WESTMINSTER SOFTBALL Pancake-Kimmel combo tough

Jennifer Pancake and Heidi Kimmel have led Westminster to a 17-5 record.
By JOHN KOVACH
VINDICATOR SPORTS STAFF
NEW WILMINGTON -- Two Youngstown-area players have led the Westminster College softball team to a 17-5 record entering today's doubleheader at Mount Union College.
Jennifer Pancake, a freshman from Boardman, is the Titans' top pitcher and second-leading hitter, while Heidi Kimmel, a junior first baseman from Poland, leads the team in hitting.
Pancake has an 11-2 record with a 0.11 earned run average, after her unearned runs streak was stopped at 731/3 innings in the Titans' 5-4 win over Penn State-Behrend last Wednesday.
First unearned run
She allowed only one earned run in that win -- her first of the season with two outs in the first inning.
Westminster also won the nightcap, 8-0, for its fourth straight victory and 11th in its last 12 contests, behind sophomore hurler Katie Parfitt's three-hitter.
The day before, Pancake fired a four-hit shutout -- her fourth shutout of the season -- with six strikeouts and two walks as Westminster blanked Case Western Reserve in the opener of a doubleheader, 4-0. She extended her streak of unearned runs to 722/3 innings.
Pancake also has 62 strikeouts while issuing only eight walks. While at the plate, she has a .373 batting average (25-for-67), and also is No. 2 in RBIs (20) and has scored seven runs.
Kimmel leads 3 categories
Kimmel, a junior first baseman from Poland, is batting a team-best .380, and also leads the team in hits (27-for-71) and RBIs (23), and has 18 runs and five triples.
Westminster has two other Youngstown-area players on the team.
Stephanie Cornicelli, a freshman outfielder from Howland, is batting .294 with 5-for-17, four RBIs and five runs.
Katie Porter, a junior outfielder from West Middlesex High, is batting .277 (13-for-47) with a third-best 16 runs and eight RBIs.
Porter slammed a three-run double in the Titans' 8-0 win over Penn State-Behrend, while Kimmel and Pancake each had two hits.
Another standout is Lauren Boris, a junior outfielder-second baseman who ranks third in batting average (.369) on 24-for-65, and has a team-best 20 runs scored.
Westminster is coached by Jan Reddinger, who is in her eighth season.
kovach@vindy.com