Seton Hill softball player Christiana Skrabak was as impactful in a 16-0 runaway victory against Mercyhurst in the deciding game of a best-of-three Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference quarterfinal series as she has been all season.
Skrabak is a grad student from Norwin who is making sure her finale ends with fireworks.
The Westmoreland County product is embracing another chance to keep the kick-seeking Griffins in the championship chase.
Seton Hill (30-11) not only lost most of last season because of the pandemic, but also had to endure two covid shutdowns this season as it makes inroads to what could be a lengthy postseason run.
“I wanted to come back for one more year, and it was like, let’s not take this season for granted,” Skrabak said. “I wanted it to be more of a team focus. I have been more mentally relaxed. I used to put too much pressure on myself to produce.”
The Griffins, the No. 1 seed from the PSAC West, had the drop on the visiting Lakers from the start.
Skrabak hit her team-leading 10th home run as the Griffins mercy-ruled Mercyhurst.
The game started late as the teams waited for an umpire to arrive. But Seton Hill’s offense was right on time — time and again — producing 17 hits, seven that went for extra bases.
The team advanced to a best-of-three semifinal series against No. 2 seed Gannon (27-13).
“We knew we could do this,” said Skrabak, a shortstop who went 2 for 2 had four RBIs in the win. “This is what we’re capable of doing. If our mindset is right, we can produce like this.”
Skrabak, who had three homers in her last five games, has a .350 average with 28 runs. Her 30 RBIs and .689 slugging percentage lead the team.
“I remember saying (in 2019), it would be great to have (Skrabak) for another year,” Griffins coach Jessica Strong said. “It was like a running joke. Then, last year, we found out it was actually going to happen. It has been fantastic having her back.”
Skrabak initially committed to Ohio, but decided to transfer to Seton Hill to be closer to home.
“Now I feel so old,” she said with a grin. “Sometimes, I feel like a third coach. I really take my leadership role seriously.”
“Tape,” the nickname Skrabak carries, has become stat-producing fixture in the Griffins’ lineup as well as a respected leader.
“Tape” stuck with Skrabak in youth softball when a coach put tape on her back and wrote her name on it.
“We’re thankful to have (Skrabak),” Strong said. “As time goes on in a program, you find out who you can rely on to relay my message.”
Skrabak wants to be a physician’s assistant. She works a few nights a week in the emergency department at three local hospitals.
“I have worked the 1-7 a.m. shift,” Skrabak said. “I love it. I always went to help people.”
Skrabak admitted to having the coronavirus in the winter but has not had side effects.
“The thing about it was that I got vaccinated in January, then got a call that I was positive,” she said. “It was weird. I have doctors telling me they don’t think that was right. They said I am the first person in Westmoreland County to get the vaccine and then get covid.”
