MERCYHURST (7-25, 6-9 NEC) vs. NEW HAVEN (7-29, 5-13 NEC)
Saturday, April 18 – 1/3 p.m.
Sunday, April 19 – 12 p.m. 
West Haven, Conn.   
TV: NEC Front Row 
 
Mercyhurst softball is set to travel to New Haven for the first time in the program's history. The Chargers just joined the NEC and the two sides never met when they were both Division II. MU currently sits fifth in the conference, a game behind Le Moyne. New Haven is in seventh, a couple of games behind Stonehill.

The first two games of this series will take place Saturday, April 18 at 1 and 3 p.m. The series finale will take place at noon the following day. Viewers can find the games live streamed on the NEC Front Row. 

*Please stay tuned to social media in event of any weather delays/time changes. 

Last Week on the Diamond
The contests are coming thick and fast for Mercyhurst softball. They have now played eight games in the past nine days. The first series was at Saint Francis on 4/7 and 4/8. The Lakers thrashed them in game one, 16-5. The Red Flash took game two, 10-6, before Gabriella DeLuca carried the Lakers to a 4-2 win in game two.

After that, they were at home vs. FDU on 4/11 and 4/12. The Knights defeated the Lakers 7-3 in the first game before MU completely flipped the script in game two, winning 16-2 in five innings. The script was flipped once more when FDU then run-ruled the third game, 15-5 in six innings. 

Most recently, the Lakers played at Youngstown State for the second year running. The Penguins' offensive prowess proved to be too much as they comfortably won both games in the doubleheader.  

16-Run Riot
The last time Mercyhurst put up 16 runs in a game was in a win vs. UPJ in 2024. Now, they achieved that feat twice in five days vs. the likes of SFU and FDU. In the SFU game, MU beat them 16-5 in game one where they tallied some impressive stat lines. In terms of NEC highs (at the time), the Lakers had 35 total bases (1st), five home runs (2nd), and 16 runs (5th). Individually, Jazlynn Sanders' two home runs were tied for the most in one game and Braylynn Kelly's four hits were second highest. The Red Flash won game two and the Lakers won game three. 

Two Ks, Few Ks 
Kelly has been one of the most consistent hitters for Mercyhurst. In 70 at bats, the Whittaker, Michigan native has 33 total bases, 26 hits, 14 runs, 13 RBIs, a batting average of .371, an OPS of .907, and a slugging percentage of .471. She is nine for 11 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 eighth in the NEC.
 
Kasten is tied for second on the team with a .333 batting average. In 87 at bats from the leadoff spot, the Elma, New York native has 38 total bases, 29 hits, 19 runs, eight RBIs, a slugging percentage of .437 and an OPS of .807. She is also a perfect four-for-four on stolen base attempts. 
 
DeLuca Delivers
Gabby DeLuca has made waves in her rookie season. She is among the best pitchers in the NEC standings right now. She currently leads the conference with the fewest hits allowed (59), runs allowed (44), and earned runs allowed (37). The Erie native has the twelfth-lowest ERA (.598) and the tenth-lowest opposing batting average (.324). 

DeLuca is coming off an incredible performance vs. SFU last week. 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. 

This past Saturday, the Erie native hit six RBIs in the 16-2 win vs. FDU. She has 14 RBIs in her last six games and her 22 on the year lead the team. Those two series led to her earning NEC Rookie of the Week honors. 

Her .333 batting average is tied with Kasten for the second highest on the team. 
 
Prime Performers
So far, Sanders, DeLuca, and Kasten have earned NEC weekly awards.  

For her first 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 hits, and a two-run moon shot in just nine at bats. She then was named the NEC Rookie of the Week and a Prime Performer for her tremendous week vs. SFU and FDU. 

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. For her second award, she had a big week from the plate vs. SFU and FDU. In 24 at bats, Kasten recorded 10 hits, nine runs, and four RBIs. 
 
New Haven Report Card

• The Chargers are 7-29 overall and 5-13 in the NEC. They are currently seventh in the conference standings. 
• They began their season in North Carolina, dropping matchups to North Dakota State, Lafayette and Gardner-Webb. 
• After that, they dropped four intrastate matchups to Yale and Boston before picking up their first victory in a 6-5 win vs. Manhattan.
• To begin NEC play, the Chargers won their inaugural conference series over Saint Francis. They won the first doubleheader, 10-7 and 9-5, before losing the series finale, 6-3. 
• They managed to pick up a win vs. Fairfield, two wins in their FDU series, and a win in their Le Moyne series. 
• Wagner, UConn, LIU, CCSU, and Rhode Island all swept the Chargers. 
• Most recently, Yale won the recent Battle of New Haven, 8-1. 
• From the batter's box, Brianna Trueman has a .279 batting average, a .822 OPS, 38 total bases, and 16 RBIs which all lead the team. 
• Bri Pellicone has the most hits with 27. 
• In the circle, Katie Rhodes has the lowest ERA (4.44) and Cecelia Imbimbo has the most strikeouts (34).