Pitchers' duel silences JB, Shippensburg bats

The James Buchanan and Shippensburg softball teams have recently been racking up hits left and right, scoring a combined 57 runs in their last four games.

But Tuesday was a slow day at the office. Arguably two of the Mid Penn Colonial Division's top pitchers faced off, and silenced the bats in a 1-0 pitchers' dual in which Shippensburg came out on top.

"Our team is playing well defensively and with our pitching, and we are hitting the ball well against an average pitcher, but we just need to be able to start hitting against a better pitcher," James Buchanan coach Troy Pittman said.

And if anyone knows Courtney Coy - you know she is not your average pitcher.

Coy earned the win in the circle, fanning eight batters and allowing just two hits, while James Buchanan's Jenna Mongold pitched six innings and allowed four hits and struck out one.

Shippensburg (4-1, 2-1 MPC) coach Mike Peters said, "The last two games we have won by pretty big margins, so to come in here and face a good team like James Buchanan and face a good pitcher like Jenna Mongold, and literally squeak out one run, you have to be able to win games like that."

The first four innings went by in a flash as both teams were retired in order three times, but after a leadoff single by Sami Barmont in the bottom of the fifth, Shippensburg turned up the volume - literally.

Kara Bowermaster and Baille Jones had patient at bats to draw a pair of walks off of Mongold to load the bases. And with a gaggle of turkey-calling, backwards-helmet-wearing teammates behind her, Rachel Kline stepped up to the plate and hit a single to short to right field to bring Barmont home with the game-winning run.

"We didn't expect to come blow this team out of the water because they are always good competition, but now that we have been winning games I think it's giving us the momentum," Coy said. "We want to go farther and we want to do something bigger. This game I think just showed how well we work as a team."

Maria Burkett and Carly Caron had the only hits for James Buchanan (3-2, 0-2 MPC).