4/23/22
 
SCRANTON, Pa. – The Lackawanna College Softball team will continue its run of doubleheaders this weekend with a pair of home doubleheaders on Saturday and Sunday at Scranton High's softball field. On Saturday, April 23^rd, the Falcons will host Region XIX opponent Raritan Valley CC in a doubleheader starting at 12:00pm ET. Then, on Sunday, April 24^th, the Falcons host Lock Haven's Club softball team for a doubleheader starting at 12:00pm ET.
 
Both doubleheaders will have a video livestream on the Lackawanna College Athletics YouTube Channel at www.lackawannafalcons.com/YouTube.  
 
About the Falcons
Lackawanna College (21-15) enters the weekend as winners of eight of their last eleven games, and 3-1 so far this week with a doubleheader sweep over SUNY Orange and a doubleheader split against NJCAA DIII #7 Brookdale CC. The Falcons posted 43 runs on 51 hits in two games against Orange on Thursday. You can read the recap from that game HERE. They would go on to split their Friday doubleheader with Brookdale, the second time this season they did that, losing game one 10-2 in five innings before winning game two 12-4 in six innings. You can read the recap from Friday HERE.
 
On the year, the Falcons are hitting .352 as a team, and have a combined .957 OPS. Lackawanna College has 138 total extra base hits already this year, 110 of which have been doubles. The Falcons are slugging .544 on the year, and have a .413 OBP, drawing 97 walks and 18 HBPs on the season. The Falcons have stolen 66 total bases on the year, and have driven in 241 of their 278 runs scored so far this year. Lackawanna is averaging just under eight runs per ballgame this season.
 
In the circle, the Falcons have a team ERA of 4.48. Through 228 innings, Lackawanna has given up 330 hits and 219 runs, 146 earned, and have struck out 158 batters, while walking 101. Opponents are hitting .314 against the Falcons this year. Lackawanna has turned 13 double plays defensively, but the Falcons have committed 82 errors in 36 games so far this season.
 
Emma McNally is the team-leader so far this year, hitting .476 on the season. McNally has a team-high OPS of 1.383, and leads the Falcons in multiple categories, including hits (59), extra base hits (32), triples (6), homeruns (6), RBIs (45), total bases (109), slugging (.879), and OBP (.504). McNally is second on the team in runs scored (39), and is in a three-way tie for the team-lead with 20 doubles this season. Emma has eight stolen bases on the season, good for fourth on the team. McNally has 17 multi-hit games this season, and was on a 23-game hitting streak before going hitless in the first game against Brookdale. McNally is a combined 10-for-15 (.667) in the four games so far this weekend, scoring five runs, hitting six doubles and two triples, and driving in eight combined RBI.  
 
Catarena Sommers is second on the squad, hitting .402 overall on the year. Sommers is second on the Falcons with 47 total hits, and has a .1.120 OPS, also putting her at second in that category. Catarena has 25 extra base hits, good for second on the team, including a part of the three-way tie for doubles with 20 this year. Sommers also has 30 RBI on the year, tied for second on the team. Her 79 total bases have her ranked second on the squad this season, as well as her .675 slugging percentage. Sommers is fourth on the team in runs scored with 29, and is fourth on the team with a .445 OBP this year. Sommers has 14 multi-hit games for the Falcons this season, and is a combined 9-for-16 (.563) in the four games this weekend, driving in five runs, scoring seven, and hitting five doubles and a homerun.   
 
Skylynn Gilligan is third on the team with a .395 batting average this year, and has a solid .983 OPS, good for fourth on the Falcons. Gilligan has 45 total hits, ranking her third, and is tied with Sommers for second on the squad with 30 RBI this year. Gilligan is slugging at .526 this season and has 60 total bases, each ranking her fifth on the squad. Gilligan has 12 extra base hits on the year, including ten doubles this year, and is second on the team with 13 walks drawn. After going 1-for-12 in her first four games, Gilligan had 19-game hitting streak, including seven multi-hit games, and now has eleven multi-hit games on the season. Gilligan is a combined 4-for-16 (.250) in the four games so far this weekend, scoring five runs and driving in three.  
 
Jennifer Wolak is fourth on the Falcons with a .377 batting average, and an OPS of .920. She has 26 hits in her 29 appearances, and has a .442 OBP, good for fifth on the team. She's scored 16 runs, and has five doubles and a triple to drive in 13 RBIs this year. Wolak has five stolen bases on the year, and has nine multi-hit games this season. Wolak, in two games this weekend, is a combined 5-for-9 (.556) from the plate, scoring three runs and driving in two more.
 
