DeStefano And Steffen Claim PSUAC Weekly Awards

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pennsylvania -- Penn State Brandywine freshmen Katie DeStefano (Kennett Square, Pa./Kennett) and Katy Steffen (Downingtown, Pa./Downingtown) swept the Pennsylvania State University Athletic Conference weekly softball awards as DeStefano earned pitcher of the week and Steffen claimed hitter of the week accolades on Tuesday.

DeStefano earned her first collegiate victory after firing a one-hit shutout against Penn State Mont Alto in game one of Sunday's doubleheader. She struck out 12, including the side during the second and third innings, and fanned eight-straight batters between the first and fourth frames.

DeStefano, whose 12 strikeouts were one shy of the school record, also earned a save in game two against Mont Alto. She entered with the bases loaded and no outs in the sixth inning, but worked out of the jam, as the Lions claimed a 15-8 victory.

DeStefano owns a 3.50 earned run average and 23 strikeouts in 24.0 innings this spring.

Steffen blasted a pinch-hit, three-run home run with two outs during the fifth inning of game two against Mont Alto, breaking open what was a one-run game. She knocked in another run with a base hit in the seventh.

Overall, she collected three hits in five at-bats, while driving in seven runs and scoring three times.

Steffen leads Brandywine with nine RBI and is tied for the team lead in hits (8) and extra-base hits (4). She also owns a .333 batting average and has scored six runs.

Brandywine faces the University of Valley Forge on Wednesday at 3:00 pm.