Encarnacion No Hits Valley Forge

ASTON, Pa. – Olivia Encarnacion (Glenolden, Pa./Interboro) threw the second no-hitter in Penn State Brandywine softball history, highlighting the Lions' doubleheader sweep of Valley Forge on Wednesday afternoon. Brandywine routed the Patriots 19-0 in game one before Encarnacion shut down Valley Forge in an 11-0 game two triumph.

Encarnacion had retired all 12 batters she faced entering the final inning, but a one-out walk ended her bid for a perfect game. She bounced back to strike out the final two Patriot batters, upping her total to five overall for the game. Of the 10 balls Valley Forge put in play against Encarnacion, just one reached the outfield, a fly out to right fielder Kim Palermo (Collingdale, Pa./Academy Park) in the second.

Valley Forge did not have much success at the plate in game one either as Katie DeStefano (Kennett Square, Pa./Kennett) fired a one-hit shutout, the sixth one-hitter of her two-year career. She struck out four, including the side in the fifth, and surrendered just a first-inning single.

Brandywine needed just nine hits as it took advantage of 12 walks and six errors committed by the Patriots in the opener.

Maddie Malfara (Ardsley, Pa./Abington) doubled twice, while Julie Foeldes (Kendall Park, N.J./South Brunswick) recorded a double and a triple. Steph Harvey (Berlin, N.J./Eastern Regional), this week's PSUAC Player of the Week, and Robyn Gannon (Lansdowne, Pa./Archbishop Prendergast) also added two hits.

Foeldes drove in three runs, while seven Lions recorded two RBI. Gannon and Jen Patterson (Springfield, Pa./Springfield) both crossed home three times.

Brandywine scored just one run in the first, but plated 10 runs in the second and tacked on eight more one frame later.

After a scoreless first inning in game two, Brandywine put six runs on the board in the second and added two more in the third.

DeStefano singled in Harvey and Palermo followed with an RBI base hit. Gannon added a two-run double and later scored via Valley Forge error. An inside-the-park two run home run to right-center field off the bat of DeStefano accounted for both third inning scores.

Palermo added a second run-scoring single in the fourth and DeStefano collected her fourth RBI of the game with a sacrifice fly.

DeStefano, Palermo and Harvey all recorded a pair of hits in the nightcap. Harvey and DeStefano also scored twice, while Gannon drove in two and crossed home twice.

Brandywine (9-11, 4-0 PSUAC) visits Penn State Hazleton with first place in the PSUAC on the line Thursday afternoon at 2:00 pm.