WEST CHESTER, Pa.- The West Chester University softball team (12-7, 1-1) returned to action at home on Tuesday afternoon for its PSAC East opening doubleheader vs rival Millersville (10-9, 1-1). West Chester dropped game one by a 10-9 final after a three-run home run in the top of the seventh but answered back in a big way in the nightcap, rolling to a 12-3 victory in five innings to split its first PSAC East doubleheader of the season.

Grace Aguilar (Frederica, Del./Lake Forest) and Casey Best (Wilmington, Del./Concord) impressed offensively throughout the doubleheader as Aguilar went 5-for-6 at the plate with four runs and four RBI, while Best was 3-for-5 with six RBI and three runs scored after hitting what at the time was a go-ahead grand slam in the sixth inning of game one.

Game One: Millersville 10 WCU 9

West Chester and Millersville traded runs early, as both sides scratched across a run in the second. The Golden Rams inched out to a 2-1 lead in the third after an RBI single off the bat of Grace Aguilar (Frederica, Del./Lake Forest).

This lead stood until the fifth inning when Millersville exploded for five runs on three hits to take a 6-2 lead.

Millersville extended its lead one run further in the top of the sixth, jumping out to a 6-2 lead over the homestanding Golden Rams.

Down to its final six outs, West Chester mounted an impressive comeback in the home half of the sixth, scoring six runs on seven hits, including a grand slam by Casey Best (Wilmington, Del./Concord) to take an 8-7 lead. West Chester also picked up a pair of RBI singles by Hailey Melvin (Tabernacle, N.J./Seneca) and Mairead Hopkins (West Chester, Pa./Rustin) to take a one-run lead into the seventh.

After entering in relief in the sixth, Mary Picozzi (Collegeville, Pa./Lansdale Catholic) suddenly found herself in line for the victory heading into the seventh. Picozzi got her first out quickly with a strikeout, but Millersville mounted a comeback of its own, using a three-run home run down the left field line to take a 10-8 lead over the Golden Rams.

Danielle Ciliberto (Ambler, Pa./Wissahickon) (7-4) got the start and took the loss in the circle, surrendering seven runs, including one earned on eight hits, while walking a pair and striking out three.
Alex Schaefer got the start and worked the first 5.2 innings, allowing all eight runs on 14 hits while walking a pair and striking out eight. Morgan Crutcher (2-3) entered in relief of Schaefer after Best's grand slam and picked up the victory, getting the final out of the sixth before surviving a late-game comeback bid by the Golden Rams in the seventh to earn her second victory of the year in a 10-9 decision for the Marauders.

West Chester fought back in the seventh and scored one of the two runs it needed with an RBI single from Lauryn Kane (Plymouth Meeting, Pa./Plymouth Whitemarsh), but Crutcher got her third out on a grounder back to the circle to escape with a 10-9 victory.

Game Two: WCU 12 Millersville 3

Aleese Angelo gave Millersville an early two-run lead in the top of the first, but West Chester countered quickly with a three-run first inning, including an RBI single by Aguilar and a two-run home run to left from Kane to take a 3-2 lead into the second.

West Chester added four more runs to its lead in the second with a two-RBI single from Melvin, followed immediately by a two-run home run by Aguilar to take a 7-2 lead into the third.
West Chester tacked on two more runs in the third thanks to an RBI single by Madison Melvin, which scored Best, and a wild pitch, which brought home Tess Kearney (Hatboro, Pa./Hatboro-Horsham), who had doubled to left center earlier in the inning.

Leading 9-2 heading into the top of the fourth, West Chester saw its lead shrink as the Marauders got one run back via an RBI double, but Makenzie Edwards (Atco, N.J./Hammonton) ensured one run was all the visitors would get out of this rally, carrying a 9-3 lead into the home half.

Best continued her big day in the home half with a two-RBI double to score Kane and Meg Wolfe (Pine Grove, Pa./Pine Grove), who had singled and walked to start the inning. This gave West Chester an 11-3 lead with no outs in the fifth. Kearney reached on an error, which also moved Best to third and allowed her to score moments later on a sac fly off the bat of Rittenbaugh, giving West Chester an insurance run heading into the fifth.

In the fifth, Edwards made short work of the Marauders, retiring the visitors to finish off a 12-3 win in five innings for the Golden Rams.

After starting her day in relief in game one, Edwards improved to 4-1 on the year in the nightcap. She scattered three runs on four hits while striking out four to help West Chester pick up an important split to open East play.

For Millersville, Morgan Crutcher, who earned the game one victory, suffered the loss in the nightcap. She allowed four runs on five hits in 1.1 innings of work. She was one of four pitchers the Marauders turned to in hopes of an answer for the Golden Ram offense in the nightcap.

Up Next:

West Chester returns to action on Friday afternoon at Lock Haven beginning at 2 p.m.