Softball 5/7/2023 12:00:00 AM

Abington to Open United East Tournament at Penn College

Abington, Pa. – The fourth-seeded Penn State Abington softball team will face top-seed and host Penn College to open the United East Conference (UEC) Tournament on Monday, May 8. Game time is set for 10 a.m. at Elm Park. This is the second straight season that both teams face one another as the one-four matchup.

How to Watch
Fans that can't make it out to Elm Park can catch all the action live with a free web stream courtesy of Penn College. To access the live coverage, click here.

Championship Gear
The United East has announced that it will be opening up its 2023 Online Store for four different spring sports. The store will feature gear for men's lacrosse, women's lacrosse, softball and baseball. It will be open from May 3rd to May 17th. The shop will include two options for all four sports sports, including a white tee-shirt with the Championship logo as well as a dry fit gray shirt with a United East Champions logo. Championship items are only available online and will not be available at the site of the Championship. Click to visit the online store.

About Penn State Abington (20-14, 14-10 UEC)
The Nittany Lions have been in the mix for a postseason run throughout the regular season finishing fourth in the conference standings with a 14-10 record. Overall, Abington finished 20-14 marking the sixth time in the program's Division III era that the Nittany Lions registered 20-plus victories in a season.

Abington is led by sophomore Gretchen Yanss who has had a career season not only in the pitching circle but also at the plate. Yanss finished the regular season with a 12-6 record while recording a career-low 2.51 earned run average. In 125.1 innings of work, Yanss has totaled 124 strikeouts; five shy of the program's single season record. Her 124 K's rank third most in the United East. Offensively, Yanss is hitting a career-high .393 which is tops on the team. She set career-high marks in hits (35), doubles (5), triples (2) and RBI (23) during the regular season.

Sophomore catcher Callie Chambers has been solid behind the plate this season for the Nittany Lions. She enters the postseason batting a career-high .357 to go along with 25 hits, six doubles, 12 runs and 13 RBI. Senior Jenna Gorman leads the team with 32 hits and seven doubles, while sophomore Hailey Gamble has driven in a team-high 25 runs to go along with four doubles, four triples and two home runs.

About Penn College (28-8, 20-4 UEC)
The Wildcats claimed their second straight United East Regular Season title after finishing conference play with a 20-4 record and as a result earned the top-seed in the tournament. Serving as host, Penn College enters the postseason with a 17-1 record at Elm Park with its only blemish a 2-1 defeat versus Elmira College back in March in a non-conference game. Senior Jordan Specht leads the team in hitting with a .492 average which currently is second-best in the conference. Specht has totaled 61 hits, including 16 doubles and five home runs to go along with 28 runs and 43 RBI. Senior speedster Maddie Hurst is batting .431 and leads the United East in stolen bases with 41. Hurst has only been caught stealing twice during the season. She also has 53 hits and 45 runs scored. Sophomore MacKenzie Weaver owns a sub-1.00 ERA with a conference low 0.93. Weaver is 15-4 through the regular season with 131 strikeouts.

Abington in the Postseason
The Nittany Lions are making their 10^th appearance in the United East Tournament. The team has qualified for the postseason every year since 2013 with the exception of the 2020 season when the tournament was canceled due to the Covid-19 pandemic. Abington is 10-15 in its nine previous appearances, including advancing to the 2015 championship game.

All-Time Series vs. Penn College
Abington and Penn College recently closed out the regular season at Elm Park with the Wildcats taking both games of the final doubleheader of the season. The Wildcats are 13-4 versus the Nittany Lions in the all-time series. Both teams have faced each other three times in the postseason with the Wildcats winning all three of the matchups, including last year's single elimination semifinal game.

What's Next
The winner of the Abington/Penn College opener will face the winner of the No. 2 Penn State Berks/No. 3 Penn State Harrisburg match up at 2 p.m. The loser of first two games will face one another in an elimination game at 4 p.m.

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Players Mentioned

#17 Callie Chambers: C/IF; 5' 7"; Sophomore; R/R

#18 Hailey Gamble: OF; 5' 5"; Sophomore; R/R

#9 Jenna Gorman: IF; 5' 4"; Senior; R/R

#13 Gretchen Yanss: P; 5' 7"; Sophomore; R/R

Players Mentioned

#17 Callie Chambers
: 5' 7"; Sophomore; R/R
: C/IF

#18 Hailey Gamble
: 5' 5"; Sophomore; R/R
: OF

#9 Jenna Gorman
: 5' 4"; Senior; R/R
: IF

#13 Gretchen Yanss
: 5' 7"; Sophomore; R/R
: P