March 9, 2013
CLEARWATER, Fla. - Penn State softball won its second contest of the day, downing Maine, 3-0, at the 2013 South Florida Under Armour Showcase Saturday night in Clearwater, Fla. The Nittany Lions (6-11) broke through with a run in the third inning before posting two insurance runs in the fifth to take the victory over the Black Bears (1-17).
The Blue and White held on late to post a 10-8 win over Toledo earlier in the day. The team returns to action at 11:15 a.m. Sunday against South Carolina at the Eddie C. Moore Softball Complex.
Freshman Macy Jones (5-4) earned the shutout, the first of her career, with a career-high 12 strikeouts while allowing just five hits in the complete game effort. She also added an RBI with a single in the third. Junior Kasie Hatfield (Tampa, Fla.) led the Nittany Lions with two singles, while rookies Taylor Abeyta (San Diego, Calif.) and Karlie Habitz (Newhall, Calif.) both produced a hit apiece.
Penn State grabbed the lead in the bottom of the third after Hatfield opened the frame with a single to center. With sophomore Alicia Walker (Los Alamitos, Calif.) running for Hatfield, Alyssa Renwick (Laurens, S.C.) advanced the sophomore to second on a sacrifice bunt before Jones' single up the middle brought Walker home.
The Nittany Lions threatened again in the following inning with freshmen Maegan Tupinio (Wahiawa, Hawaii) and Shannon Good (Horseheads, N.Y.) running for Habitz and senior Kailyn Johnson (Yorba Linda, Calif.), respectively. The two reached second and third on a passed ball but were stranded by the Black Bears to keep the lead at one run.
A pair of hits and a Maine error moved the score to 3-0 in the fifth, however. Hatfield opened with her second single of the game to right field and Renwick reached base when Maine's Hilary Kane dropped a throw at first, allowing Hatfield to reach third. With Jones at the plate, Renwick stole second and Hatfield hustled home when Black Bear catcher EmJ Fogel couldn't hold on to the pitch. After Abeyta bunted for a single, she and Renwick completed a double steal to add Penn State's third run on the board.
Hannah Hill (0-6) limited the Nittany Lions to just five hits with four strikeouts while throwing all six innings for the Black Bears.