Lady Bears Defeat Penn College to Finish 2011 Season

AKRON, OH – The St. Joseph's College softball team concluded their 2011 season with a win, defeating #8 Penn College, 9-1, in six innings in the 7th place game of the 2011 USCAA National Softball Championships at Firestone Stadium in Akron, OH.

After producing only one run in the first two games of the tournament, a 2-1 loss to #6 Penn State Mont Alto and a 2-0 loss to #7 Judson, the Lady Bears' bats came alive in the second inning, sending 12 batters to the plate and bringing six around to score. Jillian Troise (Brooklyn, NY/Bishop Kearney) opened the scoring with a bases loaded walk and Megan Moran (Syosset, NY/St. Dominic's) followed with a RBI single. Two batters later, Danielle Marino (Maspeth, NY/Mary Louis) delivered home a pair of runs with a two-out single up the middle and Lisa Scheer (Bayside, NY/Mary Louis) and Alyson Chiaramonte (Staten Island, NY/Moore Catholic) each followed with RBI singles of their own.

Penn College (14-16) scored their only run in the third on a Sabrina Reynolds RBI single that scored Amber Eck who led off with the inning with a double.

St. Joseph's tacked on three more runs in the sixth to reach the eight run threshold on RBI singles from Caitlyn Kakavas (Bayside, NY/St. Agnes) and Melissa Simo (Brooklyn, NY/Midwood).

The three USCAA All-Americans – Chiaramonte, Kakavas and Marino – and All-American Honorable Mention, Scheer, combined for nine hits, five runs and five RBI for the game. Chiaramonte (17-3) earned the win in the circle going six innings, allowing one run and scattering six hits while striking out six. Chiaramonte also had a 4-for-4 day at the plate and finished as the tournament's leading batter with a .800 average (8-for-10) and was named to the All-Tournament Team for the second straight year.

St. Joseph's finishes 2011 with a 26-9 record.