Softball Earns NCAA Championship Selection

BLOOMSBURG-- For a record 26th consecutive season the Bloomsburg University softball team will make an appearance in the NCAA Division II championships. The Huskies are seeded number two in the Mid-Atlantic Regional championships which begin on Wednesday at Kutztown University. Bloomsburg will face the number seven seed Slippery Rock at 2 p.m.

Joining the Huskies in the tournament field will be California (four seed) taking on West Chester (fifth seed) at 9 a.m. on Wednesday, while Lock Haven (one seed) will take on Bowie State (eight seed) at 11:30 a.m. Kutztown (three seed) will face Shippensburg (six seed) in the day's final game at 4:30 p.m.

The Huskies, 48-9, were ranked eighth in the latest National Fastpitch Coaches Association poll. Bloomsburg, which finished second at last week's Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) championships, will be looking to the reach the NCAA championship round for the first time since the 2005 season and for the 11th time in school history.

Offensively the Huskies are led by shortstop/pitcher Tara Reed (Williamsport/Williamsport). The junior leads the team in hitting at .404; runs scored with 40; hits with 76; doubles with 15; RBI with 31; total bases with 102 and is tied for team lead in triples with four. She also leads the team in stolen bases with 13 and is second in slugging percentage with a mark of .543. As a pitcher, Reed is 8-3 on the year with a 1.02 ERA. She has 91 strikeouts in 77 innings of work and has walked just 13 on the season.

Another of the Huskies' top threats is Lacy Mauro (Jersey Shore/Jersey Shore) who is batting .373 with 25 RBI on the year, while Nikki Shiko (Kulpmont/Southern Columbia) is hitting .347 with two homers and 14 RBI. The Huskies long-ball threat is Lori Neyhard (Bloomsburg/Central Columbia) who leads the team in homers with four and also has seven doubles, four triples and 25 RBI.

In the circle, Ashley Lynn (Riverside/Danville) is the Huskies ace with a mark of 23-3 and a 0.86 ERA. Lynn leads the Huskies in strikeouts with 186, while issuing just 16 walks. She has tossed nine shutouts on the season and saved four games. Lynn is the Huskies all-time leader in strikeouts with 653; is sixth in wins with 70; third in innings pitched with 597.2 and tied for third in career shutouts with 30.

Joining Lynn to form a solid one-two punch is Sheelin Fisher (Coplay/Allentown Central Catholic). The senior is 16-3 with a 0.99 ERA and 100 strikeouts in 113 innings of work.

Slippery Rock is 27-15 and is making its first-ever NCAA playoff appearance and first post-season since 1984 when it qualified for the PSAC playoffs.

Notes: