Softball goes over .500

Penn's softball team won two of its three games over the weekend to improve to 8-7 on the season. Michelle Zaptin is Penn's ace in the hole. The Penn softball team's usual ace, Suzanne Arbogast, gave up six hits and two walks in a 7-4 complete-game loss to La Salle in the first game of Friday's doubleheader. But Zaptin atoned for Arbogast's subpar performance by winning both of her starts this weekend. Penn won two-of-three games overall this weekend. After splitting a pair of games on Friday at La Salle, Penn (8-7) moved over .500 for the first time this season yesterday with a 9-3 road win over Rider. "It was a great feeling beating [Rider]," Zaptin said. "All the upperclassmen were thinking about the 18-2 loss to them last year." Zaptin recorded both wins over the weekend, tying her with Arbogast for the team lead in victories with four. She was at her best against La Salle, giving up just five hits in a 3-0 whitewashing. "I was confident that if I didn't walk anyone I'd keep us in the game," said Zaptin, who walked just two Explorers. "I stayed low the whole game with my pitches." Jamie Hodjila and Jen Moore provided the offense for Penn in the game. Hodjila had an RBI single in the third to put the Quakers on the board while Moore knocked in Penn's final two runs in the fifth. Outfielder Julie Reiss provided the big blow for La Salle in the first game of the doubleheader. The Explorers, down 1-0, had the bases loaded in the third inning but Arbogast looked like she would get out of trouble. Reiss then hit a clutch double on a two-out, two-strike pitch to clear the bases and give La Salle a 3-1 lead. Penn pulled within one on a Clarisa Apostol RBI single in the fourth but a three-run Explorer fifth gave La Salle a 6-2 lead and put the game out of reach. The Explorers went on to a 7-4 win. "I think that if we score four runs we should be able to win given our defense and pitching," Penn coach Carol Kashow said. "It's a shame we wasted a decent offensive effort." Penn's offense was even more potent yesterday against Rider, however. The Quakers scored nine runs against the Broncs, including five in the first two innings. Sherryl Fodera got Penn off to a quick start with a two-run double in the first. The Quakers extended their lead with three in the second. Apostol, Hodjila and Fodera all had RBI singles in the effort. "We kind of settled back down after that hot start," Kashow said. "We didn't keep the intensity up and defensive miscues got them back in it." Two of those defensive miscues came on a grounder to Moore in the fifth. After Christine Fenyus dropped Moore's throw to first, Fenyus picked up the ball and tossed it to Fodera at third, who proceeded to throw it into centerfield trying to nail a Rider runner at second. This defensive lapse by the Quakers keyed a three-run inning for the Broncs, bringing them within two runs at 5-3. But Rider would get no closer. Moore led off the Penn seventh with a double, as the Quakers put four more runs on the board to roll to a 9-3 victory. Zaptin picked up the win for Penn with five solid innings while Arbogast pitched the last two innings for the save. The Quakers were scheduled for a doubleheader with Rider but the second game was rained out. As has been the case all year, the Quakers received key contributions from their bench players this weekend, especially in the last two innings of the Rider game. Sarah Dominic had a pinch-hit single in the sixth and Kari Feinberg walked and scored as a pinch hitter in the seventh. "It's nice when you bring someone in and they get the job done," Kashow said. "I'm really pleased with our team effort. Whether somebody is in the game or coming in off the bench, they're contributing." After a 2-5 start to the season, the Quakers have now won six of their last eight games. Zaptin has been a big part of the turnaround. She has won three consecutive decisions and now holds a 4-2 record in six starts.