UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - This past weekend the Nittany Lions returned home to Beard Field. For many in the program, this was their first ever real home experience with fans due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and the team did not disappoint. Throughout the weekend the Nittany Lions maintained a strong presence on the field, shutting out the Penn State Softball Invitational, 5-0.
Head Coach Clarisa Crowell was proud of how her "road warriors" transitioned into playing on their own field.[1]
"Although we played at home last year, it wasn't the same without the fans,'' Crowell said. "We had a conversion with our student-athletes on the nerves that come with playing at home, but throughout the tournament I saw how the team locked in to get the job done and win."
In the first games of the weekend, the Nittany Lions defeated Cornell 3-2 in eight innings before shutting out Rider 2-0 in the second game.
In the opening games, Bailey Parshall set the tone for the rest of the weekend with her powerful performance on the mound. Parshall earned her seventh shutout of the 2022 season and reached her 500th career strikeout in the second game.
"Bailey had an outstanding weekend," Crowell said following the weekend, "Through 21 innings, she had a total of 27 strikeouts and did not give up any walks or runs."
Following her notable weekend performance, Parshall was named Big Ten Co-Pitcher of the Week.
"Being named Big Ten Co-Pitcher of the Week is a huge accomplishment," Crowell said. "I am so excited for Bailey because I see the hard work she puts in every week and she is finally getting recognized for it."
Moving into the third game of the tournament Saturday against UMass Lowell, fans were excited to see the return of pitcher Vannessa Oatley to the mound. Her energy was greatly felt throughout the stands and on the field.
"We call Vanessa our hype queen", Crowell said. "Anyone can see the energy she brings to our team and another great thing about Vanessa is how she compliments the other pitchers on the team. Everyone feels confident in her when it's time to put her in."
The Nittany Lions ended the 12-2 win over UMass Lowell through the run rule in only five innings. It was teamwork and effort that got them this win, with several players stepping up to the plate.
Ally Kurland led Penn State in the game by hitting the first home run and notching four RBI. Another key player in that game and throughout the weekend was Cassie Lindmark.
Lindmark led the Nittany Lions offensively over the weekend, batting .583 with six RBI and a .667 on-base percentage
In the final games of the weekend, the Nittany Lions kept rolling with their strong momentum to secure the last two wins. In the first game Sunday against Cornell, Lexi Black blasted her second home run of the weekend in the bottom of the first, giving Penn State the lead.
"I have to give a lot of credit to Lexi for coming up in big moments throughout the weekend," Crowell said. "She has been doing a great job on both sides of the ball for our team."
Black said confidence-building moments help the team stay strong in a long stretch of games.
"There were a lot of confidence-building moments, a lot of moments where we had to fight through at bats and stay gritty on defense,'' Black said.
The Nittany Lions defeated Cornell 10-2 in five innings following Maggie Finnegan's three-run homer. In the final game of the weekend, the Nittany Lions won after battling out UMass Lowell, 2-1.
Looking back, the weekend of wins was a big success for the Nittany Lions.
"Overall I am extremely happy with the way our team played this weekend," Crowell said. "I am looking forward to them carrying this positive momentum into this week (because) we have been finding different ways (to win)."
