CHARLESTON, W.V. — The Shippensburg University softball team rallied in the top of the seventh by scoring four runs to defeat No. 6 seed Kutztown, 5-4, in a faceoff of league rivals at the 2023 NCAA Division II Softball Championships Atlantic Region 2 Championship on a humid Friday morning at UC Softball Field.

Shippensburg (34-18) is now in the Atlantic Regional 2 Final for the first time since 2014. SU played catchup the entire game until the top of the seventh inning when the Raiders broke through against All-Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Second Team Pitcher Haley Gravish.
 
Kutztown (30-25) took an early lead with three hits and three runs scored in the bottom of the second. An RBI single to left and a two-run double gave the Golden Bears a 3-0 cushion.
 
The Raiders had opportunities to score some runs early but left runners stranded on base; SU had four left on base through the four innings of play before a run was scored in the top of the fifth.
 
Sophomore Ally Weaver had her first hit of the day as she hit a line drive single to center field. The PSAC Freshman of the Year, Caitlyn Martell hit a single to left field to put Weaver in scoring position. The PSAC Athlete of the Year and NFCA All-Region star, graduate Hannah Marsteller, ripped an RBI single to center field to bring Weaver home and put a run on the board. It was the first run that Gravish allowed in the tournament.
 
KU added a run in the bottom of the fifth with an RBI single by Sarah Harvat to take a 4-1 lead. The Golden Bears retired the Raiders 1-2-3 in the top of the sixth and SU had the bottom of the lineup coming up heading into the top of the seventh.
 
With a one-out rally, Weaver singled to right field to break through against Gravish pitching, which led to a single to center field by junior Taylor Myers followed by a single to right field by Martell to load the bases. Marsteller ripped a long ball to left field that almost went over the fence to drive Weaver and Myers home.
 
Junior Morgan Lindsay continued the scoring with an RBI single to right center to bring Martell home and to tie the score, 4-4. Junior Alyssa Nehlen came in clutch with an RBI groundout for the 5-4 lead.
 
The four-run comeback in the top of the seventh inning is believed SU's largest-ever comeback in an NCAA Tournament game.
 
In the bottom of the seventh, the Raiders needed three outs to secure a trip to the championship round. Redshirt-senior Maddie Uschock who had entered in in the bottom of the fifth inning, shut down KU's hitting and only allowed one hit in 2.1 innings of work. Uschock got the first two outs with a groundout to Sullivan and a strikeout looking.
 
The Golden Bears, not giving up, got a single to left field to put a runner on base, followed by a walk to put the go-ahead run on base. However, Uschock forced Gravish to fly out to Nehlen for the third out.
 
Shippensburg will now face the winner of No. 6 Kutztown and No. 3 Charleston tomorrow at 1 p.m. Charleston defeated Davis and Elkins in the loser's bracket.