Boxscore
PSAC Championship Photos

Tournament MVP Erin Holloway (Harleysville, Pa./Souderton) completed a dominating six-game performance and Megan McCormick (Evans City/Seneca Valley) homered twice and drove in five runs to lead IUP to its first PSAC softball title with a 7-2 victory over West Chester in the championship game Saturday at Kutztown.

The 17th-ranked Crimson Hawks improved to 33-6 on the year, including a 6-0 mark in the PSAC tournament, and has likely earned the right to host one of the two subregionals in the NCAA tournament May 13-15.

The announcement of the NCAA tournament field will be made on Sunday, May 8. The winners of the two subregionals will meet in the NCAA Super Regional tbeginning May 20 for the right to advance to the College World Series in Salem, Va.

IUP will be making its second straight NCAA tournament appearance – eighth overall – and will be seeking its first regional title and College World Series berth. In two seasons under head coach Bill Graham, IUP has a record of 71-18.

Holloway allowed seven hits with eight strikeouts and two walks in the win over West Chester to improve to 22-3 on the season. The senior righthander started and completed all six PSAC tournament games, including three shutouts, and allowed only 16 hits and four runs – three earned – while striking out 57.

Her ERA for the tournament was 0.51 and opponents batted just .119 against her. She had 30 punchouts in the three games in the championship series. Holloway increased her school-record totals to 73 wins, 98 complete games, 30 shutouts and 958 strikeouts, ranking third in PSAC history in the latter category.

With Holloway taking care of matters in the circle, McCormick was raking at the plate, capping off an outstanding tournament with four hits, including a double and two her two home runs which gave her a team-leading seven for the year.

In the six tournament games, the 2010 third team All-American was 10-for-21 with three doubles, three homers, five runs scored and 11 RBIs.

Kristen Tunno (Seaford, Va./Grafton) and Michelle Bivona (Thorndale, Pa./Coatesville) both drove in two runs while Dee Eppinger (North Wales, Pa./North Penn) joined McCormick with two runs scored.

McCormick got IUP off to a quick start in the first when she followed a walk to Eppinger with her first homer of the game. The Golden Rams (34-19) made it 2-1 in the bottom of the inning on an RBI single by Kate Kmiecinski, but the Crimson Hawks got the run right back when Bivona singled, went to third on an error and scored on the back end of a double steal attempt.

Eppinger doubled and scored on a McCormick single in the third to make it 4-1, and IUP added a pair of runs in the fourth. Monica Iachini (Claysburg/Claysburg-Kimmel) singled, stole second and scored on a base hit by Marissa Leslie (Claysburg/Claysburg-Kimmel), who came across on a double by McCormick that chased West Chester starter Devon Utterback.

McCormick added a solo shot in the sixth off relief pitcher Kim Murl. Kmiecinski drove in West Chester's final run with a single in the sixth, and the Golden Rams put their first two batters on in the seventh before Holloway pitched out of the mini jam.