2025 PSUAC Softball Championship Preview

FAN INFORMATION

DUBOIS, Pa. - In a format change from more recent years due to how the calendar falls in 2025, six teams will enter Championship weekend in DuBois for the PSUAC Softball Championship Tournament. The entirety of the event will be hosted at Rose & Dennis Heindl Memorial Field in DuBois, Pa. from May 2-4 as a champion will be crowned.

The tournament will begin with two elimination games as the third through sixth seeds battle for a spot in the weekend's double-elimination bracket alongside the top seed Penn State Schuylkill and no. 2 seed Penn State New Kensington.

The first game will feature no. 4 seed Penn State DuBois and no. 5 seed Penn State Beaver at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, with the winner advancing to an afternoon match-up with Schuylkill. Penn State Mont Alto, the tournament's no. 3 seed, meets no. 6 seed Penn State Scranton at 2:00 p.m. with New Kensington awaiting the winner in Friday's final game of the night at 6:00 p.m.

Saturday will feature three games, including two elimination games. The PSUAC will play its third elimination game at 10:00 a.m. on Saturday followed by the winner's bracket final and the loser's bracket final on Saturday afternoon. It all works its way to Championship Sunday, as the first game will start at 12:00 p.m. If the "if necessary" game is needed, it will begin approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of the first championship game.

HOW THEY GOT HERE

For the first two weeks of the season it seemed as if Schuylkill wasn't even going to play any conference games. With several teams out ahead with four or even six games played before Schuylkill even played a PSUAC contest, it was difficult to discern how their conference season was going to go. A few weeks letter and there isn't much doubt anymore. Schuylkill ran through league play, finishing with a 12-2 conference record and an 18-15 mark overall. 

Schuylkill's only PSUAC blemishes came on the road at New Kensington, their closest competitor in the standings. New Kensington picked up 2-0 and 6-3 wins over Schuylkill after battling some inconsistency early in the conference season. New Kensington (18-12, 11-3 PSUAC) lost a game each to three potential postseason opponents, including to DuBois, Mont Alto and Scranton before turning it on to close out the season.

Mont Alto, a perennial contender and a preaseason favorite, was the opposite of New Kensington, with all of its conference losses coming after April 15. Still, Mont Alto (19-11, 10-4 PSUAC) was positioned for the potential top seed before struggling to plate any runs in two losses to Schuylkill to end their regular season. Still, Mont Alto boasts a win over New Kensington, its potential second round opponent, and earned an early season sweep of its first opponent, Scranton.

DuBois (16-13, 8-6 PSUAC) has been one of the streakiest teams in the PSUAC, going on a two four-game win streaks, a three-game win streak but also a seven-game losing streak midway through April. A team that can break out the bats, DuBois has shown an ability to score in bunches throughout the season but has struggled to play consistently against teams ahead of them. Schuylkill and Mont Alto each swept DuBois, while they split a series with New Kensington. However, DuBois did pick up two wins over their first round opponent, Beaver, including a 16-8 win.

Beaver (18-18, 7-7 PSUAC) also looks for some consistency this season as its best win came against Mont Alto in a series split. However, that was their only win against a team ahead of them in the PSUAC standings. 

Scranton makes its way back into the PSUAC postseason for the first time since 2016, looking to improve on its 7-20 overall record that included a 5-9 mark in the PSUAC. Scranton knocked off New Kensington in mid-April but wasn't able to maintain that momentum against any other teams in the playoff field. 

ODDS AND ENDS

Scranton got roughed up during spring break, but bounched back in early April to pick up some wins. It's best one came against New Kensington, but Scranton couldn't string more than two wins together at any time this season. Meanwhile, Schuylkill excelled in April after weather impacted the first 10 days of the month. Schuylkill finished the month 13-3, including a six-game win streak that included a sweep of Mont Alto.

Beaver has more wins on the road (10, including neutral sites) than it does at home. Beaver had two solid stretches in April, winning six games and five games in a row. DuBois scored 10 or more runs nine times, all wins, as their bats look to lead them deep into the weekend.

Mont Alto will work to regain its form from late March and early April when it went 14-3 and was playing its best softball in close games. Meanwhile, New Kensington won its last nine games of the season and 12 of its final 13 games en route to a bye.

PLAYERS TO WATCH

Schuylkill's Emma Crisswell has been one of the most dominant pitchers in the PSUAC over the last two seasons. Crisswell earned 13 wins and struck out 140 batters this season, 50 more than her nearest competition. Crisswell also led the league in ERA at 2.09. In the batter's box, teammates Keira Devor leads the way with a .433 batting average (fifth) and 44 runs batted in (1st). Devor also hit seven homers, second-best in the PSUAC. Mackenzie Carl also drove in 30 runs for Schuylkill, who has shown the most balance this season among the playoff teams.

The only player to out-homer Devor? New Kensington's Linda Shepard who hit eight and drove in 34 runs while stealing 13 bases.. Shepard also serves as New Kensington's ace with six wins while teammate Brookelyn Kotch pitched to a 2.19 ERA in her first season. Teammate Kali Barnett stole 20 bags in 2025 while also batting an impressive .425. If you think that average is impressive, wait til you hear about Shai Moore. She hit .473 to lead the league.

Paige Loudenslager finished the regular season hitting .456, good for second in the PSUAC while clobbering 47 hits, the most in the conference. Teammate Alyssa Wiles wasn't far behind with 45 hits and a .409 average. Mackenzie Stake has taken over the top spot in the circle for Mont Alto, racking up 10 wins and 79 strikeouts to the tune of a 3.31 ERA. 

DuBois is led by five players hitting over .400, including first year starters Sienna Barnhart and Jessy Frank at .435 and .434, respectively. Kelsey Stuart hit .429 and also picked up five wins in 68.0 innings pitched. Theresa Luongo led the pitching staff with six wins.

Beaver led the league in runs scored, with Kierstyn Mays leading the way at .393 and four home runs. Mays also drove in 36 runs for Beaver, second most in the PSUAC. Mays also served as Beaver's ace, winning nine times while pitching the third-most innings. Teammate Gabby Flynt enjoyed some success in the circle as well, while Emilee Waggoner, Cassidy Crean and Reza Benson each hit around the .360 mark.

Aryanna Bodge led Scranton's staff with 90 strikeouts and three wins. Bodget and Madison Kelsch were the only two players to eclipse the .300 mark for Scranton, with Bodge hitting .356 and Kelsch at .311. The two combined to drive in nearly 40 percent of Scranton's runs, so getting them out will be a priority for any opposing pitcher. 

HOW TO WATCH

The PSUAC will offer a free live stream of all postseason games on the PSU Campus Athletics Network. Visit www.psucampusathletics.com or download the PSU Campus Athletics Network app on your phone, tablet, smart TV or streaming device (e.g. Roku). Live stats will also be available for those who are unable to watch. Please visit the PSUAC Softball schedule page for links.