ASTON, Pa. - The United East Softball Championship final four is down to three as top-seeded Penn State Brandywine, #3 Penn College and #5 Penn State Harrisburg advance to Saturday play.

Penn State Brandywine reached its second consecutive Championship Game after a 2-0 day on Friday, defeating the Lions, 6-1 and the Wildcats 4-1. Penn College and Penn State Harrisburg both went 1-1 with victories over #2 Wilson College to reach day two.

The Phoenix finished their 2026 campaign with a 30-11-1 record as they bowed out of postseason competition. 

The Wildcats and Penn State Harrisburg Nittany Lions will play an elimination game at 10 a.m. in the first game on Saturday with the winner eyeing a 12 p.m. rematch against Penn State Brandywine for the conference banner. The “if necessary” game will follow directly after game six.

Find all of the tournament details HERE: 2026 SOFTBALL CHAMPIONSHIP PAGE

Game 1: #1 Penn State Brandywine def. #5 Penn State Harrisburg, 6-1 (Box Score)
Penn State Brandywine broke a 1-1 tie wide open with five runs in the fifth inning to earn the weekend's first victory. The Nittany Lions plated the first run in the sixth with some small ball as Ava Rodger's bunt allowed Emma McElroy to score from third. Later in the frame, Madie Culbertson scored two with a single through the left side and Olivia Bowers also blasted a two-run double to score Culbertson and Shelby DeCillis. 

Madisen Minney's RBI triple scored the lone Penn State Harrisburg run in the fifth inning as she led the offense with two hits. 

In the circle, April Lewandowski scattered just four Harrisburg hits to earn her 16th victory of the season. McElroy and Culbertson both went 2-for-3 at the plate.

Game 2: #3 Penn College def. #2 Wilson College, 3-2 (Box Score)
Penn College outlasted the pitcher's duel against Wilson College to pull out the victory. The Wildcats scored the first two runs of the afternoon with the first three batters as Payton Crawford hit a two-run single to score Carissa Lusk and Sofia Mileto. The Phoenix responded with a run in the bottom half of the first on a Sydney Hartle single before pitching took over between the Wildcats' Mackenzi Tice and Phoenix' Elena Worthington with a combined eight strikeouts.

Wilson knotted the game in the third inning with another Hartle RBI single, scoring Emily Randalls, but a costly error by the Phoenix in the sixth inning proved to be the difference as Sam Shaw scored the game-winner. 

Hartle recorded two of the Phoenix five hits while seven different Wildcats recorded at hit. Arista Fine registered two hits for the Wildcats.

Game 3: #1 Penn State Brandywine def. #3 Penn College, 4-1 (Box Score)
Penn College struck quickly again as Lusk hit a leadoff single and rounded the bases to score on a Crawford sac fly, but the Wildcats would add just two more hits against Isabella Hurta in the next six innings. 

The Nittany Lions went ahead in the bottom half of the first inning as Lexi Bussenger and Emma McElroy both scored on a pair of sacrifice plays. Penn State Brandywine added two more insurance runs in the sixth inning when Maddie Culbertson squared up a hard-hit double to score Shelby DeCillis and Kaylee Mushinski.

Hurta picked up her 10th victory in the circle with just three hits and one strikeout in a seven-inning complete game. Bussenger posted a team-high two hits at the plate. 

Game 4: #5 Penn State Harrisburg def. #2 Wilson College, 2-0 (Box Score)
Penn State Harrisburg shutout the Pheonix, 2-0, to survive elimination and remain in contention for the conference banner. Allyson Leidy and Kylee Miller combined to throw a two-hitter to defeat Wilson. Leidy struckout four and earned the victory with four innings of work while Leidy added one K to earn the save.

The Lions needed just for hits to plate two runs as Madisen Minney scored the opening run on a Rylee Martin sac fly in the fourth inning and Aspen Walker hit the lone home run of the day to add some room on the scoreboard in the sixth inning.

Katelyn Keller and Kayla Talbert were the only two to record a hit for the Wilson offense while three others reached base with a walk. Julia Wilkes surrender just four hits ans struck out six in the complete game effort. 
 

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