Lady Raiders Rally to Edge East Stroudsburg 3-2 in 11 Innings
May 12, 2006
SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. - Freshman Chantal Gross (Hanna, Ind./South Central) hit an RBI-single with the bases loaded in the bottom of the 11th inning to lift Shippensburg to a 3-2 come-from-behind victory over East Stroudsburg in game seven of the Mid-Atlantic Region Championship on Friday at Robb Field.
The Lady Raiders (42-18) will face Bloomsburg at 2:00 p.m., on Saturday.
Shippensburg senior Kelley Tiesi (Baltimore, Md./Catholic School of Baltimore) came on in relief and hurled 7.2 scorless innings, allowing the Lady Raiders to send the game into extra innings.
For Tiesi, it was her 99th career victory, leaving her only one shy of becoming the sixth player in NCAA Division II history with 100 wins and 1,000 strikeouts. It was also her second victory in as many games in the regional tournament. In 14.2 innings, she has recorded 19 strikeouts and surrendered only one run.
Tiesi scattered six hits and struck out eight, raising her career total to 1,079 strikeouts, only two shy of fifth on the all-time NCAA Division II list.
Gross' game-winning single was her team-leading third hit of the afternoon as she finished 3-for-5 with two RBI. She also got the Lady Raiders started in the second inning when she scored junior Ali Morris (Warrington, Pa./Central Bucks East) with a single to right field.
However, East Stroudsburg took a 2-1 lead with a pair of runs in the top of the fourth. After back-to-back doubles from Eliza Morosco and Lindsey Kost, Tiesi entered in relief of sophomore Danielle Shields (Laurel, Del./Sussex Tech) and promptly recorded the final two outs of the inning with consecutive strikeouts.
Shippensburg knotted the game at 2-2 in the bottom of the sixth when freshman Kelly Nelson (Warminster, Pa./William Tennant) singled to score freshman Becky Brensinger (Chambersburg, Pa./Chambersburg) from second who was pinch-running for freshman Rachell Wedell (Baltimore, Md./Northeast).
After having only two base runners from the seventh through the 10th inning, the Lady Raiders received a lead-off single from Nelson to start the 11th. Morris and junior Katie Heatley (York, Pa./Dallastown) quickly loaded the bases after being hit by pitches, setting the stage for Gross' walk-off single.
Christine Wontroba suffered the loss for East Stroudsburg, totaling 10 innings and facing the first two batters of the 11th before giving way to Kristen Halvorsen. Wontroba was accountable for three runs on eight hits.
Along with Gross' three hits, junior Heather Chantiles (Harrisburg, Pa./Central Dauphin) added a pair of singles, giving her 109 hits on the season, moving her into fourth-place on the all-time Division II single-season list. Lisa Erickson of Cal St. Northridge is next on the list with 113.
East Stroudsburg (27-26) will take on California (Pa.) on Saturday morning at 10:00 a.m.
- Lady Raider Softball -
