As we have finally reached spring time and much better weather, the Lady Rams’ season is continuing to shine bright.
The Golden Rams captured a total of six wins and two losses so far in the beginning two weeks of April and are not looking back. They also played a doubleheader against East Stroudsburg University March 29, winning both of those games by scores of 2-1 and 11-3.
In the first game of the doubleheader, Laura Altenburger led the Rams with a two-run homer that gave them the push needed to hold off East Stroudsburg near the end of the game. In the second game, the Golden Rams got their offense clicking led by first baseman Micaela McSpadden who had three-run homer, and a two-run homer by Altenburger, ultimately leading to a seven-run inning which ended the game in the fifth.
Heading toward the month of April, the Golden Rams started off with a doubleheader against Bloomsburg University, splitting the games with a loss and a win. The first game was a struggle, as the Lady Rams were shutout 7-0, only producing four hits on the game. Defensively, West Chester also struggled with three errors in the field. However, they countered back in the second game winning by a shutout score of 5-0, as catcher Cat Hammer had a solo homerun and pinch hitter Erin Quense brought in three huge runs to help end the game in six innings.
The Lady Rams’ next opponent was another doubleheader against Kutztown University, as they spilt the games. They won the first game by a shutout score of 4-0, led by a stellar pitching performance from pitcher Amanda Houck who threw a complete game; she had two strikeouts, and only allowed four hits in the whole game. In the second game, unfortunately, the Lady Rams lost by a score of 5-2, as they could not stay consistent following the win in the first game. The offense was not a problem as they had a total of nine hits, but could not capitalize on all of those by only scoring two runs.
Onto the next game as the Lady Rams’ next opponent was Shepherd University in a doubleheader, ultimately winning both games.
In the first game, they won by a shutout score of 5-0, led by great pitching once again by Houck as she had four strikeouts, giving up two hits, and pitched all seven innings. The offense was there as well as Altenburger hit a two-run homer to get the Lady Rams started, and afterwards, the rest of the team followed and went on with that momentum.
In the second game of the doubleheader, the Golden Rams’ offense was strong as they won by a score of 15-6. The offensive barrage started with first baseman Erin Whitman who came out swinging as she had two homeruns, driving in a total four runs. Following her lead was pinch hitter Haley Taylor, left fielder Madison Kelly, and right fielder Ali Vavala who each helped the Lady Rams to victory by driving in two runs each, dominating the whole game.
Swinging over to the next game, the Golden Rams’ next opponent was Shippensburg University, where WCU was successful in taking both games. In the first game, the Lady Rams won by a score of 6-0, where the team totaled 11 hits led by shortstop Sarah Derstine. Derstine had two singles, which led to her bringing in three runs. Additional offense came from Hammer, McSpadden, and a homerun from Quense as they each drove in a run. West Chester pitcher Houck, although giving up eight hits, still managed to keep the game a shutout as she fanned four Shippensburg batters in the impessive victory.
In the second game, WCU won 7-2 by the heroics of Altenburger who had a great game. She drove in five runs, including a grandslam that brought in four runs, which was the key factor in giving the Lady Rams momentum for the victory.
As the season approaches its final weeks, the Lady Rams’ current record as of April 11 is 26-10. West Chester will look to continue their winning ways as the PSAC tournament approaches.
Marcelus Council-Jones is a third-year student and can be reached at MC785844@wcupa.edu