ALTOONA, Pa. – Penn State Behrend and Penn State Altoona, the top two teams in the Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC), squared off on Saturday afternoon with each securing a win for the split doubleheader.
The Behrend Lions (14-10, 8-2 AMCC) handed Altoona (23-3, 9-1 AMCC) its first conference loss in game one, 8-1, before the Lions made up for their lack of hitting in the opener to post a 17-4 victory (5 innings) in the nightcap.
Julie Heinl (Pittsburgh, PA/North Allegheny) continues to produce strong performances in the circle for Behrend. She pitched all seven innings, giving up four hits and one run. Heinl also struck out three in the win.
The Lions pushed four runs across the plate in the opening inning of game one to take the lead that would not relinquish.
A lead-off walk by Kelsey Fuller (Albion, PA/Northwestern) started off the frame and Heinl singled before Amy Greene (Erie, PA/Strong Vincent) hit her fourth home run of the season and 16th for her career for a 3-0 lead with just one out. Kayla Miller (Springboro, PA/Conneaut Valley) scored Callie Markovich (Edinboro, PA/Northwestern) with a single to right field for the four-run advantage out of the gate.
Behrend made it 6-0 with two runs in the fourth. Sydney Sherrieb (Washington, PA/Trinity) singled up the middle and went from first to home on a double by Fuller for the first run. Fuller then scored on a throwing error to give the Lions a comfortable lead.
Altoona, who only managed four hits in game one, got two in the fifth and avoided the shut out with a run by Brittany Smith off Kelly Chambers double.
In the top of the sixth, Behrend plated two more thanks to Sherrieb's double and Ashley Gruber's (Burton, OH/Berkshire) two RBI single to center.
Altoona went from four hits and one run to 19 hits and 17 runs in the second to come away with the split. The Lions scored 10 runs in the first and proceeded to score in at least one run in the remaining three innings.
Pitcher Jackie Smith, who lost on the hill in game one, went 4-for-4 with two RBIS and two runs in the second game. Chambers also had four hits and three RBIs.
Behrend scored a run in each inning except the fifth. Chelsi Riordan (Conneaut Valley, PA/Linesville) smacked her first collegiate home run in the fourth. The Lions went through four pitchers with the loss going to Fuller.
Behrend returns to action on Tuesday against Westminster. The doubleheader begins at 3:30 p.m.
