April 28th, 2024 by WCBC Radio

Frostburg State Softball team swept West Virginia State in their regular season finale, defeating the Yellow Jackets 3-2 in game one and going for a 10-0 five inning victory in game two.

After the sweep, Frostburg celebrated Senior Day, recognizing seniors Ellie Buckheit, Ryann Darling, Brianna Munday, Sydney Theobald, Jamie Roberts, and Ava Gnibus for their careers in a Bobcat uniform.

Theobald started from the circle in game one, as WVSU knocked two hits in their first at-bats, capturing a run to get on the board first. Sophomore Gracie Nelson reached base first for the Bobcats, standing on first after an error by the Yellow Jackets. Roberts reached base on a fielder's choice that would get Nelson out at second, as FSU stranded Roberts after a strikeout. Theobald gave up a leadoff hit to start the second, but sat down the next three batters, picking up two strikeouts to send the inning into the bottom half, where Frostburg went 1-2-3 from the plate heading into the third.

The Yellow Jackets put one batter on in the top of the third, with Theobald dealing three quick outs to strand the runner. The Bobcats were able to tie things up at one apiece right away in the bottom of the third, with junior Allyssa Albright belting a solo bomb over the fence. Theobald kept things even at 1-1 in the top of the fourth, causing three groundouts from WVSU. Roberts started the bottom half of the inning with a single to left, as Buckheit came in to pinch run. Junior Cristina Sommerkamp then laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance Buckheit to second, as the latter took third on a passed ball. Munday then put the ball in play, reaching on a fielder's choice and recording an RBI, sending Buckheit home for a 2-1 FSU lead.

WVSU led the fifth off with a double, as Theobald once again dealt three straight outs to get out of the inning, including an important K to get the first out. Frostburg added another run to their lead in their at-bats of the fifth, as Nelson was walked, stole second, and came in to score on an RBI double to left-center by Roberts. The Yellow Jackets got back within one in their next looks at the plate, bringing the game to 3-2 after a single, steal, sacrifice, and base hit moved the runner around the basepaths. Junior Hanna Binek recorded FSU's lone hit of the sixth with a single to left but couldn't advance, taking the game into the final inning. WVSU led off the seventh with a double to right, causing senior Katie Chapple to come in and attempt to close things out. The Yellow Jackets traded an out for a base with a sac bunt moving the runner to third, but a grounder to first and a fly out to center allowed Chapple to pick up the save and seal the 3-2 victory for the Bobcats in game one.

Roberts got the nod to throw game two, seeing a quick 1-2-3 outing in the first. Frostburg's offense erupted in their first at-bats, with Nelson drawing a lead-off walk and advancing to third on a single from Roberts, with the latter advancing to second on the throw. Junior Samara Funk then knocked a two-RBI single to center, also advancing to second on the throw, as both Nelson and Roberts came home to score. Darling then roped a single to center, moving Funk to third, as the former then proceeded to steal second. With both runners in scoring position, Binek drew a walk to load the bases, as a two-RBI single to left by Gnibus put FSU in front 4-0. With Binek now on second, both her and Gnibus advanced a base on a wild pitch, with Binek crossing home on another wild pitch moments later. Gnibus, now on third, trotted home to make the game 6-0 off an RBI single from Buckheit.

Roberts struck out two in the top of the second, as the Bobcats kept their bats going in the bottom half of the inning. Roberts took first after being hit by a pitch, as Funk was then walked to put two on for Frostburg. Darling then launched a three-run homer over the left field fence, pushing FSU's lead to 9-0. Binek then walked, taking second as Gnibus put the ball in play, with the former coming in to score on an RBI single from Albright to see the game at 10-0.

The Yellow Jackets continued to struggle on offense, seeing a three up, three down half inning. Roberts and Funk both reached base in the bottom of the third after back-to-back walks, but both were left on base. Roberts threw for another 1-2-3 inning in the fourth, as the Bobcats kept quiet in their at-bats as well. In the top of the fifth, Roberts faced the minimum number of batters once again, recording two strikeouts in the inning to capture the 10-0 five-inning win in game two.

Roberts paved the way offensively for Frostburg, going for another three-hit day, scoring two runs and collecting an RBI. Both Darling and Albright recorded a pair of hits, combing for three runs and five RBI. Theobald earned her 12th victory of the season, throwing six innings in game one, going for two runs off eight hits, while giving up zero walks and striking out five, as Chapple collected her first save of the season in game one. Roberts finished with a five-inning no hitter in game two, recording her ninth win and second shutout of the season, while throwing seven strikeouts.

With the sweep, Frostburg ends the regular season with a record of 29-18, while WVSU ends their regular season 20-31. The Bobcats, having secured the two seed in the North, will wait to compete in the MEC Tournament held in Salem, VA, as play begins on Thursday, May 2. For more information and updates, please visit frostburgsports.com.