CLEARWATER, Fla. – Penn State softball continued its blistering hot start in south Florida on Saturday afternoon, riding elite pitching and clutch hitting to register a pair of victories at the NFCA Division I Leadoff Classic presented by MaxBP from the Eddie C. Moore Complex. The Nittany Lions registered a 4-2 win over the Eastern Kentucky Colonels and finished the day off with a resounding 4-3, come-from-behind victory over the BYU Cougars in eight innings of play.
For the third time in the last four years and just the fourth time in program history, the Nittany Lion softball program registered a 4-0 start to the campaign. Penn State’s most recent 4-0 start came in the 2024 campaign, a season in which the Nittany Lions snapped a decade-plus-long NCAA Tournament drought. In defeat, Eastern Kentucky falls to 0-3 while BYU moved to 1-3 overall following Saturday’s action. In the all-time series against the Colonels, Penn State picked up its third win in the fourth installment while remaining unbeaten against EKU under the direction of sixth-year head coach Clarisa Crowell. Against BYU, Penn State secured its second win in as many opportunities, adding Saturday’s result to a run-rule victory from the 2007 season.
Penn State’s offense was powered by an impressive individual day at the plate from junior designated player Brooke Klosowicz, who led the Nittany Lions with three hits in five at-bats across both halves of the doubleheader in addition to a pair of extra-base knocks. The Johnsburg, Illinois, native had a double and a home run with a single RBI to her credit following her homer to left against the Colonels. Junior second baseman Michela Barbanente went 2-for-4 with two runs and a pair of walks, freshman third baseman Allison Oneacre chipped in with two hits on the day, highlighted by a solo shot that sparked the comeback against the Cougars, and freshman first baseman Kirsten Finarelli finished the day with two hits and a walk-off RBI single against BYU.
In the pitcher’s circle, the Blue & White rolled with four different contributors across both games, with sophomore right-hander Abigail Britton stealing the show with one of the most individually significant performances in her collegiate career to date. The LaVale, Maryland, native led the way in PSU’s monumental comeback over BYU while serving as the only Nittany Lion to appear in both contests on Saturday. Britton finished the day with zero earned runs allowed, picked up both a winning decision and a save, all while registering six strikeouts against zero walks. Britton moves into a tie for fourth in Penn State history with alumna Jackie Hill following her sixth save at the collegiate level on Saturday afternoon. Britton established herself as one of the premier closers in college softball last year, picking up five saves over her inaugural run in Division I. She needs just three saves to match and four to break the program record of nine, currently owned by 2006 graduate Missy Beseres.
Elsewhere, junior righty McKenna Young picked up her first win in the Blue & White with a 5.0 inning start against EKU, fanning four while scattering a pair of hits and two walks, allowing a measly .111 opponent average in the process. Freshman southpaw Brevyn Kellepouris picked up her first collegiate start against BYU, and sophomore right-hander Bridget Nemeth logged 2.2 frames of relief in the nightcap against the Cougars.
The opening game of the day against Eastern Kentucky opened with a one-two-three inning, highlighted by a pair Ks from Young in the circle. PSU capitalized on some shifty baserunning and EKU defensive miscues to plate a pair of runs in the home half to take an early 2-0 edge. Further baserunning drama left the Colonels bewildered in the home half of the second, with graduate right fielder Cara Bohner and junior shortstop Kaylie Walters picking up two of their combined three runs on the day by way of EKU throwing errors while they were manning the bases. A solo shot to deep left from Klosowicz closed out the scoring for Penn State in the bottom of the third, but quality in the circle from both Young and Britton helped keep the EKU comeback attempt at bay, finalizing the 4-2 result in Saturday’s lid-lifter.
A battle between two different shades of Blue & White got underway shortly after game one, with the Nittany Lions challenging BYU. Early chances came for both offenses in the first and second innings, but the board remained clean through the early going. BYU found some offensive momentum in the top of the third inning and added a bit extra in the fifth, with the Cougars lurching ahead by a 3-0 margin. In dire need of some offensive firepower, Oneacre stepped up to the plate in the home half of the sixth inning and pelted the softball over the fence in deep left field, giving the Nittany Lion offense some life in the waning moments of regulation. Britton entered the game in the top of the sixth inning before Oneacre’s solo shot, immediately shifting the tone of the game back in PSU’s favor with a pair of one-two-three frames in the top of the sixth and seventh. Penn State’s second-year pitcher helped pave the way for the offense to roar to life in the seventh.
Barbanente got the bottom of the seventh started with a hard-hit infield single toward the Cougar third baseman and took 60 more feet on a wild pitch during the ensuing at-bat. A strikeout put one away, but Chamberlin stepped up to the plate and laced a double down the left field line that brought Barbanente in to make it a one-run affair. Jochims entered to pinch run at second, and Hanik put a ball in play that forced a Cougar error when they attempted to get the lead runner out, causing the ball to ricochet away while Jochims trotted home to tie the game. Britton forced a popout and mustered a pair of strikeouts to keep BYU off the board in the eighth, and Penn State responded with an impressive walk-off result in the home half. With the international tiebreaker rule in effect, Bohner was placed on second base. Oneacre laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to place Bohner 60 feet away from home plate, and Finarelli smacked a single through the left side of the infield to walk the Cougars off in an electric comeback affair, finishing the 4-3 result in eight innings of work.
