Today's home doubleheader may not have counted in the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference (CACC) standings, but don't try to tell the Lady Rams softball squad that their sweep of regionally-ranked league foe Wilmington University wasn't a huge momentum boost nonetheless heading into a stretch of four straight road twinbills in the next week, the first three in CACC action.

The wins represent the fourth straight for Philadelphia University, which is the longest streak in third-year Head Coach John Kelly's tenure.  The Lady Rams raised their record to 7-15 and remain 3-5 in the CACC.  The defeats drop Wilmington to 22-10 overall while they are still an impressive 9-1 in league play.

In game one this afternoon, the Lady Rams rallied for a dramatic, come-from-behind 9-8 win over the Wildcats, who are rated sixth in the latest NCAA Division II Northeast Region softball rankings.  Senior left fielder Maureen Keenan (Philadelphia, Pa./Archbishop Ryan), sophomore third baseman Kristin Giamatteo (Bellmore, N.Y./Wellington Mepham), and senior pitcher Jacque Curtis (Punxsutawney, Pa./Punxsutawney) each socked two-run home runs to power Philadelphia University back after trailing 5-0 through two and a half innings and 7-2 through four and a half.

The Lady Rams then found themselves behind again, down 8-6 heading into the bottom of the seventh and (normally) final inning.  Curtis led off with a single and sophomore catcher Maggie Desmond (Bayport N.Y./St. John the Baptist) followed with another base hit.  Giamatteo reached on an error, scoring Curtis.  Later in the inning, senior second baseman Janine Becker (Galloway, N.J./Absegami) drove in Maggie Desmond with the run that forced an eighth-inning tie-breaker.

In the eighth, each team began with a runner automatically placed on second base.  Despite the threat that loomed in scoring position, Curtis was able to retire the Wildcats one-two-three to keep the score tied at eight apiece.

When it was Philadelphia University's turn, sophomore Kristyn Loughery (Phoenixville, Pa./Phoenixville) was called on to be the designated runner on second.  Senior first baseman Kelly McGrath (Philadelphia, Pa./St. Basil Academy) put the ball in play right away, forcing an error by the Wildcats and plating Loughery with the game-winning run.  Curtis went the distance, striking out four to pick up her fourth win of the season; in addition, she was 2-for-4 from the plate with two runs scored and two RBI.  Maggie Desmond also finished 2-for-4 with two runs scored.

Making the win even more impressive is that Philadelphia University was able to score six earned runs off of the CACC's leading pitcher, the Wildcats' sophomore starter Katie Turner (Smyrna, Del./Smyrna).  Turner, a two-time conference Pitcher of the Week recipient so far this season, entered Tuesday's play with a microscopic ERA of 0.53 and an eye-popping record of 13-2, having yielded just eight earned runs in 105 innings pitched.

In game two, the Lady Rams completed the sweep with an efficient 2-0 win in just over an hour's time.  Freshman pitcher Randi Wozniak (Newtown Square, Pa./Marple Newtown) worked all seven innings, striking out four and scattering five hits in a dominating shutout performance.

Philadelphia University again used the two-run homer as its secret weapon in game two, this time striking in the fourth inning when Maggie Desmond led off with a double and two batters later Loughery hit a two-out, two-run shot to give the Lady Rams the only runs they needed to pick up another win over Wilmington on the afternoon.

Up next for the Lady Rams will be a CACC doubleheader at Felician College on Thursday, April 10 beginning at 3:00 p.m. in Lodi, N.J.

(In the foreground, Jacque Curtis works out of a seventh-inning jam in game one of today's doubleheader vs. Wilmington; in the background Kelly McGrath prepares to field a potentially-batted ball in play.)

(Maggie Desmond slides into third base before scoring the game-tying run in the bottom of the seventh of today's 9-8 win over Wilmington in game one of a doubleheader.)