Madison McVicar is fifth on the team with a .366 batting average, and has a 1.043 OPS so far this season, good for third on the squad. McVicar leads the Falcons in runs scored (40), and has a .463 OBP on the year, ranking her second on the team. She's one of four Falcons with 40+ hits this year (41), and leads the Falcons in walks with 18. McVicar has driven in 26 runs, ranking her fourth on the team, and has 17 extra base hits this year, including 13 doubles and three homeruns. McVicar has a .580 slugging percentage, placing her third on the Falcons. McVicar has twelve multi-hit games this season, and is a combined 8-for-16 (.500) in the four games so far this weekend, dirving in eight runs, scoring seven, and hitting three doubles and a homerun.   
 
Meghan Fritz has a .364 batting average, and has collected 43 hits on the year, putting her fourth on the team. Fritz has scored 34 runs this season, good for third on the Falcons, and is second on the team in stolen bases this year, with eleven swipes. Fritz has 22 extra base hits on the year, including 20 doubles, tying her with McNally and Sommers for the team lead. Fritz is slugging at .576, good for fourth on the team. She has 13 multi-hit games this year, and has gone a combined 10-for-19 (.526) at the plate in four games so far this weekend, scoring ten runs, driving in five, and hitting five doubles.     
 
Fritz is also one of the main starters in the pitcher's circle for Lackawanna, with 13 starts in 14 appearances for the Falcons. She has a 6-7 record on the year, with a 4.44 ERA. Fritz has pitched in 75.2 innings, giving up 115 hits and 80 runs, just 48 earned, while striking out 53 batters, good for second on the squad. Opponents are hitting .321 against Fritz this year. Fritz picked up the win against SUNY Orange in her last start this past Thursday, going seven innings and giving up nine runs on 13 hits, while walking a season-worst seven batters.   
 
MacKayla Quick has made 16 starts in 17 appearances so far this year. She's 10-6 on the year, with a team-best 3.92 ERA. Quick, in 89.1 innings pitched, has given up 72 runs, 50 earned, on 113 hits, with a team-best 80 strikeouts and a team-high 46 walks. Opponents have hit nine homeruns against Quick, and are hitting .291 on the year. MacKayla has won six of her last seven starts, including her last three. In her latest outing, Quick shut down Brookdale on Friday, giving up four runs on seven hits while striking out seven batters in six innings of work. She also pitched against Orange, picking up a win on Thursday, where she only needed to go three innings, giving up four runs on five hits.  
 
Tess Ruschman has appeared in eight games, with five starts, and is 2-2 overall this year, with a 7.46 ERA. Ruschman has also earned a save this year, in the win over SUNY Corning earlier this year. Ruschman, in her 25.1 innings of work, has surrendered 30 runs, 27 earned, on 48 hits, while striking out eight and walking six. In her last start, Tess went 4.1 innings against Brookdale, allowing ten runs on eleven hits, while striking out a batter and walking another.  
 
Stephanie Kibbe has seen action in eleven games this year, with just one start, but has a 2-0 record with a 2.95 ERA this season. Kibbe, in 21.1 innings of work, has given up 19 runs, nine earned, on 36 hits. She has eight strikeouts and ten walks on the year. Opponents are hitting .340 against Kibbe this season. Kibbe pitched two innings of relief against SUNY Orange, giving up three runs on three hits, striking out one batter and walking another.  
 
Jeff Pittsman is in his eleventh season at the helm of the Falcons program. After some early growing pains when he took over in 2012, coach Pitt overhauled the Falcons program, turning it into a Region XIX contender year-in, and year-out. The Falcons had four straight seasons of 20+ wins, starting in 2016, and might have had another if not for the pandemic shuttering the 2020 season early. Pittsman is a two-time EPAC Coach of the Year, and has been a fixture in local softball circles for year. An NEPA native and Mid Valley HS graduate, Pittsman began his coaching career in football with the Mid Valley program, and other various schools around the area, before transitioning into coaching softball at the travel-team level. Eventually, his credentials helped him land the job with Lackawanna College, where he took over a team with barely enough players to safely compete, and steadily built the program into a winner.
 
About Raritan Valley
Raritan Valley (2-8, 0-4) enters the weekend on the wrong side of a seven-game skid. The Lions haven't won since April 2^nd, when they defeated SUNY Orange 6-5. The Lions, like the Falcons, have had quite a few games postponed, canceled, and otherwise affected by the weather this year. They were last in action this past Thursday, in a doubleheader at Mercer County CC. The Vikings stunned the Lions in game one, recovering from a late 5-2 deficit to score four in the bottom of the seventh, winning 6-5. Mercer took the momentum from game one into the second game, taking a 4-2 lead after two, then adding eight runs in the fourth, to eventually win 12-2 in five innings.   
 
Raritan Valley is hitting .257 as a team so far this season, with a combined OPS of .710. The Lions are averaging 3.6 runs per game, and have 21 combined extra base hits on the year, including 13 doubles and five homeruns. As a team, Raritan is slugging at .401, and have an OBP of .309. The Lions have stolen eleven bases on the year. Raritan has drawn 17 walks, and struck out 60 times so far this season.
 
