WILLIAMSPORT, Pa. – Freshman Kayla Kline (Mifflinburg, Pa./Mifflinburg) hit a walk-off homer in the first game and sophomore Liz Nace (Perkasie, Pa./Pennridge) tossed her second straight shutout in the second game to lead the Lycoming College softball team to a sweep of regionally-ranked Widener University, winning 4-3 in nine innings and 5-0 respectively, at the Shangraw Athletic Complex on Saturday, April 29.  
Lycoming (22-14 overall, 7-9 MAC Commonwealth) fell one game shy of qualifying for the MAC Commonwealth Championship, as Hood earned the fifth spot in the tournament with a sweep of Alvernia University.
 
Kline delivered a high fly ball over the left field fence to lift Lycoming to a 4-3 win over the Pride (23-11 overall, 10-6 MAC Commonwealth), ranked ninth in the latest NCAA East Region rankings.
 
The Warriors fell behind 3-1 after Widener scored three in the third with two hits and a walk and a two-RBI double by Liz Antonucci. In the bottom of the inning, Lycoming got a run back, as junior Samantha Fischer (Williamsport, Pa./Williamsport) led off with a single before junior Rachael Shady (Lock Haven, Pa./Central Mountain) walked. After a pair of outs, junior Ashley Schoenstadt (Gap, Pa./Pequea Valley) walked and senior Morgan Kunes (Beech Creek, Pa./Central Mountain) was hit by a pitch to drive in Fischer.
 
Shady tied the game in the fifth with a homer to left, her second of the game after leading off the first with a solo shot.
 
From there, neither team could get a runner past second base before Kline's game-winning solo shot in the ninth.
 
Shady went 2-for-4 with two homers, tying the school-record for homers in a game, and Kline went 2-for-5 with a homer. Six Widener players finished with one hit in the loss.
 
Shady (12-8) won her 12^th game of the year, tied for fourth in program history, as she also won her 25^th game of her career, becoming the sixth player in program history to reach the mark. She allowed six hits, four walks and two earned runs in the nine-inning complete game, as she struck out seven.
 
Katie Rabuck (9-5) took the loss, allowing four hits and a walk in 4 2/3 innings of relief. She struck out four.
 
In the second game, Nace left eight Widener runners stranded, including two at third base, as Lycoming used a five-run first-inning to cruise to a 5-0 win.
 
Shady walked to lead off before a groundout moved her to second, where she scored on a double to the gap by Kline, her 10^th of the season. Schoenstadt followed with a single before Kunes doubled off the base of the fence to score Kline. Crabb followed by reaching on an error that scored two runs and Nace singled to left with two outs to allow Crabb to score.
 
Widener had two runners reach in the third, fifth and seventh innings, but each time Nace worked out of the jam, even getting a groundball double play with runners on first and second in the last frame.
 
Kline went 2-for-3 with two doubles, a run and a RBI to lead the Warriors and Devin Coyne went 3-for-3 to lead the Pride.
 
Nace (6-3) allowed eight hits and a walk while striking out four to post her second straight shutout win. Coyne (2-1) took the loss for Widener, allowing six hits, three earned runs and a walk in six innings. She struck out two.
 
The Warriors will wrap up the 2017 season on Sunday, April 30, when they host Misericordia in a 12 p.m. non-conference doubleheader at the Shangraw Athletic Complex.