Before rain postponed its other two weekend matches, SRU softball played a double header last Friday against Glenville State (W.Va) and senior pitcher Shaylee Ianno threw her second career no-hitter in a 1-0 victory.
In the second game of the double header, SRU lost 6-0 and moved its overall record on the season to 7-6.
Ianno (5-2) threw her fourth shutout of the season and was a fifth inning walk away from having a perfect game against Glenville State. Ianno struck out six batters in the game, and on Monday she was picked as the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference-Western Division Pitcher of the Week.
With a 1.60 ERA and 37 strikeouts, the reigning PSAC-West Pitcher of the Year is three shutouts away from moving to first place all time in SRU softball history with the most career shutouts. Ianno already holds the Green and White’s record for most career strikeouts with 288.
Offensively for Slippery Rock, senior outfielder Natalie Atkinson recorded the only RBI by belting a double in the third inning that scored Ianno, who reached on a fielder’s choice earlier in the inning. Junior catcher Katie Saluga and sophomore designated hitter Kristin Kaminski each went 2-for-3 in the win.
Unfortunately for the Rock, the momentum didn’t carry over into the second game as Glenville State put up a 6-0 shutout against SRU. The Rock’s offense never managed to get on track as they finished with five hits.
Glenville State roughed up freshman pitcher Ashley Knight (2-4) for six runs in three innings of work. Junior pitcher Amy Erickson came on in relief and tossed four perfect innings.
Offensively, designated hitter Stephanie Collenette went 2-for-3 at the plate while teammates Katie Saluga and Breanna Togel each recorded a hit. Collenette is currently leading the team with a .412 batting average while Jenna Geibel has four home runs and 10 RBI’s.
After the game, head coach Becky Sciacca said that the team didn’t necessarily lack offense. They couldn’t get the ball into open spots, but they were making contact.
“I think the team did a great job against Glenville State,” she said. “We were hitting the ball but unfortunately in the second game it was just right to them. I think we need to work on base running a little more. Defensively, we are great this year and they’re swinging the bats.”
The Rock has a slate of home games scheduled this weekend. First off will be a double header today against Edinboro University that starts at 2:30 p.m. at the SRU Softball Complex. Tomorrow, SRU will play its second straight conference double header, this time against Gannon University at 1:00 p.m.
