BETHLEHEM, Pa. --- Moravian College is continuing its look back at its 2017-18 athletic campaign. The next event in the Top 10 Exciting Games from the past year selected by the athletic administration is our No. 3 highlight – the softball squad's 3-0 win over the University of Scranton to capture the 2018 Landmark Conference Championship.
The Greyhounds, who are making their third appearance on the countdown, won the program's 16th conference title and eighth Landmark Conference Championship with the shutout on Saturday, May 5 at Blue & Grey Field. Moravian, which was 32-5 after the win, went on to make its 17th NCAA Tournament appearance, win the NCAA DIII Ewing, New Jersey Regional and play in a Super Regional at Rowan University.
It didn't take long for the Greyhound to give senior pitcher Josie Novak all the offense she needed in the circle. Freshman right fielder Brooke Wehr led off the bottom of the first inning with a solo home run. It was the sixth time this season that Wehr had begun Moravian's first at-bat of the game with a solo homer.
The Greyhounds added a run in the fifth inning on an RBI single from senior catcher Janae Matos, and the Hounds finished off the scoring with a run on the sixth inning on an RBI double by Wehr.
Novak earned the tournament's Most Outstanding Player honor after throwing her second shutout in the two-day tournament with four hits, a walk and seven strikeouts. Novak became the second pitcher in school history to reach 600 career strikeouts during the contest.
"Winning a conference title never gets old, and our team made quite a statement in the tournament this year," commented Head Coach John Byrne. "We allowed only one run and had terrific pitching performances from Amanda and Josie. I told the players that the hardest part is winning the conference tournament. They played very well and gave us a chance to advance to our third season, which is what we call the NCAA Tournament."
Read the original game story at http://moraviansports.com/sports/sball/2017-18/releases/20180505rtp7ts with links to stats, photos and video.
The number two highlight in the Top 10 Exciting Games of 2017-18 will be released on Wednesday, June 27.
