Softball: Panthers clinch tournament berth despite losing series against Rutgers

Pitt’s softball team only managed one victory in its three-game series with Rutgers… Pitt’s softball team only managed one victory in its three-game series with Rutgers this weekend. As it turns out, that’s all the Panthers needed to clinch a berth in the Big East Championship.

The single victory over the Scarlet Knights was Pitt’s 10th conference victory, and it boosted the Panthers into the postseason. Pitt finished sixth in the Big East, and the top eight teams advance to the championship.

Pitt’s No. 6 seed is its highest seed in the Big East Championship. It’s the Panthers’ fourth berth in five years and the first for second-year coach Holly Aprile.

“It’s a big deal for us,” Aprile said. “I told the girls that once we get there, anything can happen.”

Pitt will face No. 3 seed Louisville Thursday at 6:30 p.m. in Louisville, Ky. The Panthers and Cardinals didn’t play each other this season.

Pitt defeated Rutgers 2-1 in the first game over the weekend in Piscataway, N.J.

A fielder’s choice ball to the shortstop hit by Reba Tutt scored Niki Cognigni in the first inning. The Scarlet Knights tied the game in the fourth inning off a Nicole Lindley homerun.

In the sixth inning, Tutt started the Panther’s offense with a single to left field and then stole second. Kristen Cheesebrew reached base on a fielder’s choice, which also brought in Tutt for the winning run.

Pitcher Cory Berliner picked up the win, throwing all seven innings with three strikeouts and allowing only two hits.

“In the first game, we came out strong,” Aprile said. “We hit the ball well and played good defensively.”

After the first game, Aprile said, the Panthers played “uninspired,” although she said the team members were unaware that they clinched a spot in the championship with the first win.

In the second game, the score reversed, with Rutgers defeating Pitt 2-1.

Pitt player Ashley Amistade started the game with a single, stole second and then advanced to third on a Holly Stevens line out to right field. Amistade then stole home to score Pitt’s first and final run of the game.

“We got runners on, but we failed to execute,” Aprile said. “We couldn’t move the runners over.”

Rutgers answered in the bottom of the first, when Mandy Craig scored Jen Meinheit with a single to right-center field. In the fifth inning, Meinheit brought in the winning run with a single.

In the third game of the weekend, the Scarlet Knights won 7-1.

Pitcher Berliner struggled in the first inning, and Rutgers got an early four-run lead. Craig brought in Meinheit with a fielder’s choice to first base. Then, Rutgers’ Mikelyn Messina hit a three-run homerun to center field.

“We never really recovered from that,” Aprile said.

The Scarlet Knights added to their total in the second inning. Lindley brought in Meinheit with a double to center field, and then Lindley scored off a Craig double.

Pitt scored its only run in the fourth inning, when Yvette Bravo hit her third homerun of the season to left field. The Panthers struggled offensively because they failed to make adjustments at the plate, Aprile said.

In the bottom of the fourth, Rutgers scored again, when Lindley brought in Meinheit with a single to the right side.

As the Panthers head into the Big East Championship, Aprile said she wants to see the same actions she has expected from her team all season.

“I want maximum effort,” she said. “ I want to swing the bats and be aggressive at the plate.

“I don’t want them to be intimidated,” she said. “Come out and play hard.”