BINGHAMTON, N.Y. — IUP softball opened PSAC Tournament play Wednesday with a 3-2 victory over Shepherd, overcoming an early deficit to advance in the winner's bracket.
The Crimson Hawks managed just one hit through the first three innings before the offense came alive in the fourth, using a mix of infield hits and Shepherd miscues to plate all three runs.
Junior Kendall Young started in the circle for IUP, pitching two innings and allowing four hits. Freshman first-team All-PSAC pitcher Taylor Bumgardner entered to begin the third inning and immediately faced trouble, surrendering two runs after a leadoff walk and consecutive singles.
Bumgardner settled in from there, allowing just one hit over the next four innings. She threw 67 pitches across five innings, including 17 during the third inning.
IUP finished with seven hits, with Reagan Rand's triple accounting for the team's lone extra-base hit.
The Crimson Hawks advance to face No. 2 East seed Shippensburg at 12:30 p.m. Thursday. The Raiders entered the tournament ranked No. 1 in the Atlantic Region by the NCAA and hold a 35-16 overall record with a 21-11 mark in PSAC East play.
The teams split a regular-season doubleheader earlier this season. Shippensburg won the opener 9-1 in five innings before IUP responded with a 10-2 victory in six innings in Game 2.
In the first meeting, Bumgardner took the loss as IUP managed only four hits. Madison Booth also appeared in relief. In the second game, Young pitched six innings, allowing two runs on eight hits while striking out four. Jess Cekada led the offense, going 2 for 3 with a walk as the Crimson Hawks totaled 12 hits.
The winner of Thursday's matchup will advance to Friday's semifinal round.
