Lock Haven championship page

EAST STROUDSBURG - East Stroudsburg University, the No. 3 seed in the PSAC East, will take on California, the No. 2 seed in the West, in the first game of the PSAC softball tournament on Thursday at 10 a.m. at Lock Haven.

The Warriors (17-28, 11-13) will be making their second straight PSAC tournament appearance after qualifying last season for the first time since 1981. ESU won the only PSAC softball championship in school history in 1980 and is 5-4 all-time in the conference tournament.

Host Lock Haven is the top seed in the PSAC West after finishing the season with a 40-6 overall record and 19-1 conference mark. California (26-14, 12-8) is the No. 2 seed and IUP (16-24, 12-8) is the No. 3 seed from the West.

The PSAC East will be represented by No. 1 seed Kutztown (44-10, 21-3) and No. 2 seed Bloomsburg (44-7, 19-5).

The Warriors have been led by seven seniors who were all members of last year's team that set a school record with 29 victories and finished third in the NCAA Division II Mid-Atlantic Regional.

Senior pitcher Kristen Halvorsen started 11 of the last 12 PSAC East games for ESU and made 17 conference starts this season. She posted a 2.05 ERA with three shutouts against PSAC East foes and had a 10-8 record, including a win in relief.

Halvorsen is 13-15 with a 2.19 ERA in 29 games overall in 2008. She holds school records for career starts (98) and innings pitched (580.1) and has 41 career victories, two short of the school record.

Sophomore pitcher Jackie Battaglino has made nine starts and appeared in 20 games, posting a 2.31 ERA and a 3-6 record with one shutout and one save.

Three players are hitting better than .300 this season in senior 1B Ali Hale (.317), senior C/DH Eliza Morosco (.316) and freshman 2B/DH Brittany Racek (.315).

Hale and senior 3B Candice Pastor lead the Warriors with 17 runs batted in, and Racek has scored a team-high 24 runs while hitting in the top two spots in the order throughout the season.

Four other regulars have posted batting averages of at least .260, including senior C Amanda Feist, who has five home runs and hit .615 (8-for-13) with two homers as ESU went 3-1 last week to secure the playoff spot. She is hitting .272 this season after raising her average nearly 60 points last week.

Freshman LF Jamie Mingis has had a solid first season at ESU, hitting .274 with 11 RBI and 14 runs. Sophomore 2B Briana Malachowski has a .273 average and sophomore RF Kara Darcey is hitting .262 with three home runs.

Pastor has been one of the top-fielding third basemen in the conference during her career as a three-year starter for the Warriors and is fourth in school history with 79 runs batted in.

Senior Laura Snyder is in her first year as a full-time starter at shortstop and senior Missy McAloon is a three-year starter in center field.

Thursday, May 1
Game 1 - 10 am: East Stroudsburg vs California
Game 2 - Noon: Bloomsburg vs IUP
Game 3 - 2:30 pm: Kutztown vs Winner Game 1
Game 4 - 4:30 pm: Lock Haven vs Winner Game 2

Friday, May 2
Game 5 - 10 am: Loser Game 1 vs Loser Game 2
Game 6 - Noon: Loser Game 4 vs Loser Game 3
Game 7 - 2:30 pm: Winner Game 3 vs Winner Game 4
Game 8 - 4:30 pm: Winner Game 5 vs Winner Game 6

Saturday, May 3
Game 9 - 11 am: Winner Game 8 vs Loser Game 7
Game 10 - 1 pm: Winner Game 7 vs Winner Game 9
Game 11 - 3 pm: If Necessary