Boxscore

Erin Holloway (Harleysville, Pa./Souderton) baffled the Shippensburg hitters for a second game in a row, striking out eight Lady Raiders as the Crimson Hawks earned a 3-1 win to advance to the PSAC championship.

IUP will travel to Kutztown for the championship round and open on Friday against West Chester at 11:00 and then play Kutztown at either 1:00 or 3:00. The Crimson Hawks, ranked No. 24 in the nation by the National Fastpitch Coaches Association, are seeking the first PSAC softball title in school history.

IUP also moved closer to the opportunity to host one of the two four-team NCAA Atlantic Region tournaments May 13-15. That would also represent a first in the history of the IUP softball program.

The Crimson Hawks ran their record to 30-6, reaching the 30-win plateau for the fourth time in school history including last season's 38-12 mark which set a school record for most victories. Prior to that IUP reached 30 wins in 2001 with a record of 35-11 and in 2000 going 31-18.

The Crimson Hawks broke a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the sixth inning, taking advantage of a Shippensburg error to score twice. Dee Eppinger (North Wales, Pa./North Penn) drove home the first run with a sacrifice fly, and Marissa Leslie (Claysburg/Claysburg-Kimmel) used an infield single to bring home an insurance run.

Those two runs were all Holloway would need as she allowed just one unearned run on two hits and walked two. Holloway did not allow an earned run and struck out 27 in the three tournament wins, giving her 928 strikeouts for her career, good for third in PSAC history.

IUP struck for a run in the second inning when Steph Poates led off with a walk and was plated by a Raquel Rugani (McKees Rocks, Pa./Montour ) single. The Lady Raiders answered with an unearned run in the sixth on a sacrifice fly by Moria Johnsen.