Redemption for Softball

Less than 24 hours after a disappointing doubleheader loss to Temple in its home opener, the Penn softball team found itself exactly where it wanted to be -- back on the field. The Quakers (7-12) rebounded from Wednesday's twinbill, in which they were shut out twice, to defeat La Salle, 7-5, in an exciting nine-inning game yesterday afternoon. "I think, given our record, that the win was very important," Penn co-captain Lindsay Wagner said. A doubleheader had been scheduled at La Salle (3-16), but the length of the first game, coupled with the persistent rain, forced the cancellation of the nightcap. The Red and Blue were pleased to have successfully battled the elements, escaping with a victory after falling behind the Explorers in the early going. "We started off by digging ourselves a hole," Penn designated hitter Lisa McNeeley said. Quakers starting pitcher Nicki Borgstadt, who hurled all nine innings for the win, was victimized yesterday by some early-inning troubles. La Salle put two hits together to score two runs in the first and padded its lead to 3-0 in the third. The Red and Blue, who at that point were going on 18 consecutive scoreless innings, finally crossed home plate in the top of the fourth. With two outs and no one on, freshman Erin O'Brien slammed a solo homer to left field. "It was a sweet home run -- a line drive over the fence," Wagner said. "She's just got so much power that she can put it over like that." La Salle would get that run right back, however, as Explorers third baseman Alexis Schneider returned the favor by hitting a solo blast to center field. Perhaps sparked by O'Brien's home run, the Quakers bats came alive in the sixth inning. For the first time in a while, the Red and Blue were able to rally and push runners along in key at bats. "We managed to put [our hits] all together in a row," McNeeley said. "That's what helped us, and we didn't look back after the sixth." Penn sophomore shortstop Crista Farrell, who went 3-for-5 yesterday, beat out an infield single to get things rolling in the sixth. Junior co-captain Clarisa Apostol singled to right, moving Farrell to second, before outfielder Deb Kowalchuk sent both runners home when she reached on an error by La Salle left fielder Amanda Clark. McNeeley further exploited Clark's miscue -- one of five La Salle errors on the game -- when she drilled a double to left to drive in Kowalchuk, tying the game at four. The two teams would each exchange lone runs before extra innings were required. But all along, one of the Penn keys was Borgstadt's resilience, as she surrendered only one run and two hits after the fourth inning. "She's very composed on the mound," McNeeley said. "She does a great job of not getting upset after a walk or a home run. For another pitcher, that can be a big problem." And Borgstadt's ability to keep her team in the ball game certainly paid off yesterday. After a scoreless eighth, Penn struck again in the ninth to score what would become the winning run, while adding one for insurance as well. In accordance with international softball rules for extra innings, a runner is placed on second base to begin each frame. First baseman Veronica Richardson was that person for Penn in the ninth, but she would later be thrown out at home by La Salle pitcher Missy Rorke on a controversial call. Unfazed, the Quakers were still able to rally. Junior second baseman Jamie Pallas drove in catcher Dani Landolt to put Penn up, 6-5. And two batters later, after another base hit by Farrell, Apostol lofted a sacrifice fly to center field to make it 7-5. Borgstadt worked an efficient bottom half of the ninth, and the Quakers walked away with an emotional and hard-fought win. "I think it was very important that we played [La Salle] in our annex before the Florida trip, and we played them very well," McNeeley remembered. "So we knew coming in that this team was very beatable."

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