HOUSTON – Powered by a .434 day at the plate and a pair of stellar defensive performances, the Penn State softball team cruised to a pair of wins over the Lafayette Leopards and Houston Christian Huskies on Saturday from Husky Field. The Nittany Lions opened the day with a domineering 14-1, run-rule result over Lafayette and finished things off with a 4-1 victory over the host-Huskies.
Following Saturday’s doubleheader sweep in Houston, the Nittany Lions improved to 7-2 overall and improved to 3-1 at the Houston Invitational with one game remaining against in-state rival Pittsburgh on Sunday afternoon. Lafayette dropped to 0-3 following the lid-lifter against the Blue & White, and Houston Christian fell to 0-7 after Saturday’s result. Penn State earned its second consecutive win over Lafayette via the run rule, winning both games in the last two seasons by exactly 13 runs apiece. The Blue & White were additionally victorious in their first-ever meeting with HCU, with Penn State notching wins in both opportunities against their two host institutions this weekend.
Junior utility Brooke Klosowicz was nearly automatic in her opportunities at the plate on Saturday, leading an armada of Nittany Lions to offensive success after notching multiple-hit games in both halves of the twin bill. The Johnsburg, Illinois, native finished the day a combined 4-for-5 with two runs scored, a home run, RBI and a day-long OPS of 2.233. Freshman infielder Allison Oneacre continued her torrid stretch in the batter’s box, logging a trio of hits with two of those going for extra bases. The Alpharetta, Georgia, native finished the day 3-for-5 with five runs, two doubles, a trio of RBI and a pair of walks. Eight of Penn State’s 10 combined starters had at least two hits on the day, with sophomore center fielder Natalie Lieto, junior utility Michela Barbanente and freshman first baseman Kirsten Finarelli each adding three.
In total, the Nittany Lion offense generated its most complete day of the 2026 season to date on Saturday, turning in a team-wide .434 batting average that was bolstered by 11 extra-base hits split between nine doubles and a pair of home runs. Penn State turned in a day-long on-base percentage of .523, reaching base in over half of their combined opportunities against Lafayette and HCU. The Blue & White mustered 23 hits and 18 runs across the doubleheader, limiting their challengers to six hits and two runs in the pair of contests.
In the circle, Penn State leaned on a trio of right-handers, with the pairing of freshman Mackenzie Duncan and sophomore Abigail Britton splitting time in game one, followed by a complete-game performance from junior Bridget Nemeth in Saturday’s finale. Duncan logged her fifth appearance and first collegiate start against Lafayette, tossing 1.1 innings before being relieved by Britton for the remaining 3.2 frames. The LaVale, Maryland, native Britton earned her second win of the year and improved to 2-0 after letting zeroes across the board in the run, earned run and walk columns against the Leopards. Saturday’s finale went to Nemeth, who turned in the first complete game performance by a Nittany Lion pitcher since Britton went the distance against Rutgers in an 8-0 shutout on April 4, 2025. The Glendora, California, native scattered four hits and allowed a single earned run in her first individual complete game since throwing all seven innings against UAlbany on May 18, 2024, during the NCAA Bryan-College Station Regional.
The first game of the day between a pair of Keystone State opponents started on the sluggish side, with both programs racking up multiple walks through the early going. Lafayette struck first with an RBI base on balls, but the Nittany Lions snapped back with a pair of tallies in the top half of the third. Quality baserunning and a three-run shot from Finarelli saw the Nittany Lion lead balloon to six runs by the middle of the fourth, with PSU logging a 7-1 differential. The top of the fifth featured the highest-scoring frame by the Blue & White this season to date, with Penn State tacking on seven more runs to make it a 14-1 game. Britton remained steadfast in the circle, closing out the run-rule victory in five innings.
Penn State quickly turned its attention to its second contest of Saturday’s doubleheader, with the Nittany Lions set to square off against the host-Huskies in the afternoon hours. PSU jumped in front early on, utilizing a two-RBI double to the right-center gap from sophomore catcher Macy Chamberlin to generate a two-run lead through half an inning. HCU’s pitcher managed to hold the Blue & White off over the next three innings, but an RBI single from Finarelli in the fifth, and a solo shot to left from Klosowicz in the sixth saw Penn State pull ahead by four. Houston Christian answered with a solo homer in the bottom of the seventh, but Nemeth closed things out to finalize the 4-1 result and doubleheader sweep.
