Softball welcomes Lehigh to Warren

When the Penn softball team (9-14) hosts Lehigh (11-9) in a doubleheader at Warren Field later today, Becky Ranta will deliver the afternoon's first pitch. The Quakers' right-hander has come on strong of late, as she earned both Penn victories last weekend. Ranta now has a respectable 5-6 record to go along with her steadily decreasing 4.95 ERA. "I think at the beginning of the season, I was walking a lot of people and getting behind in the count," said the sophomore of her early struggles. "I think the whole team and myself have really picked it up." Penn coach Carol Kashow agreed with her pitcher's assessment, stating that throwing first-pitch strikes was essential in Ranta's turnaround. "She's starting to get ahead of batters," Kashow said. "She's really been efficient." On Saturday at Rider, Ranta went the distance in a 2-1 Red and Blue victory in which she scattered eight hits and struck out four. Her line on Sunday against Army was nearly identical. Ranta again pitched a complete game, surrendering only two earned runs and eight hits in 6-3 decision for Penn. Ranta has teamed with impressive frosh Nicki Borgstadt to create a solid 1-2 punch at the top of the Quakers' rotation. The two will both take the mound in today's doubleheader. Yet, Kashow stresses that all three phases of the game -- offense, defense, and pitching -- must click in order to be a successful ballclub. Fortunately for the Quakers, the glovework has dramatically improved since it exhibited some early-season rust on the team's Florida trip last month. And Penn's bats seem to have woken up as well. Junior co-captain Clarisa Apostol said that the ability to sustain rallies with key base hits was the most important difference she's noticed offensively. "I think the area we've most improved in is getting clutch hits," said the left fielder, who boasts a .309 batting average and eight RBIs to go along with a team-leading 11 runs scored. Helping out Apostol in the lineup is an unexpected source -- freshman Erin O'Brien. O'Brien has shown some power in the heart of Penn's batting order. The St. James, N.Y., native leads the club with two homers and 11 RBIs. "I've always had confidence in myself," said O'Brien, who said that she was not overwhelmed by being inserted into the starting lineup as a first-year player. "In the very beginning, I was a little nervous, but I just used that to my advantage." O'Brien has also earned high praise from her coach. "She's a very strong, focused young woman and she has a great deal of talent," Kashow said. "She's just a nice kid, so we're happy for her success." Penn will likely need contributions from players up and down the lineup for today's twinbill, which gets under way at 3 p.m. Last year's matchup with the Engineers resulted in a Red and Blue sweep in two high-scoring and highly competitive affairs. The Quakers downed Lehigh, 6-5, in the opener, and proceeded to win by a count of 11-8 in the second game on a cold afternoon in Bethlehem, P.A. "It was really kind of a barnburner, with lots of runs on both sides," Kashow said of last year's doubleheader. "They push a lot of runs across." The offense must be functioning at a high level, but the Quakers hope that Ranta can immediately set the tone on the mound in the opener. "She's pitched extremely well lately," Apostol said. "I think Becky is one of the anchors on this team."

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