SELINSGROVE, Pa. — With Easter break just around the corner, the Susquehanna University baseball and softball teams would love nothing more than to maintain the momentum that has helped both squads remain deep in the hunt for Commonwealth Conference playoff berths.
The baseball team has split each of its first three league doubleheaders to stand at 8-8 overall, 3-3 Commonwealth heading into a Tuesday twinbill against front-running Lebanon Valley (5-1 Commonwealth), while the softball squad will battle Juniata on Tuesday in a makeup of a tie game from March 28. The Crusader softball team will then travel to Albright for a Commonwealth double dip on Thursday in hopes of improving on their 6-3 league record that has the team in a tie for first place with Moravian and Lebanon Valley.
THE BASEBALL REPORT
Waking the Bats Up
After three unexpected days off due to rain, the Crusaders traveled to Grantham to battle the Messiah Falcons. Too bad the Crusaders bats didn’t wake up until the second game.
Messiah hurler Eli Walters retired the first 19 batters he faced before junior shortstop Lee Rogers (Londonderry, N.H./ Londonderry H.S.) reached on an error by second baseman Phillip Brown with one out in the seventh. Senior second baseman Chris Knickerbocker (Hampden, Maine/ Hampden Academy) ended the no-hitter as he knocked a single to right-center in the next at-bat. Still, Walters settled down to retire the next two batters and finish a 4-0 one-hitter for the Falcons.
The loss was Rogers’s first of the year, as he battled for six innings, giving up seven hits in six innings, and giving up only two earned runs. Rogers is now 2-1, with a 3.51 ERA in 25 2/3 innings. He has struck out 18 batters while walking only 10.
The Crusaders were undaunted, though, as they took the second game by a score of 6-3. Hosler led the team by scoring three times and going 2-for-3. Senior left fielder Mark Barnes (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg H.S.) went 1-for-3 and drove in two Crusader runs. Knickerbocker added two hits in his four at bats to aid the eight-hit attack.
The Crusaders took advantage of Messiah starter Derek Price’s second inning problems as Hosler and junior catcher Travis Zook (Belleville, Pa./Indian Valley H.S) hit back-to-back doubles. Both scored as Price threw a wild pitch and failed to retrieve the throw from the catcher as he covered home plate.
Junior right-hander Patrick Quillian (Nichols Hills, Okla./Casady H.S.) pitched four innings for the win, yielding three runs and four hits. Senior left-hander Josh Shipton (Mifflinburg, Pa./Mifflinburg H.S.) pitched the final three innings to save the game for Susquehanna, as he struck out four batters and only allowed two runners to reach base.
Youth Movement
Led by freshmen hurlers Adam Martin (Millersville, Pa./Penn Manor H.S.) and Nathan Trick (Montoursville, Pa./Montoursville H.S.), the Crusaders defeated the Bloomsburg Huskies 2-1 on Wednesday, April 3.
Martin started the game, pitching into the sixth inning, scattering seven hits, but giving up just one run. He also walked two and hit a batter, but kept the Huskies away from home plate just the same. Trick pitched 2 1/3 innings for the win, giving up three hits and walking one batter while not giving up a run.
Zook helped the Crusader pitchers by throwing out three would-be base stealers in the game. The defense did not err in the game, and also turned two double plays.
After falling behind 1-0 in the second, the Crusaders fought back in the sixth and seventh innings with single tallies. Hosler walked and advanced to second on a wild pitch in the sixth inning. After senior center fielder Josh Pahl (Northumberland, Pa./Shikellamy H.S.) grounded out to advance Hosler to third, sophomore pinch hitter Ben Clift (Downingtown, Pa./Blair Academy) knocked in Hosler on a single.
Freshman outfielder Gerohn Lanns (Pickering, Ont./Pickering H.S.) scored the winning run the next inning when Hosler hit a bases-loaded infield single to deep shortstop.
The Crusader bullpen shut down the Huskies in the eight and ninth innings. Shipton pitched to left-hander Brian Martin and got him to ground out. In three relief appearances this season, Shipton is 1-0 with one save and has a 0.00 ERA in 7 1/3 innings. He has struck out six and walked one in relief.
In the ninth, the Crusaders turned to closer Matt Springman (Montoursville/ Montoursville H.S.) to get his fourth save of the year. After putting two men on, Springman ended the game with a ground-ball double play to Knickerbocker.
THE SOFTBALL REPORT
The "Cardiac Crusaders" squeezed out a pair of dramatic victories last week to extend their unbeaten streak at home to seven games before suffering their first loss at the West Softball Field this year at the hands of Lebanon Valley (6-2) on Saturday.
Perhaps the most thrilling win of the season came in game two of a doubleheader sweep of Dickinson on Thursday, when sophomore first baseman Gretchen Anderson (Southington, Conn./Southington H.S.) laced a bases-loaded double with two outs in the bottom of the seventh to give Susquehanna a 5-4 victory over the Red Devils.
Just two days later, Anderson did it again as her infield single plated the winning run in the Crusaders' 7-6 nine-inning win over Lebanon Valley in game one of their Commonwealth Conference doubleheader on Saturday. Susquehanna rallied to tie the game in the bottom of the seventh inning with a pair of runs thanks to four Lebanon Valley errors.
The two hottest hitters on the team, however, are junior third baseman Shelly Zimmerman (Denver, Pa./Garden Spot H.S.) and sophomore left fielder Teresa Ely (Montrose, Pa./Montrose H.S.). Each player enters the week having hit safely in 12 consecutive games, and are ranked one-two on the team in batting average after finishing the eight-game Southern trip with averages around the .200 mark.
Zimmerman leads the team in a number of offensive categories, including batting average (.397), hits (27), doubles (4), triples (3), home runs (2), runs batted in (11), total bases (43) and slugging percentage (.632). Ely has also been solid at the plate for the Crusaders, batting .388 with 26 hits and eight runs scored batting out of the number-two spot in the lineup.
Anderson, though batting just .245, is tied with Zimmerman for the team lead in runs batted in with 11 and has knocked in the winning or tying run in Susquehanna's final at-bat three times this season. She has also excelled in the field with a .993 fielding percentage (one error in 152 chances at first base).
Several freshman have helped make an impact for the Crusaders this season. Center fielder Kelli Thompson (Hummelstown, Pa./Lower Dauphin H.S.) is batting .288 with five runs scored and two stolen bases while starting 19 of 20 games. Outfielder Becky Mann ( has been used as a part-time starter and pinch runner and is batting .364 with three runs scored in 14 games (eight starts). Outfielder Melissa Bird (Catawissa, Pa./Danville H.S.) is batting .356 and is third on the team with seven runs batted in while starting 15 games.
On the mound, senior righthander Kristen Hogan (Succasunna, N.J./Roxbury H.S.) has won six straight starts to improve her record to 9-2 with a 1.65 earned run average in 10 starts (all complete games). In 72 innings of work, Hogan has struck out 68 batters and walked just 15 while holding opponents to a .235 batting average.
Hogan surpassed one milestone and is approaching another in her illustrious Crusader career. She became the first Susquehanna pitcher to reach 400 career strikeouts on Saturday against Lebanon Valley (now at 407) and needs just two wins to tie the Crusader career mark of 43 set from 1983 to 1986 by Judy Shotlis.
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