Waynesburg Athletics By Ronald Brown
From April 21, 2022
The Waynesburg University softball team (20-7, 9-3 PAC) took on the Bearcats of St. Vincent College (17-5, 6-4) in a Conference doubleheader on Thursday, April 21. The Jackets won both games and moved up from third place to second in the PAC rankings.
The Jackets swarmed in and won the first game 4-0. It was a good game all around as they jumped out to take the lead in the first inning with a double from junior right-fielder Reghan Benschoter driving in two runs.
The Jackets didn’t stop there as they went on to score another run in the 3rd inning on an RBI triple from sophomore designated hitter Ella Brookman. The Jackets also went on to score another run in the 5th inning on an RBI single from junior catcher Brin Hunter.
The sharp fielding of the Jackets helped them win this one, as they committed no errors and allowed no one to cross the plate.
Contributing with the bats for the Jackets in this first game were freshman outfielder Mackenzie Kearns and junior catcher Brin Hunter who both went 2 for 3. Kearns had a double and a single and Hunter finished with two singles and a stolen base.
In the second game, the Jackets were given more of a fight as St. Vincent jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning. The Jackets fought back with a two-RBI double from Benschoter.
St. Vincent then took back the lead with a home run in the 4th inning. But then the Jackets then rallied back with a two-RBI triple from Benschoter again, who then scored on an error committed by St. Vincent.
“My mindset was I knew we were in a hole and I knew I needed to get a hit or at least a base hit to move the runners to at least get one and I needed to get a hit, Benschoter said. The junior went 2-for-3 with four RBI.
Freshman ace Sydney Wilson, who is one of the PAC leaders in ERA, pitched solid in both games in the first game giving up no runs and only four hits. She also pitched a full game in the second, improving her record to 12-4 as a starter.
“We stretched Sydney Wilson a little bit to throw both games, but she said she was ready to go and up for the challenge and we went with her” head coach Brett Shimek said. He was very proud of Wilson and the team’s win and performance in both games.
Coming into the game, both teams were at a stalemate for second place. This game was very crucial for both teams and was very meaningful.
“Two good teams battling it out,” Shimek said. “I think we played well. We played fundamentally sound, and we didn’t make a lot of mistakes. We had some really clutch base hits in both games and we pitched and played defense really well. Couldn’t be happier with where we’re at.”