In her first at-bat during Game 2 of a doubleheader against Harvard on Sunday, sophomore Annie Kinsey showed her proficiency at the plate yet again.
In what was the last game of the season, Kinsey started things off for the Quakers with a solo home run in a contest that Penn went on to win, 8-0.
This was the finale of a weekend in which the Quakers won three of four games with a sweep at Dartmouth and a split against the Crimson.
With their eighteenth win, the squad tied the 25-year-old record for the most wins in a season in Penn softball history.
The weekend began with a 5-2 win in Game 1 on Saturday, and Game 2 featured a thirteen-inning battle that ended with the Quakers on top, 7-5.
Penn then went on to split with Harvard on Sunday -- Game 1 was the only loss of the weekend, 7-6.
Kinsey led the Quakers' offense, hitting over .500 for the weekend with four runs scored.
Kinsey's stand-out performance was complemented by that of fellow sophomore Christina Khosravi, who went 3-for-4 in the Harvard win with two runs, while driving in three.
"We had a lot of good performances offensively," Penn coach Leslie King said. "It was quite a challenging weekend for us, and I was just really thrilled that they put in that much effort and played as well as they did."
But ultimately, the games were won in the field as strong defensive and pitching performances prevented Dartmouth and Harvard (17-20, 6-6) from making a comeback.
King cited the tight defense as the main contributing factor to the much-needed wins.
"In the three games we won, we played outstanding defense and had good pitching," King said. "We have a very potent offense, and I've always said, if we can contain the other team, we're going to win games. That's basically what we were able to do in the three wins."
Freshman Emily Denstedt pitched a complete game for Penn in Game 1 against Dartmouth (12-22, 5-7 Ivy), allowing just four hits and two runs.
The Quakers (18-26, 5-9 Ivy) tried a different batting order, with Kinsey as the lead-off hitter and junior Stephanie Reichert in the number three spot.
Despite shaky defensive performances in Game 2 against the Big Green and the following game against the Crimson, Penn's defense rebounded for Sunday's second contest, making it difficult for the opposition to advance runners.
"Our infield got a lot of lead runners and a lot of outs at second and third," King said. "Instead of taking the easy out at first, we were taking the difficult chances and making them. That really, really made a difference."
This weekend rounds out a season for the Quakers that has seen many ups and downs.
Despite having yet another sub-.500 year, the team has shown promise offensively, with a combined batting average of nearly .300.
And that's not even counting the numerous individual achievements.
Reichert has also had a phenomenal year at the plate, breaking team records for most runs scored, most doubles hit and most home runs hit in a season.
Khosravi has also had a productive year offensively and recently broke the team record for the most hits in a single season.
And with a team that is only graduating one senior -- Jen Nichols -- Penn softball could be looking toward a promising future.
