Brandywine Blanks Fayette; Moves Into PSUAC Winners Bracket

DUBOIS, Pa. – Alexa Anderson (West Deptford, N.J./West Deptford) crushed a two-run home run and went 4-for-4 at the plate, while Katie DeStefano (Kennett Square, Pa./Kennett) twirled a four-hit shutout, pacing No. 2 Penn State Brandywine to a 10-0, five-inning victory over No. 1 Penn State Fayette in the opening game of the Penn State University Athletic Conference Softball Tournament Sunday morning.

Anderson, whose sixth home run of the season gave Brandywine a 2-0 lead just three batters into the game, drove in three runs and scored twice. Rachel Cherubini (Pottstown, Pa./Pottsgrove) added three hits, three RBI and three runs scored, while Arianna Segich (Ocean City, N.J./Ocean City) collected a pair of hits, stole three bases and crossed home three times.

DeStefano scattered four hits, all singles, over five innings, while striking out seven to extend her own single-season record with her 18^th victory of the spring. The shutout was the 15^th of her four-year career and the first in the postseason.

After building a 2-0 lead through one inning, Brandywine took advantage of three Fayette errors in the second, doubling the margin to 4-0.

The Lions tacked on four more runs, scoring all four with two outs in the third. Nikki Velez (Gloucester, N.J./Gloucester City) reached on an error and came around to score on Maddie Malfara's (Ardsley, Pa./Abington) double. Two batters later, Cherubini added a base hit that plated two runs and Anderson capped the frame by driving in Cherubini with a single.

Brandywine rounded out the scoring in the fifth inning as Cherubini singled in Segich and later crossed home via a wild pitch.

Brandywine (23-8-1), which has now won 10 consecutive PSUAC Tournament games, will play a winners bracket game Sunday night at 7:00 pm against either Penn State Schuylkill or Penn State Beaver.