Game 1
Game 2

SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - The Shippensburg softball team honored seniors Amanda Bardo, Liz Good, Jill Kirby, Dani Shields and Sarah Stengl before the final home games of the season Friday afternoon against the Golden Bears of Kutztown. The five seniors have been a part of 140 victories and advanced to three NCAA Division II Mid-Atlantic Region Championships over the course of their time at Shippensburg.

Kutztown (42-10, 19-3 PSAC East), ranked No. 17 in the latest NFCA poll, swept the doubleheader from the Lady Raiders by scores of 7-0 and 9-0. Their starter, Cait Arbogast, pitched both games and fashioned 12 shutout innings while scattering four hits between the two games.

Shippensburg (26-24, 9-13 PSAC East) remained in the race for the third and final playoff spot from the Eastern Division as West Chester dropped both games of a doubleheader at Bloomsburg on Friday. The Golden Rams remain one game ahead of the Lady Raiders in fourth place.

East Stroudsburg (17-28, 11-13 PSAC East) is currently in third place but has finished its regular season schedule. From our understanding, West Chester (31-18, 10-12 PSAC East) can secure the third and final playoff spot from the Eastern Division tomorrow if it wins one of its two games at Kutztown.

In order to advance to its sixth PSAC Championship in the last seven seasons, Shippensburg will need to win both games of its season-ending doubleheader tomorrow at Mansfield. Mansfield (12-19, 6-16 PSAC East) swept a doubleheader at Shippensburg on April 11 by scores of 1-0 and 7-6.

The Lady Raiders need West Chester to lose both of its games because if the two teams finish with identical records, the Golden Rams win the tiebreaker having taken 3-of-4 this year from Shippensburg. East Stroudsburg would lose the tiebreaker with Shippensburg because the Lady Raiders swept the Warriors this season.

In Game 1 of Friday's doubleheader, Shields started and threw 4.2 innings, striking out four batters. Kirby entered in relief and finished the game, recording a strikeout over the final 2.1 innings. Shippensburg's lone hit of the game was off the bat of junior Rachelle Wedell, who doubled to left-center field in the third innings.

Kirby started and Game 2 and threw 2.1 innings before freshman Dana Ward entered in relief. Offensively, junior Chelsea Carson was 2-for-2, while freshman Jill Mullan was 1-for-1 with a walk.

For Kutztown, Steph Denlinger hit her 13th home run of the season by crushing a ball off the fencing to the adjacent Robb Sports Complex press box and finished the day with three hits and four RBIs. The Golden Bears totaled 28 hits against Shippensburg in the two games of the doubleheader.

Tomorrow's first pitch from Mansfield begins at 1 p.m.