MIDDLETOWN, Pa. – Penn State Harrisburg softball wrapped up the regular season by splitting with North Eastern Athletic Conference (NEAC) foe Penn College at Courtney Pollock Memorial Field on Sunday afternoon, May 2. The visitors came away with a 5-1 win in the opening contest before the Lions responded with an 8-5 victory in the nightcap.

GAME 1

The Blue & White struggled to get the bats going in game one and dropped the opener of Sunday's conference doubleheader by a 5-1 margin to Penn College. Delaney Nevius was the lone Penn State Harrisburg player to reach base more than once in the first outing.

The Wildcats got off to a strong start, scoring three runs on three hits and a walk in the top of the first inning before tacking on another in the top of the third and one more in the top of the fourth.

Penn State Harrisburg finally broke through in the bottom of the fourth when a Regan Englehart RBI groundout drove in Steph Reider after she led off the frame with a double to right field and Nevius moved her along with a single through the right side.

Unfortunately for the Lions, they were unable to muster another hit in the final three stanzas and Penn College held on for the game one victory.

GAME 2

Penn State Harrisburg put up crooked numbers in each of the first two innings and never looked back in an 8-5 victory over Penn College in the second outing of Sunday's conference doubleheader. Steph Reider had three hits, including a two-run home run and a double, while Courtney Fleisher and Madelyn Krantz were hot at the dish as well.

After Fleisher got three quick outs inside the circle to being the game, she and Krysten Moore led off the bottom of the first with back-to-back bunt singles. Reider singled to left field and an ensuing Penn College error allowed two runs to score. Before the inning was through, Sierra Dixon drove in another run with a two-out, RBI single.

The Wildcats cut the deficit to two in the top of the second but the Blue & White responded with another big number in the bottom half. Krantz doubled to drive in Rylee Tineri and Fleisher and following a Penn College pitching change, Reider launched a two-run shot over the fence in left center to push the advantage to 7-1.

After the visitors cut the deficit to five in the top of the third, Penn State Harrisburg tacked on an insurance run in the bottom of the fourth when Delaney Nevius singled to center field, driving in Samantha Weaver from second base in the process.

Penn College used three hits and a pair of walks to plate three runs in the top of the fifth but Mary-Kate Penczkowski spelled Fleisher on the rubber and worked out of trouble before stranding three Wildcat runners on base in the top of the sixth. She retired the visitors in order to close out the seventh and seal the victory for the Blue & White.

NOTABLES:

- With the split, Penn State Harrisburg improved to 11-10-1 on the season and 11-9 in conference play.

- Delaney Nevius finished 2-for-3 in game one, while Regan Englehart recorded the team's lone RBI.

- Steph Reider and Emma Einarson each doubled in the opener.

- Courtney Fleisher got the win in game two after going four innings, while Mary-Kate Penczkowski earned the save after allowing just one hit in three innings thrown.

- Reider went 3-for-4 with a home run, a double, three RBI, and two runs scored in the second game.

- Fleisher had a multi-hit outing in game two with a double and two runs scored.

- Madelyn Krantz doubled and drove in two runs in the nightcap.

- Nevius and Sierra Dixon also drove in runs in the second contest.

WHO'S NEXT?

The Lions will take part in the NEAC Tournament Semifinal Round next weekend. Their opponent and location of their first series will be announced later this week.