It is uncertain what the end of the Pioneers’ softball season has to bring, but thus far it has proven to be a successful. The softball team is currently 6-5 in the American Mideast Conference (AMC) and 17-9 overall. However, they still have five games left until the end of the regular season.
 The top four teams in the University’s division will make the postseason and Point Park currently sits fifth in the standings. A sweep of their last few games would guarantee them a spot in the postseason because teams ahead of them have finished their regular season already.
 “I believe that we are ready to go out this next week and win games to clinch a playoff spot,” junior shortstop Lindsey Pesanka said. “We have the talent to clinch, and if we stay motivated, I believe we can make it very far.”
 Although three of the past four games that Point Park played were losses, the Pioneers have had plenty of time to learn from their mistakes, due to the rain that postponed those games.
 “We have a very talented team and [we] don’t believe we have been playing to our potential,” freshman third baseman Danielle Dorunda said. “When we start having fun again the wins will come. Everyone just needs to relax.”
A large part of the team’s success this season is due to the freshmen players.
Freshman infielder/outfielder Amanda Ardinger is currently seventh in the nation by batting percentage, with a .493 average.
 “She’s been amazing. She gets key hits when the team needs them and really pulls through,” Head Coach Michelle Coultas said. “She is solid in the outfield as well. She works hard and deserves everything she gets.”
 Dorunda leads the team with 23 runs batted in and five homeruns on the season and pitcher Kelsey Robertson sports a 1.74 earned run average with a 5-1 record in 14 appearances.
 Their transition into college-style softball was not easy, and these women have already made a substantial impact on the Pioneers’ performance.
 The Pioneers started the season winning five of their first six games, with two shutouts against Mary Baldwin College from Virginia, while also collecting 20 runs in the two victories. The team then won six of the next seven games, including an 8-0 victory over La Roche College and a 10-0 win at the University of Pittsburgh Greensburg.
 With a record of 11-2 and the conference play just underway, it seemed as if the Lady Pioneers would cruise into the playoffs with their skillful play and .300-plus hitting percentage.
 “We were rolling along and everything felt good,” Coultas said. “I had high hopes in my team.”
 The team slumped and could only take six of their next 13 games. Instead of being atop the conference standings, they found themselves one slot shy of playoff contention.
 “I feel like we started off strong then plateau[ed] in the middle of the season. We lost some games that we shouldn’t have,” Pesanka said.
 Although Point Park has struggled this season, players remembered a double-header against Malone University, who sits in the last playoff spot.
 “We were down 8-0 in the second inning,” Pesanka said. “[We came back to] win 12-11 to sweep Malone. It was the most memorable game of the season.”
 That game was another in which freshman players pulled their weight.
 “One play that sticks in my mind from the game was a grand slam by Amanda Ardinger that put us in the lead of game two,” Dorunda said. “Everyone pulled together and we won two great games as a team.”
 Such team effort will be required in the remaining games of the season for the Pioneers to find themselves in the postseason.
 “I’m trying not to put pressure on the girls. I want them to go out and have fun,” Coultas said. “I think I’ve prepared them in practice and now it’s time for them to go out and show what they can do.”