Bloomsburg Advances at NCAA Softball Regional; Hutchinson Wins 1,000th
SHIPPENSBURG-Bloomsburg University moved into the semifinals of the NCAA Division II Mid-Atlantic Regional championships with a pair of wins on Thursday. The Huskies beat Elizabeth City State 8-0 in five innings and Lock Haven 10-1 in six innings. The win over Lock Haven was also the 1,000th victory in the softball coaching career of Bloomsburg's Jan Hutchinson.
In game one of the day, the Huskies got an 8-0 win over Elizabeth city State of North Carolina. In the game Huskies' pitcher Jaime Wilson (Olyphant/Bishop O'Hara) took a perfect game into the fourth inning and finished with a no-hitter. Wilson, who earlier this season threw a perfect game against Mansfield, finished with 12 strikeouts. The post-season no-hitter is the first for the Huskies since 1995 when April Paoli tossed one against Southern Indiana.
Offensively, the Huskies got all the runs they needed in the second inning when they plated three runs. Freshman Tiff Corliss (Lewisburg/Lewisburg) hit a two-run homer after Laurel Koster (Whitney Point, NY/Cicero North) reached on an error leading off the inning. Later in the inning, Jill Homyak (Lehighton/Martian Catholic) walked and stole second, then scored on a single by Amanda Breon (Bellefonte/Bellefonte).
In the fourth inning the Huskies scored four times to extend its lead to 7-0. Two runs in the inning scored on an error, while Breon added an RBI triple and Dee Wolfe (Milton/Milton) a sacrifice fly.
Bloomsburg capped the scoring and ended the game when Jess Snader scored on an RBI double by Sara Roba (Emmaus/Emmaus).
Bloomsburg started quickly in game two getting two runs in the top of the first. With one out, Kelly Zarski (Danville/Danville) and Wolfe both singled putting runners at first and second. Roba then followed with a double off the right centerfield fence to score Zarski with Wolfe moving to third. Wolfe then scored on a wild pitch for a 2-0 lead.
The Huskies added to their lead with a run in the top of the third. After loading the bases to open the inning, the Huskies scored a one out run when Koster hit into a force play at home. However, on the throw to try and double Koster, the throw was wide with Zarski coming in to score for a 3-0 lead.
In the top of the fourth inning, Bloomsburg extended its lead by scoring five times. Alyson Taylor (Jersey Shore/Jersey Shore) led off with a walk with Jess Snader (Mount Joy/Donegal) coming into run. After Sarah McDaniel (Dallastown/Dallastown) sacrificed Snader to second, Homyak put down a bunt with both runners safe on the play. Breon followed with a sac fly scoring Snader. Zarski then singled down the right field line scoring Homyak. Zarski was awarded second on the play after being interfered with on the play by Lock Haven's Danielle Fraser. Wolfe then lined a double scoring Zarski, while Wolfe scord on a single by Roba for a 7-0 lead. Roba then came in on a double by Koster for an 8-0 advantage.
In the bottom of the fourth, Lock Haven got on the board, in part due to the interference play in the top of the inning. Fraser was injured on the play and came out of the game. Her replacement, Amanda Sheets, hit a two-out homer for the Lady Eagle's first run.
The Huskies put the game out of reach with two more runs in the top of the sixth inning. Wolfe had an RBI double and Roba an RBI single.
In the bottom of the sixth, the Huskies closed out the milestone win by turning a double play, then getting the final out on a fly out to center by Heather Johnson.
"I'm very proud of the way we played today," said Jan Hutchinson. "We got some momentum early and then really hit the ball well against Lock Haven."
As for the 1,000th win, Hutchinson, who got water dumped on her by the team after the game, was humbled by the attention.
"It is a bit overwhelming to know that I have stayed around long enough to win that many games," said Hutchinson. "We have had a lot of great players and some great assistants, including Susan Kocher for 17 years, who deserve a lot of the credit for these wins."
Bloomsburg, now 42-8, will face Shippensburg at 2 p.m. on Friday in the championship.