Devon Barber, Muhlenberg

Muhlenberg 4, Dickinson 2
Muhlenberg 6, Dickinson 3
Brittany Dzieciolowski broke her bat in the second game of last Thursday's doubleheader at Moravian, so for the next game, the freshman catcher on the Muhlenberg softball team borrowed the bat of teammate Kelly Kline. That was a good good choice: Kline's bat has produced more home runs and RBI than any other player in Mule softball history. "I figured if it works for her, it would work for me," joked Dzieciolowski. It did. Dzieciolowski hit go-ahead doubles in both games as Muhlenberg moved closer to the top seed for the Centennial Conference playoffs with a doubleheader sweep of Dickinson, 4-2 and 6-3. The first-place Mules (22-7-1, 10-2) extended their lead in the CC to three games with the sweep and losses by Washington (to Swarthmore) and Gettysburg (to Franklin & Marshall). Muhlenberg needs to win two of its remaining four games to earn the top seed for the first time since the CC began a postseason tournament in 2001.

Franklin & Marshall 22, Gettysburg 9
Gettysburg 9, Franklin & Marshall 4
The day did not start out well for the Gettysburg College softball team with a loss in the opening game against Franklin & Marshall College, but the Bullets rebounded for a 9-4 victory in the nightcap to salvage a split in Centennial Conference action at Bobby Jones Field on Tuesday. Gettysburg (17-15, 7-5 CC) watched Franklin & Marshall (13-16, 5-6 CC) bat around in both the third and fourth innings in a 22-9 loss in the opener. The Bullets scored the first five runs of the game highlighted by a pair of RBI triples by senior Joy Hallfors (Mt. Airy, Md./Linganore) and junior Maggie Maguire (Madison, Conn./Daniel Hand) in the third inning. The Diplomats opened the floodgates in the third inning as 15 batters went to the plate. Franklin & Marshall posted 11 hits and 11 runs in the frame with Patricia Crigler providing a big blow with a three-run homer to left field. The visitors sent 14 batters to the dish in the following inning leading to eight more runs. Franklin & Marshall finished the game with 20 hits, while the 22 runs scored by the Diplomats were the most by a Gettysburg opponent since Millersville University put up 27 in 1990. For the Bullets, Steph Zengel finished 6-for-8 with three doubles, three runs, and three RBI in the split. Senior Taylor Snyder (Little Silver, N.J./Red Bank Regional) earned the victory in game two. She allowed four runs on five hits and struck out five.

Washington College 4, Swarthmore 3
Swarthmore 4, Washington College 3
Host Washington College and visiting Swarthmore split a pair of 4-3 Centennial Conference softball games at Washington College Softball Field on Tuesday afternoon.  The Shorewomen are now 21-12 overall and 9-5 in the Centennial, while the Garnet are 18-14 and 3-9 respectively. Washington has now won 21 games in a row for the third straight season and the fourth time overall, as the 1997 squad also recorded 21 victories.  The 21 wins are the most wins in a single season for Shorewomen Softball. Freshman Jaclyn Jayo (Peoria, AZ/Liberty) hit a sacrifice fly that plated Paige Briganti (Severna Park, MD/Severna Park) in the bottom of the seventh for the winning run in the opener. Samantha Bennett slapped a single up the middle to score Rose Pitkin to break a 3-3 tie in the fourth inning for the game-winning run in the nightcap.

Ursinus 5, Haverford 4
Haverford 3, Ursinus 2 - game suspended in 10th inning
The Haverford College softball team battled host Ursinus College into extra innings in both games of a Centennial Conference doubleheader on Tuesday afternoon. The Bears edged the Fords, 5-4, in an eight-inning affair in game one before the second game was halted in the 10th inning due to darkness with Haverford leading 3-2. A playoff-like feeling hung in the air as the opening game headed to extra innings. Elizabeth Newman earned a bases-loaded walk to put Haverford ahead, 4-3, in the top of the eighth but the Bears claimed victory in the bottom of the inning on a two-run double by Zoe Heinke. Looking for the split, Haverford pushed the hosts into extra innings once more in the second game of the day. The Fords went ahead 3-2 in the top of the 10th but the game was suspended on account of darkness before the Bears had an opportunity to bat.