Photography by Pete Galarneau, Jr.

Shippensburg, Pa. -- With their backs up against the wall and already facing a defeat against a powerful Shippensburg team, the West Virginia Wesleyan Bobcats won back-to-back games verse the Raiders to claim the Atlantic 2 Regional Sunday afternoon at Robb Field in Shippensburg, Pa.

The Bobcats, whom in opening round action defeated the Mansfield University Mountaineers, 8-0, then lost to the Raiders of Shippensburg, 1-0. The loss would place Wesleyan in a rematch with Mansfield where the Bobcats once again defeated the Mountaineers, 7-3, placing the Bobcats in a two-game, must win, rematch with the Winner's Bracket Shippensburg Raiders.

The Bobcats would claim the first contest 9-3, scoring the first two runs of the game in the top of the 1st inning as senior Alex Furr began her 4-5 performance with a single later scoring on a Jacqui Omichinski double.  Designated hitter, Jessica Griffin, would Sacrifice Fly in Omichinski from 3rd base after she moved up on a Megan Malenstyn single.  The Raiders would answer, however, with two of their own in the bottom of the 2nd inning tying the game at 2-2.  

Responding in a timely manner, Wesleyan answered with two runs in the top of the third as first baseman Jessica Rodriguez doubled in two runs with the bases loaded recapturing the lead, 4-2, one the Bobcats would never relinquish.  Omichinski would only allow one more run from inside the circle in the bottom of the 3rd, pitching five of the seven innings in the winning effort.  The Bobcats would tack on three more insurance runs in the top of the 6th then two more in the top of the 7th closing out the Raiders, 9-3.

In the winner-take-all finale, Omichinski would return to the circle in her most crucial role with a trip to the Super Regionals and a match up with East PSAC, Atlantic 1 Region Champions, the West Chester Golden Rams.

After pounding out 14 hits in game one, it was the Bobcat bats that, again, made the difference.  First basebman Rodriguez opened things up in the bottom of the 2nd inning solo homering to left field giving the Bobcats the slim 1-0 edge until Omichinski would make use of a third inning Raider error as she smacked a 3-run homerun, her second of the tournament giving Wesleyan the 4-0 lead.  Shippensburg would answer with their only run of game two in the top of the 4th closing the gap,  4-1, however the damage had already been done.  The Bobcats would add two more runs lengthening the gap to 6-1 heading to the top of the 7th where Omichinski would slam the door shut sending the Bobcats to their second Super Regional in three years.

Wesleyan and the Golden Rams will play a best-of-three game series next weekend to determine the representative for the Atlantic Region in the NCAA Division II Softball tournament semifinals held in Salem, Va.