MERCYHURST (6-21, 5-7 NEC) vs. FDU (9-27, 2-10 NEC)
Saturday, April 11 – 1/3 p.m.
Sunday, April 12 – 12 p.m. 
Erie, Pa.  
TV: NEC Front Row
 
The Mercyhurst softball team welcomes FDU to the Mercyhurst Softball Field for the very first time. The Lakers are coming off a series win at Saint Francis and looking to continue their upward trajectory. The series is set to begin on Saturday, April 11 with a doubleheader beginning at 1 p.m. Game two will take place at noon the following day. All games will be streamed on the NEC Front Row.  
 
March Results
The Lakers went 2-10 overall and 2-4 in NEC play in March. They played a set of four games against the defending Horizon League champions, Robert Morris. The Colonials won all four, but a few Lakers had great performances against a team who was fourth in the nation on batting average at the time. Gabriella DeLuca pitched a complete game in the second contest, only allowing two hits. MU lost 2-0, but both runs were unearned. Karlie Kasten also had four hits in her four at bats. 
 
The Lakers hosted Wagner to begin NEC play. They beat the Seahawks 4-2 in game one in one of their best performances this season. DeLuca pitched a complete game and four strikeouts, with a run and RBI added to her tally. Mackenzie Gillis recorded two RBIs of the Lakers' four runs. Wagner won the next two games of the series. 
 
The team then traveled to Kent State for the first-ever matchup between the two sides. Mercyhurst lead at three times throughout the day, but the Golden Flashes walked it off in both games. Bailey Cannon hit the first Division I home run of her career in this game. Her last home run was her freshman year when the team was in the PSAC. 
 
MU then closed the month at CCSU. The Blue Devils took games one and two, but Mercyhurst put up arguably their best game of the season in game three. They were down 4-1 in the top of the sixth before DeLuca, Sanders and Braylynn Kelly all hit home runs to lift the Lakers to an 8-6 win. 

Last Week on the Diamond
The Lakers hosted Stonehill on 4/3 and 4/4. Sanders hit a go-ahead three-run home run to help defeat the Skyhawks 5-3 in game one. The final two games were chaotic. There were 20+ hits in each of them and Stonehill ended up winning 12-5 and 12-6. 

Most recently, the Lakers thrashed Saint Francis in a midweek series. They beat them 16-5 in game one where they tallied some impressive stat lines. In terms of NEC highs, the Lakers had 35 total bases (1st), five home runs (2nd), and 16 runs (5th). Individually, Sanders' two home runs were tied for the most in one game and Kelly's four hits were second highest. The Red Flash won game two and the Lakers won game three. 
 
Matchup Insights
Mercyhurst is 0-3 vs. FDU all time. This upcoming series will be just the second all-time meeting. FDU won 7-2, 3-2, and 13-0 in the matchups between this two last season. 
 
In the first meeting, Cannon and Pascual both hit RBI doubles. In the second contest, Mackenzie Gillis and Ava Zubovic both hit solo home runs in the top of the seventh to tie the game at two and send them to extra innings. The Knights walked it off in the bottom of the ninth.   
 
Two Ks, Few Ks 
Kelly leads the way from the batter's box. In 56 at bats, the Whittaker, Michigan native has 28 total bases, 21 hits, 11 runs, nine RBIs, a batting average of .375, an OPS of .935, and a slugging percentage of .500. She is eight for 10 on stolen base attempts. Notably, Kelly hit a three-run blast in an 8-6 win at CCSU. This was the first home run of her career. Her batting average puts her at fifth in the NEC.
 
Kasten is second on the team with a .316 batting average. In 76 at bats from the leadoff spot, the Elma, New York native has 29 total bases, 24 hits, 15 runs, four RBIs, a slugging percentage of .382 and an OPS of .732. She is also a perfect four-for-four on stolen base attempts. 
 
DeLuca Delivers
Gabby DeLuca is among the best pitchers in the NEC standings right now. She currently leads the conference with the second-fewest hits allowed (50), runs allowed (35), and earned runs allowed (29). The pitcher with the fewest hits allowed is Alana Stuart (45). The Erie native has the tenth-lowest ERA (.503) and the seventh-lowest opposing batting average (.303). Notably, DeLuca has a record of 3-3 on the season. 

DeLuca is coming off an incredible performance vs. SFU this past Wednesday. She pitched a complete game with four strikeouts and two earned runs. In the same game, she hit a SAC fly and a three-run home run to secure a 4-2 win for the Lakers. 

Prime Performers 
So far, Sanders, DeLuca, and Kasten have earned an NEC Prime Performer award. 

DeLuca had a stellar weekend in S.C that began her collegiate career in style. In this tournament, the Erie native had a .333 batting average, two runs, two RBIs, three and a two-run moon shot in just nine at bats. 

Sanders earned her first Prime Performer award from the Hawaii tournament. Sanders had five hits, five RBIs, and she went yard in one of the games vs. Hawaii. 

Her second award came after the Stonehill series, where she tallied four hits and four RBIs. This included a go-ahead three-run home run in a 5-3 win in game one. 

Kasten, in four games and 13 at-bats vs. RMU, had nine hits, two RBIs, two stolen bases, one double, one run, total batting average of .377. She also recorded a fielding percentage of 1.000 and made seven catches from center field. Her best game of this four-game series was in game two, where she went four-for-four. 
 
FDU Report Card

• The Knights are 9-27 overall and 2-10 in NEC play. They currently sit in last place of the standings right on the tail of Saint Francis and Stonehill. 
• They opened their season with losses to Boise State, UC San Diego, Colorado State, and Omaha in a tournament in California. 
• They then played in the George Mason tournament in Virginia where they managed to pick up a 4-1 in against the hosts in their final game. 
• In the Norfolk State tournament, the Knights fell to North Dakota and Holy Cross before sweeping Norfolk State. 
• After dropping a doubleheader to Stony Brook, they opened conference play at CCSU. The Blue Devils swept them and then they fell to Rutgers. 
• They split with Monmouth before sweeping St. Peter's at home.
• LIU and Army swept them, but they managed to steal a win from Le Moyne and most recently, New Haven. 
• The New Haven series was their closest NEC series so far. They won 5-0 and then lost 9-6 and 5-3. 
• Madison Rishel (.317), Mikayla Conklin (.315), and Ayden Stone (.311) all have batting averages above .300. 
• Stone leads the team with 28 hits and 19 RBIs. 
• In the circle, Jamie Sencion has the best ERA (3.62) which is also fourth in the NEC. Other NEC rankings for Sencion include: opposing batting average of .238 (2nd), 53 strikeouts (5th), 58 hits allowed (3rd), 40 runs allowed (3rd), and 34 earned runs allowed (4th).