KEUKA PARK, NY – The Penn State Abington softball team opened the North Eastern Athletic Conference tournament with an 8-0 shutout over the second seeded SUNY Poly Wildcats on Friday afternoon.

The NEAC Rookie of the Year, Becca Dougherty (Churchville, Pa.), dominated the Wildcats on the mound with eight strikeouts, two hits, and no walks in her six innings of work.

In the second inning, Freshman Samantha Friend (Philadelphia, Pa.) kicked off the scoring with a sharp RBI single to the short stop.

The Nittany Lions held the slim margin until Breanna Lineman (Philadelphia, Pa.) spurred an offensive explosion in the sixth inning with a solo shot to right field. Whitney DeLagol (Warminster, Pa.) continued the run when she slapped a double down the left field line to drive in another run. DeLagol took advantage of an error from the shortstop to score the Nittany Lions' third run of the inning. Greta Sheridan (Horsham, Pa.) stepped up to the plate and sent a single through the left side to drive in a run, while Ashley Quenzer (Philadelphia, Pa.) knocked another single for two more runs. Dougherty finished the run when she smashed a ball at the pitcher for an RBI single.

Abington will continue in the Tournament when they face off against NEAC South rival, Penn State Berks, tomorrow morning at 9:00 a.m.