Brandywine Goes Deep Four Times In Sweep; James Joins 100-Hit Club

ASTON, Pa. – Penn State Brandywine's offense launched four home runs as part of a 19-run day as the Lions swept Penn State New Kensington by scores of 9-2 and 10-1 on Friday evening to claim a key Penn State University Athletics Conference softball sweep. Jess James (Yardley, Pa./Pennsbury) became the 12^th player in team history to record 100 career hits during game one.

Game One: Penn State Brandywine 9, Penn State New Kensington 2

Brandywine went deep twice during a six-run third inning and claimed a 9-2 victory during the opener.

Tied 1-1 entering the bottom of the third, Kaylee Mushinski (Allentown, N.J./Allentown) put Brandywine on top with her team-leading four home run of the season, a two-run shot over the left field fence. Three batters later, James made the score 4-1 with a run-scoring double and Crystal Cassario (Levittown, Pa./Pennsbury) followed with a three-run home run to push the Lions' lead to six.

New Kensington got a run back in the fifth, but Cassario answered with two more Brandywine runs, doubling in James and Karly Rees (Oxford, Pa./Oxford). James' 100^th hit set up the runs as she extended the inning with a two-out single down the left field line.

Cassario was 2-for-2 with six RBI at the plate and worked all seven innings in the circle to claim her sixth win of the spring. She recorded a pair of strikeouts, while scattering nine hits and yielding two runs.

James and Mushinski both tallied two hits, while Rees was 3-for-4 with three runs scored.

Game Two: Penn State Brandywine 10, Penn State Hazleton 1

Eight players had a hit in game two and Brandywine ran away with a 10-1 victory over New Kensington to finish off the sweep.

Lexi Bussenger (Bangor, Pa/Bangor) legged out an infield single, stole two bases and scored via throwing error to start a two-run first inning. Two batters later, Mushinski lifted her second home run of the day to left-center field.

James reached via error and scored on Anna Caporale's (Westampton, N.J./Rancocas Valley Regional) ground ball in the third before Brandywine added five more markers in the third. Rees blasted a long, three-run home run to left field, while Meghan Ferry (Gloucester City, N.J./Gloucester City) added a run-scoring base hit.

James collected a sacrifice fly and Caporale tacked on the final run of the night with a double to cap the scoring in the fourth.

Mushinski tripled and homered in three at-bats, while Rees had two hits, three RBI and two runs scored and Bussenger stoled three bases. April Lewandowski (Atco, N.J./Hammonton) held New Kensington to one run on five hits and struck out five to earn her league-leading eighth win of the season.

Brandywine (18-6, 9-1 PSUAC) hosts Penn State Beaver Saturday afternoon beginning at 1:00 PM at Marple Newtown High School.