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS (VS. EASTERN KENTUCKY)
Brooke Klosowicz | 2-for-3, R, RBI, 2B, HR
Kirsten Finarelli | 1-for-3, RBI, 1B
McKenna Young | 5.0IP, 2H, 1R, 0ER, 2BB, 4K, 20BF, 69TP, WIN
Abigail Britton | 2.0IP, 1H, 1R, 0ER, 0BB, 2K, 8BF, 32TP, SAVE
KEY INNINGS (VS. EASTERN KENTUCKY)
B1 | Walters drew a leadoff walk on six pitches and stole second base shortly thereafter, breezing over to third moments later following an error against the Colonels. Barbanente drew a walk, and ultimately advanced to third following a stolen base that drew an erroneous throw, allowing Walters to score in the process. A strikeout put one away, and Barbanente promptly responded by swiping third base. A single to left by Finarelli brought Barbanente aboard moments later to give PSU a quick two-run edge. PSU 2, EKU 0
B2 | Bohner led the home half of the second off with a walk and Seidel moved her over with a perfectly executed sacrifice bunt. A productive out saw Bohner move to third, and Walters drew a walk of her own to put runners on the corners. A steal attempt by Walters during the next plate appearance drew another errant EKU throw, giving Bohner the requisite time to score while Walters advanced to third. PSU 3, EKU 0
B3 | With two popouts on the scoreboard, Klosowicz stepped up to the plate and clobbered a solo shot over the fence in deep left field. PSU 4, EKU 0
T5 | Jocelyn Owen opened the inning with a single to shallow right, and Reese Knox entered to run for her at first. Knox stole second base but was put out on a fielder’s choice that saw Emily Mariscal take over at first. Mariscal moved to second on a wild Nittany Lion offering, and EKU had runners on the corners following a PSU fielding error moments later. Kennedy Drafton put a ball in play that brought Mariscal aboard. PSU 4, EKU 1
T6 | With one down, Jada McLeod reached on a fielding error and stole second base following a Colonel strikeout that put two away. Kaitlyn Wallis tripled to left field to bring McLeod around for EKU’s second and final tally. PSU 4, EKU 2
TOP NITTANY LION PERFORMERS (VS. BYU)
Allison Oneacre | 2-for-3, R, RBI, HR, SH
Kirsten Finarelli | 1-for-4, GAME-WINNING RBI SINGLE IN 8TH INN.
Abigail Britton | 3.0IP, 1H, 0R, 0ER, 0BB, 4K, 10BF, 46TP, WIN
KEY INNINGS (VS. BYU)
T3 | With one away, Lily Owens registered an infield single that was corralled by the PSU shortstop, advancing to second on a passed ball. A single to left from Hailey Morrow made it runners on the corners, but Morrow wasted little time stealing second to put a pair of Cougars in scoring position. Ilove’a Brittingham sent a single through the right side to plate both runners for an early two-run advantage. BYU 2, PSU 0
T5 | Three straight two-out singles from Brittingham, Hailey Shuler and Bre Townsend saw the Cougars tack on another score in the visitor’s half of the fifth. BYU 3, PSU 0
B6 | With one out on the scoreboard, Oneacre worked deep into the count and pelted the softball over the fence in deep left field, giving the Nittany Lion offense some life in the waning moments of regulation. BYU 3, PSU 1
B7 | Barbanente powered a hard-hit infield single toward the Cougar third baseman and took 60 more feet on a wild pitch during the ensuing at-bat. A strikeout put one away, but Chamberlin stepped up to the plate and laced a double down the left field line that brought Barbanente in to make it a one-run affair. Jochims entered to pinch run at second, and Hanik put a ball in play that forced a Cougar error when they attempted to get the lead runner out, causing the ball to ricochet away while Jochims trotted home to tie the game. PSU 3, BYU 3
B8 | With the international tiebreaker rule in effect, Bohner was placed on second base. Oneacre laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to place Bohner 60 feet away from home plate, and Finarelli smacked a single through the left side of the infield to walk the Cougars off in an electric comeback affair. PSU 4, BYU 3
UP NEXT
Penn State softball wraps up its season-opening weekend at the NFCA Division I Leadoff Classic presented by MaxBP on Sunday, February 8, as the Nittany Lions prepare for a getaway game against the Auburn Tigers from the Eddie C. Moore Complex. PSU’s final game of the tournament is slated for a 10 a.m. (ET) first pitch, with streaming available to a worldwide audience at no cost via the GameChanger app and links available on the Penn State softball schedule webpage.
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The 2026 Penn State softball season is presented by Highmark.