MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. (March 7, 2011) – The Penn State Berks softball team opened up the 2011 campaign with losses to Penn State Altoona (11-1) and Penn State Beaver (6-4) on Monday afternoon in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Senior Brittany Hicks gave the Nittany Lions (0-2) something to cheer about when she drilled the first home run of her collegiate career.
The Nittany Lions were unable to generate any offense in their loss to Altoona. Berks made solid contact, but the defense seemed to have them played perfectly throughout the day. Things weren't going much better through the first five innings against Penn State Beaver.
Trailed by 5-0 in the sixth, the Lions broke out of their slump with a three run inning. Shari Lynn Kluth led off with a walk and scored on a double by Vicki Graver. Graver was thrown out trying to stretch it into a triple. Hicks capped off the scoring with her two-run shot to deep center field, scoring Marissa Ruggiero on the play.
Altoona tacked on a run in the top of the seventh and Berks rally came up short with just a lone run in the bottom half. Ashley Barbiero singled and three batters later scored on a fielder's choice groundout by Graver.
Devon Denker pitched a complete game for Berks, but suffered the loss behind some tough luck. Denker surrendered six runs with only one being earned.
The Nittany Lions will look to bounce back tomorrow with a doubleheader against the University of Maine at Presque Isle. The first pitch is set for 11:30 a.m.
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