DeLAND, Fla. – Going into day two of the Stetson Invitational on Saturday, the Presbyterian College softball team stood as one of seven undefeated programs left across the country, a fact that still held true after managing an extra-inning W over North Florida (3-2 in eight frames) to start the afternoon's festivities. As the number of unbeatens dwindled down to four midday, the Blue Hose were the next to fall in their third bout of the past 24 hours versus hosts Stetson, another endurance test that stretched to eight innings although turning in the other direction (7-5).

Coming off yesterday's 2-0 shutout over Cornell (the team's sixth time blanking the other side already to tie for the nation's highest figure in that department), Presbyterian found themselves in the middle of two straight back-and-forth encounters against foes who had totaled 15 wins between them, combining for eight runs and 12 hits to reach the split.

The beneficiary of a walk-off score in the day's first duel against the Ospreys, PC closed the afternoon on the receiving end of a similar climax in round one against the Hatters, a result they'll try and undo tomorrow after seeing the school's second-longest winning streak ever come to an end at 12 games.
 
NOTABLES
- Sophomore first-baseman/DP Kendall Owens produced one of her finest dual-performances of 2023 in the win/loss, adding up for a 4-of-6 day with the bat in her hands beside her second home run of the semester in the 2^nd inning against UNF. The Mercer transfer has needed virtually no time to ascend to PC's highest average (.515), tying classmate Morgan Hess for the team-lead in RBI (eight) behind a .788 slugging percentage.

- Collecting three swings of her own in the two highly-competitive bouts to boost her personal hit streak up to seven games, senior catcher Lath Freeman continued her hot batting as of late with her sixth RBI in the tight loss to Stetson. The Spartanburg native has hoisted 10 of her 13 hits on the year over the past week, earning the second-highest OBP on the roster among those who have over 10 at-bats (.432).

- The Big South's overall leader in wins while ranking inside the NCAA's top ten for said category, senior pitcher Jenna Greene darted to her sixth personal victory of the campaign as the Blue Hose held North Florida at bay, striking out six on over 150 tosses to bring her outstanding ERA to 0.81 in 43 innings. All six of Greene's starting roles in 2023 have led to the Presbyterian strikeout record-holder going the full distance.

- The 23^rd time over his head coaching stint earning a one-run victory at PC, David Williams obtained win #90 since signing the dotted line in 2019 as his squad emerged with the W in unconventional fashion against the Ospreys. Saturday denoted the first time in the last 16 years that the Blue Hose were entangled in back-to-back extra-inning contests, having never occurred before in the program's affiliation at the D-I level.
 
GAME 1 – Presbyterian (12-0) def. North Florida (8-4), 3-2 (8 Innings)
- The trajectory of PC's battle with UNF leaned towards that of the prior day's defensive-minded triumph against Cornell, in that an early-game homer was the major difference. Said longball from Owens in her opening at-bat put the Ospreys on catch-up mode for the rest of the affair, setting the stage for a four-inning sequence where both sides traded blows starting in the 5^th.

- Second-baseman Kaitlyn Tucker brought in the first of two runs scored on the day in the bottom of the 6^th off the bat of Freeman to slice into a 1-1 tie, although North Florida remained in step with the Blue Hose thanks to an RBI double in the last chapter of regulation.

- Neither side could lunge ahead in the 7^th frame, necessitating Presbyterian's first extra-inning matchup of the young season. In true Jenna Greene form, the senior left the Ospreys hanging in the top of the 8^th despite runners threatening in the corners, forcing her final K and a groundball to shortstop Layna Johnson in consecutive plays to maintain the two-all deadlock.

- It was Johnson who inevitably tallied the walk-off run moments later, doing so on some extra unintentional help from UNF on a botched sacrifice bunt laid down by Kelby Goodrum. The result granted the Blue Hose their first ever win over the Ospreys in eight prior attempts, able to get the job done even though the overall offense wasn't always clicking with three hits.
 
GAME 2  - Stetson (9-5) def. Presbyterian (12-1), 7-5 (8 Innings)
- It took a grand total of 13 games for the Presbyterian bullpen to surrender a home run, although the Hatters made the rare occasion sting with an 8^th-inning two-shot walk-off that spoiled a nine-hit sum from the Blue Hose – one off the team's season-best.

- Owens, Freeman, and Hess allowed coach Williams' unit to reach a 4-0 advantage after the first two chapters, the first scoring play courtesy of Owens that rattled Stetson pitcher Lauren Hobbs. PC racked up eight hits against the Hatters' starter in the game's first five frames, although reliever Hannah Marien quickly turned things around by only letting one get past her, inserted after a five-run Stetson spree that lasted the 3^rd and 4^th stanzas.

- Suddenly trailing for the first time all weekend, the Blue Hose made the instance a short one following a pinch-running score by Kennedy Rhue that came on an infield mishap in the top of the 5^th. That new score of five apiece lasted until the close of regulation and beyond until the game-winning homer from third-baseman Marissa Baxter, the same player that was credited with the aforementioned error earlier on.

- Hess & freshman Peyton Duncan shared time in the circle across the dramatic encounter, syncing up for seven strikeouts to give the team 111 as a whole. Prior to the 11^th-hour thriller, Presbyterian stood as one of three schools in America that boasted a double-digit win count without an L, in the company of top-ranked UCLA and #15 LSU.
 
UP NEXT
- Part III of the Stetson Invitational will finish off the chaotic weekend stretch for Williams and co., engaging in a pair of rematches against Cornell at 10:00 a.m. and the Hatters at approximately 12:30.