Box Score (BETHANY, W.Va.) – The second-seeded Thomas More College softball team defeated top-seeded Bethany College, 5-2, today (Friday, May 1, 2015) in the winners' bracket final game of the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Softball Championship Tournament at Bison Field in Bethany, West Virginia.
With the win, the Saints improve to 25-15 and advance to the championship game of the tournament at 1 p.m. tomorrow. With the loss, the Bison fall to 23-15 and play fourth-seeded Saint Vincent College in an elimination game at 11 a.m. tomorrow. The winner of the elimination game advances to play Thomas More in the 1 p.m. championship game, where a win by the Saints will give them the title and a win by the 11 a.m. game-winner would force an "if necessary" game at 3 p.m.
Thomas More took a 3-0 lead in the third inning as sophomore pinch runner Kayla Fulcher (Mason, Ohio/Cincinnati Christian) scored on a Bison error and senior center fielder Catie Luck (Maineville, Ohio/Little Miami) and junior shortstop Ana Walter (Lebanon, Ohio/Lebanon) scored on a single by freshman second baseman Dallis Knotts (Florence, Ky./Boone County).
The Saints increased the lead to 4-0 in the top of the fourth when sophomore third baseman Jaime Ertel (Mt. Healthy, Ohio/McAuley) scored on a run batted-in double by junior first baseman Staci Stewart (Erlanger, Ky./Lloyd Memorial). Bethany plated a run in the bottom of the fifth to cut the lead to 4-1, but the Saints answered in the sixth when Ertel scored on an error and increased the lead to 5-1. Bethany scored one run in the bottom of the sixth, but it wasn't enough as Thomas More went on to the 5-2 victory.
Junior pitcher Mamee Salzer (Erlanger, Ky./St. Henry) earned the win the circle as she pitched all seven innings giving up two runs (one earned) on five hits and struck out three.
Stewart led the team at the plate as she was two-for-two with a double and a RBI. Knotts was one-for-four with two RBI and Ertel was one-for-one with a double and two runs scored.
