May 3, 2012

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Bronx, N.Y. - The Fordham softball team hosts a familiar foe this Friday and Saturday, May 4 and 5, as the Massachusetts Minutewomen come to Bahoshy Field for Atlantic 10 conference games on Friday at 3:00 PM and Saturday at noon. The outcome of the games should determine the top two seeds for the upcoming Atlantic 10 championship to be played from May 9-12 in St. Louis.

The Rams enter the contest following an Atlantic 10 doubleheader split with Dayton on Friday, April 27, in Dayton. On the year, Fordham is 30-20 overall, 14-2 in the Atlantic 10, including a 9-1 home record.

Offensively, the Rams are led by a senior and a freshman. Lindsey Kay Bright enters the game leading the team in hitting (.397), on base percentage (.421) and stolen bases (eight). In game one with the Flyers on Friday, Bright became just the fifth Fordham softball player to reach 200 career hits.

Newcomer Paige Ortiz is having a positive effect in the Fordham lineup. She leads the team in home runs, RBI, total bases and slugging and was named A-10 Rookie of the Week on March 26.

In the circle, Rams preseason All-American Jen Mineau is currently 24-11 on the year and ranked second in the NCAA with 343 strikeouts. She was named A-10 Pitcher of the Week for the third time on April 9 while last week she picked up her 100th career win at Dayton. Taylor Pirone and Michele Daubman have also seen time on the rubber this year.

UMass enters the series with a 31-11 mark, including a 15-0 record in the A-10, and are currently on a fifteen-game winning streak, suffering its last loss at Connecticut on April 3. The Minutewomen are led on offense by Cyndil Matthew and Sara Plourde. Matthew is hitting .408 with team highs in hits (53), runs (44), triples (four) and stolen bases (27-29) while Plourde enters the weekend hitting .294 with a team-best nine home runs and 26 RBI.

In the circle, Plourde has been masterful. She is 30-9 with a 1.90 ERA and 36 complete games. She leads the nation in strikeouts with 447 and has blanked the opposition a dozen times.

These two schools last met in the A-10 semifinal in Charlotte in 2011, a game Fordham won, 1-0, in ten innings. Chelsea Palumbo collected two hits while Lindsey Bright drove in the game's only run.

Following the series with UMass, the Rams will celebrate Senior Day on Sunday, May 6, as they host Rhode Island for an Atlantic 10 doubleheader beginning at noon. The ceremonies for the four seniors, Lindsey Kay Bright, Nicole Callahan, Jo Krasnisky and Jen Mineau, will take place between games in the twin bill.