Brandywine Finishes Off PSUAC Tournament Victory Over Schuylkill

ASTON, Pa. -- After waiting one full week to complete its suspended game against Penn State Schuylkill, the Penn State Brandywine softball team got the two runs it needed to win via run rule in the bottom of the fifth inning as the Lions defeated Schuylkill 8-0 in the Penn State University Athletic Conference Tournament on Friday afternoon.

Brandywine built a 6-0 lead last Friday before rain put a halt to the game. When the teams picked up in the top of the fourth inning this afternoon, Crystal Cassario (Levittown, Pa./Pennsbury) fired two more scoreless innings to complete the shutout, while Karly Rees (Oxford, Pa./Oxford) delivered a game-ending, two-run single during the bottom of the fifth.

Cassario twirled her fourth complete game shutout of the season to up her record to 8-2. She limited Schuylkill to just two hits, while striking out five over five innings of work.

Schuylkill errors allowed Lexi Bussenger (Bangor, Pa./Bangor) and Meghan Ferry (Gloucester City, N.J./Gloucester City) to reach base in the fifth before Rees chopped a single down the left field line that plated both runners.

Playing in a steady rain last Friday, Bussenger opened the bottom of the first inning by speeding around the bases for a leadoff, inside-the-park home run. Brandywine added two more first inning runs as Jess James (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury) singled and scored on Rees' sacrifice fly and Farrell Everett (Wynnewood, Pa./Haverford) worked a bases-loaded walk, pushing Ferry across.

The Lions added to their lead in the second when Bussenger walked, stole second and scored on a Ferry single. Two batters later, Rees' double allowed Ferry to cross home, upping the margin to 5-0. Bussenger added a run-scoring base hit in the third, making the count 6-0 before rain suspended the game.

Rees finished 3-for-3 with four RBI at the plate, while Bussenger had two hits, scored three times and drove in two runs. James added two knocks and Ferry scored three runs.

Brandywine (31-8) will make its way to State College for the remainder of the PSUAC Tournament. The top-seeded Lions will face the winner of the Penn State Schuylkill-Penn State DuBois game at 3:00 PM at Nittany Lion Softball Park. The tournament championship is slated for Monday at noon.