In the pitching circle, Raritan Valley has a combined 5.31 ERA on the year. The Lions, in 55.1 innings of work, have given up 85 runs on 69 hits, 42 runs earned, and struck out 71 batters, as compared to 53 walks. The Lions have held their opponents to three or fewer runs twice this year, including a 3-2 loss to Middlesex, and an 8-1 win over Lehigh Carbon CC. Raritan has turned one double play this season, and has 37 errors in ten games.  
 
Jillian Sims is the team-leader with a .379 batting average so far this season for the Lions. Sims leads Raritan in several categories, including OPS (1.126), slugging (.655), OBP (.471), total hits (11), homeruns (2), and walks (5). Sims is tied for the team-lead in runs scored with eight on the year, and she has a triple in addition to her homers this year, driving in two runs. Sims has three multi-hit games this year, and was a combined 2-for-6 with a run scored in the doubleheader with Mercer County CC.  
 
Amanda Monda is second on the team with a .360 batting average this season, along with a .913 OPS, third on the team. Monda has nine total hits, in a three-way tie for second on the Lions, and has driven in six RBI, putting her second on the team. Monda's .393 OBP is second on the Lions, and she's got a double and a homer so far this season. Monda has one multi-hit game this season, coming against Mercer County CC, where she was 3-for-3 with two RBI and a run scored. In both games combined, Monda was 4-for-5 with four RBI and a run scored.  
 
Kyle McKevitt is third on the team with a .333 batting average this year, and comes in with a .889 OPS on the season. McKevitt is tied with Monda with nine total hits this season, and is also tied for the team lead in extra base knocks, with six on the year. All of her extra bags are doubles, first on the team. McKevitt is slugging at .556, third on the team, and has a .333 OBP. McKevitt has two multi-hit games this year, and was a combined 2-for-5 with two doubles and a run scored against Mercer.
 
Shannon Russo is a .321 batter this season, tied for second on the team with McKevitt and Monda in total hits, with nine this year. Russo has scored four runs, tied for third on the team, and has driven in three RBI this year. She has an OBP of .345 this year, and is slugging at .321 this season. Russo has three multi-hit games on the season, and was a combined 3-for-6 with two runs scored against Mercer on Thursday.  
 
Olivia Sims has a .259 batting average this year, and is tied for the team-lead in both runs scored (8) and extra base hits (6) on the season. Sims has a .985 OPS this year, buoyed by her .630 slugging percentage, good for second on the team. Sims has three doubles, a triple, and a homer, driving in a team-best eight runs this year. Sims has one multi-hit game this year, going 3-for-4 against SUNY Orange back on April 2^nd. She had a triple, a homer, and four RBI in that game. Sims was 1-for-4 with a double, an RBI, and two runs scored in the two games against Mercer.
 
Jillian Sims is the main hurler for the Lions this year, having started all seven of her appearances this year. Sims has a 2-4 record, with a 4.62 ERA. In 30.1 innings of work, she's given up 43 runs, 20 earned, on 41 hits, while striking out a team-best 38 batters, and walking 20. Sims pitched well in her last outing, but still got the loss, her fourth in a row, against Mercer. She went 6.1 innings, giving up six runs on nine hits, just one earned, while striking out a season-high ten batters.
 
Olivia Sims has started three games in her seven appearances this season, going 0-3 with a 5.96 ERA. Olivia, in 24.2 innings of work, has given up 36 runs on 26 hits, 21 earned runs, while striking out 33 batters, but walking 32. Sims started the second game against Mercer in her last outing, going four innings, while giving up twelve runs on eight hits. She walked a season-worst ten batters against Mercer.
 
The interim head coach for Raritan Valley is Sara Gebert, in her first season leading the Lions. Gebert played for the Lions back in 2016-2017, and has been an assistant with the program before getting promoted to the interim role. Gebert also coaches U10 and U14 travel at Skylands Pride, and has done so for six years. She is also an instructor at Diamond Nation, a baseball and softball instruction facility based in Flemington, NJ.     
 
About Lock Haven University Club


There is no information available about Lock Haven University's club softball team. The varsity program at Lock Haven is 15-15 so far this season, and the Bald Eagles are 4-7 in the PSAC this year.
 
Game Information
The doubleheader against Raritan Valley is set for a 12:00pm ET start on Saturday, April 23^rd, at Scranton High's softball field. The second game will follow at 2:00pm ET. There will be a video livestream available for both games via the Lackawanna College Athletics YouTube channel, at www.lackawannafalcons.com/YouTube.
 
 
The doubleheader with Lock Haven University's club team is scheduled for Sunday, April 24^that Scranton High's softball field. The first game of that twinbill is set for a 12:00pm start, with the second to follow at 2:00pm ET. There will be a video livestream available for both games via the Lackawanna College Athletics YouTube channel, at www.lackawannafalcons.com/YouTube.