WAYNESBURG, Pa. (April 25) – The Waynesburg University softball team hosted Allegheny for a high stakes Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) doubleheader on Tuesday. With playoff positioning on the line, the Yellow Jackets rode a pair of stellar pitching performances to a crucial sweep of the visiting Gators.
Waynesburg's (25-7, 14-4) two latest victories moved the Jackets into second place in the conference standings and put them into position to clinch the top seed for the upcoming PAC tournament.
If the home team needed any further motivation than playoff positioning, it got it in the top of the first inning. With a runner on and two outs on the board, the Yellow Jacket infield got an Allegheny (24-10, 14-6) base runner caught in a rundown on a steal attempt. The runner barreled into star sophomore pitcher
Sydney Wilson (Pentress, W.Va. / Clay-Battelle) to attempt to break up the play. Wilson held onto the ball to record the out but remained on the turf for several minutes, before limping off in obvious pain.
However, Wilson refused to leave the game and despite limping through the rest of the contest, put together a fine showing in the circle. The reigning PAC Pitcher of the Year allowed just two hits, both singles, over seven painful innings of work. The second-year southpaw didn't walk a batter and struck out seven, while yielding just one unearned run.
Speaking of unearned runs, Waynesburg picked up one in the bottom of the first to grab an early 1-0 edge when junior
Ella Brookman (Washington, Pa. / Chartiers-Houston) tripled off the top of the right field wall and crossed home plate thanks to an error during the at-bat of freshman
Alyssa Rager (Washington, Pa. / Trinity).
The Jackets plated the eventual game-winning run in the second, when junior
Kayla Gratton (Monroeville, Pa. / Gateway) singled home freshman
Kassidy Trimble (Parkersburg, W.Va. / Parkersburg South) to give the home team a 2-0 lead.
The Gators picked up their lone run of game one in the top of the third. Waynesburg answered with a bang in the bottom of the fifth thanks to sophomore
Grace Higgins (Canonsburg, Pa. / Canon-McMillan), who teed off on a solo homerun. Higgins' third of the year reestablished her team's two-run lead and provided valuable insurance.
The Jackets sealed up the win in the sixth. Freshman
Jasmine Demaske (Waynesburg, Pa. / Jefferson-Morgan) connected on her team and PAC-leading seventh triple of the season with two outs on the board. Gratton capped a three-for-three showing at the dish with a run-scoring single that brought about the eventual final score.
Wilson put the final touches on her inspiring starting effort by inducing three-straight groundouts in the top of the seventh.
Gratton posted three of Waynesburg's seven base hits in the opener. Higgins added a two-for-three effort.
Freshman
Autumn Stemple (Morgantown, W.Va. / University) got the ball for game two and kept the Gators in check while working with the slimmest of margins over seven innings. The first-year righty yielded just three hits, two of which were singles, as the Jackets pulled out a 2-1 victory.
Once again, Waynesburg jumped out to an early lead. With the bases loaded in the bottom of the first, junior third baseman
Sydney Senay (Canonsburg, Pa. / Canon-McMillan) recorded a productive out that allowed Higgins to score the game's first run.
After a scoreless second inning, the Gators logged their only run of the late contest on a solo homerun in the third. After Stemple worked her way out of a no-out, bases-loaded situation in the in the top of the fourth, Gratton collected her second game-winning hit in as many games when she slapped a two-out single that sent Demaske sprinting home from third in the bottom of the frame.
Stemple and the Jacket defense made the one-run lead hold up by allowing just one hit over the final three innings. That single was the only ball to leave the infield over the stretch, and Stemple recorded three of the final nine outs by way of strikeouts.
The last of the rookie righty's six punchouts allowed her to reach 100 strikeouts in 2023. She improved to 10-3 on the season.
Higgins and Brookman both posted two hits to pace the Jackets' six-hit showing in the late contest.
Tuesday's sweep sets up a monster doubleheader for Waynesburg on Saturday. Not only will the Yellow Jackets celebrate senior day before squaring off with Westminster, but the top seed of the PAC tournament will likely be decided. First pitch of the twin bill is scheduled to be thrown at 1 p.m.
