afternoon before punching out Kaitlin Houser to preserve a 2-1 lead heading into the seventh.

In the top of the seventh, Rittenbaugh picked up her second RBI of the afternoon with a single up the middle, which scored Zoldi who had singled up the middle just two batters earlier. After the third straight one-out single allowed, ESU slowed things down a bit with a quick visit to the circle before Aguilar dug her in for her turn at the plate. This mound visit proved effective as Zigmund escaped the jam with two quick outs to keep the deficit at 3-1 heading into the bottom of the seventh.

Ciliberto once again allowed her first two batters of the inning to reach before loading the bases and eventually allowing ESU to score its second run of the game on an RBI single to center, cutting the deficit to 3-2. This also closed the book on Ciliberto as Makenzie Edwards (Atco, N.J./Hammonton) entered in relief to try and close out the game-one victory. Edwards got an important first out, but this came via a sac fly, which tied the game at 3-3. The Warriors completed their comeback just one batter later with a walk-off double as the hosts escaped with a 4-3 triumph to open the doubleheader.

Ciliberto (15-8) pitched well but suffered the loss in the opening game, allowing all four runs (two earned) on eight hits while walking one and striking out six. Edwards entered the game with a one-run lead and tried to close it out but was only able to get one out before the Warriors completed their late-game heroics.

Zigmund escaped with a victory after allowing three runs (two earned) on nine hits while walking one and striking out five to improve to 16-6.

Game Two: ESU 5 WCU 1

The nightcap followed a similar script. The first two innings were scoreless before West Chester jumped out to an early lead in the top of the third.

With the bases loaded and just one out in the third, Aguilar hit a groundball to short, which led to the second out of the inning at third, but not before Hailey Melvin (Tabernacle, N.J./Seneca) had scampered home to give the Golden Rams an early 1-0 lead.

Mary Picozzi (Collegeville, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) was sharp through her first 3.2 innings of work but encountered her first trouble of the afternoon in the fourth with two outs. ESU got a two-out single up the middle and followed this up with a walk, setting up the opportunity for Jada Smallwood to drive in a pair with her RBI double down the left-field line, giving ESU a 2-1 lead heading into the fifth.

East Stroudsburg tacked on two more runs in the home fifth, carrying a commanding 4-1 lead into the sixth. The Warriors tacked on another run in the sixth and eventually completed the doubleheader sweep by a 5-1 final on Friday afternoon.

Picozzi (3-1) got the start and worked into the fifth inning, allowing four runs (two earned) on six hits while walking one and striking out three before exiting for Ciliberto. Ciliberto escaped the fifth inning on seven pitches and finished the game in the circle, allowing one run on two hits while striking out one.

On the other side of the book, Sarah Davenport was excellent once again, scattering five hits and one run while striking out nine Golden Rams to improve to 11-3 on the year.

Up Next:

West Chester continues its road trip tomorrow with a trip down Interstate 80 to take on Bloomsburg in a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m.