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS (VS. LAFAYETTE)
Kirsten Finarelli | 1-for-3, 2 R, 4 RBI, HR, BB
Natalie Lieto | 2-for-2, 3 R, RBI, 2B, 2 BB
Abigail Britton | 3.2IP, 1H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 1K, 11BF, 32TP, WIN
KEY INNINGS (VS. LAFAYETTE)
B2 | Katie Harrington drew a leadoff hit by pitch, but Ava Butler took over for her at first base following a fielder’s choice in the next at-bat. Maggie Klug smacked a double down the left field line to put runners on the left side, and back-to-back walks saw the Leopards take an early one-run lead. LAF 1, PSU 0
T3 | Seeking a response following the bottom of the second inning, Walters led off the top half of the third with a walk on seven pitches. Lieto stepped into the box and worked a quality at-bat, facing a 3-2 count after seven pitches. Her eighth offering was lifted to the right center gap, giving Walters time to venture all the way home following the RBI double. The Leopards made a pitching change following the knock, but the first offering went wild, allowing Lieto to head for third. Oneacre powered a sacrifice fly to right field in the ensuing plate appearance to give the Nittany Lions the lead. PSU 2, LAF 1
T4 | Klosowicz drew a leadoff walk, and Seidel laid down a sacrifice bunt to move her over, but an extra erroneous throw by the Leopard first baseman allowed Klosowicz to fly around the basepath to score. A flyout put two away, but back-to-back singles by Walters and Lieto paved the way for Oneacre to crank an RBI double to left that plated a run. With two on the pond and two out, Finarelli stepped up and clobbered her third home run of 2026 over the fence in center to give the Blue & White a six-run advantage. PSU 7, LAF 1
T5 | Klosowicz opened the visitor’s half of the fifth with a single and advanced to second on an error by the Lafayette shortstop. Karwowski pinch ran for Klosowicz, and Chamberlin pinch hit as well, drawing a walk to put runners on the right side. Gradishar pinch hit and lifted a blooper of a double down the right field line, plating both baserunners. Jochims sent a pinch-hit single to right that brought another run aboard, and Lieto walked to load the bases moments later. Oneacre walked a run in on five pitches, and an RBI fielder’s choice from Finarelli saw one run score with runners moving to first and third. Barbanente walloped an RBI double off the wall in right center, with a Leopard error allowing two runs to come across and Barbanente to reach third base. George pinch hit for the Blue & White and delivered an RBI grounder to cap off Penn State’s highest-scoring inning of the season to date. PSU 14, LAF 1
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS (AT HOUSTON CHRISTIAN)
Macy Chamberlin | 2-for-4, 2 RBI, 2 2B
Brooke Klosowicz | 2-for-3, R, RBI, HR
Bridget Nemeth | 7.0IP, 4H, 1R, 1ER, 0BB, 2K, 26BF, 81TP, CG, WIN
KEY INNINGS (AT HOUSTON CHRISTIAN)
T1 | With a pair of outs on the scoreboard, Oneacre got a late-inning rally started for the Nittany Lions with a single up the middle in a 3-0 count. Finarelli saw the first two pitches of her at-bat before zipping a double down the left field line to place a pair of runners on the left side of the infield. From there, Chamberlin stepped up to the plate and worked the count full, ultimately driving the sixth pitch of her at-bat to the right center gap to plate a pair of runs. PSU 2, HCU 0
T5 | With two away, Oneacre sent a double down the left field line, and Finarelli batted her home with an RBI single to left field that extended the Nittany Lion advantage. PSU 3, HCU 0
T6 | After working a 1-1 count through the first two pitches of her at-bat, Klosowicz powered a no-doubter over the fence in left field for her third home run of the 2026 season. PSU 4, HCU 0
B7 | Following a flyout and grounder that put two away, Karlie Barba lifted a solo shot over the fence in right center to close out Saturday afternoon’s scoring. PSU 4, HCU 1
UP NEXT
Penn State softball concludes its three-day stay in the Lone Star State with a getaway game against the in-state rival Pittsburgh Panthers on Sunday, February 15. PSU and Pitt will face off from Cougar Softball Stadium back on the campus of the University of Houston, with first pitch scheduled for 1 p.m. (ET) / Noon (CT). Live stats will be available via the Penn State StatBroadcast hub at the link here, with live updates available through the Penn State softball social media channels. No live streaming will be available for Sunday’s contest.
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Visit GoPSUsports.com for more information on Penn State softball. Fans can keep up to date with the Nittany Lion softball team on Facebook at /pennstatesoftball as well as Instagram and X @PennStateSB.
The 2026 Penn State softball season is presented by Highmark.