Softball Looks to Bounce Back in Orlando at the Diamond 9 Citrus Classic II

ESPN 3 Live Video vs Syracuse | Penn State Live Stats

BRONX, N.Y. -- The Fordham softball team (2-8) looks for sunnier days in the Sunshine State this weekend when the Rams make their third consecutive trip to Florida to participate in the Diamond 9 Citrus Classic II in Orlando – their second time playing in Orlando this season. Fordham starts the event Friday with an 11 a.m. matchup with Syracuse (4-4) on ESPN3, before playing North Florida (2-8) later in the day at 3:30 p.m. The Rams then play a pair of contests Saturday afternoon beginning with Penn State (5-5) at 3:30 p.m. and Morgan State (1-4) right after at 5:45 p.m. Fordham concludes the tournament Sunday morning at 10 a.m. versus Charlotte (9-0).

Fans can watch the game with Syracuse on ESPN3 by clicking on the link above, and live stats will be available for the Penn State game.

Last Time Out
The Rams finished 1-4 last weekend at the Michele Smith Pediatric Cancer Foundation Invitational in Clearwater, Fla., as Fordham defeated DePaul, before dropping contests to South Florida, #19/20 James Madison, #12/14 Tennessee and #3/3 Auburn. Freshman Jessica Hughes was one of the lone bright spots for the Rams. She was named the Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Week after hitting .429 (6-for-14) with an on-base percentage of .529. She also recorded two stolen bases and two runs scored. Hughes recorded base hits in three of the five games and was 4-for-4 at the plate against #12/14 Tennessee, the first four-hit game of her career.

About Syracuse
The Orange, who are picked to finish ninth in the 11-team Atlantic Coast Conference, sit at 4-4 overall after the first two weekends of play. They defeated Long Beach State (1-0) in their season opener in Las Vegas, before being outscored 16-1 over their final three games in the desert, including a 7-0 loss to #9 Oklahoma. Syracuse rebounded last weekend at the ACC/Big Ten Challenge in Atlanta, where the Orange lost to Purdue (4-3), before defeating Ohio State twice (1-0, 3-2) and coming back for an 11-3 victory over the Boilermakers. Hannah Dossett is the top offensive threat (.333/.391/.762) with three runs, seven hits, three doubles, two home runs and seven RBI. AnnaMarie Gatti has tossed a team-high 25.2 innings in the circle and is 2-2 with a 2.45 ERA. She has completed three games, including two shutouts, has collected one save, yielded 26 hits and 10 walks while fanning 10. The Rams lead the all-time series, 4-3, after splitting a doubleheader April 1, 2015 at Bahoshy Field.

About North Florida
The Osprey, who are picked to finish fifth in the seven-team Atlantic Sun Conference, are off to a 2-8 start after the first two weekends of play. North Florida lost its first seven games, after being outscored, 28-1, but did end the streak with victories over Villanova (8-1) and Manhattan (4-0). Navia Penrod leads the offense (.382/.400/.441) with three runs, 13 hits, two doubles, three RBI and five stolen bases. Logan Green has started five games in the circle and is 2-4 with a 2.25 ERA, four complete games, one shutout, seven walks and 15 strikeouts while yielding 35 hits over 37.1 innings. This will be the first-ever contest between the Rams and Osprey.

About Penn State
The Nittany Lions are 5-5 after a big bounce back weekend at the Jacksonville Tournament, where they finished 4-1 with victories over Georgetown (9-4), Radford (8-0), Pittsburgh (7-2) and Jacksonville (9-3), avenging their only loss in the tournament. Penn State opened the season 1-4 at the "Kick-Off" Classic in Boca Raton, Fla. and claimed its only victory over Southern Illinois – Edwardsville in nine innings, 2-1. Shelby Miller paces the offense (.500/.526/.694) with five runs, 18 hits, two doubles, one triple, one home run, 10 RBI and a stolen base. Marlaina Laubach has pitched a team-best 28.0 innings and is 1-1 with a 2.25 ERA and one complete game to go along with 16 walks and 27 strikeouts while allowing 26 hits. The Rams trail the all-time series, 3-1, after losing, 6-1, at this same tournament last season.

About Morgan State
The Bears are 1-4 on the season and had last weekend off after playing their first five games at the Dot Richardson Tournament in Clermont, Fla., where they defeated Akron for their lone win. One of their losses came to Stetson (3-0), who defeated the Rams, 2-1, earlier this season. Audrianna Alvarez had a big weekend at the plate, as she slashed .643/.667/.714 with three runs, nine hits, including a double, and a RBI. In the circle, Allison Hartman is 0-2 with a 2.25 ERA despite a pair of complete games in both appearances. She has given up 13 hits and three walks while fanning two over 12.2 innings of work. Amy Begg is 1-1 with a 4.88 ERA over 14.1 innings. She has completed one of her three starts and has yielded 22 hits and 10 walks to go along with nine strikeouts. The Rams won the only meeting between the two schools back in 2002 by a score of 5-4 at the East Carolina Tournament in Greenville, N.C.

About Charlotte
The 49ers, who are a former conference rival, are picked to finish seventh in the 12-team Conference USA, are off to a 9-0 start, and are one of seven unbeaten teams remaining in the nation. They have played all nine of their games at home, which includes victories over A-10 opponents Massachusetts (7-1) and Saint Joseph's (5-1). Seven players are hitting .321 or better, as the team is hitting .343 and has stolen 25-of-29 bases as a unit. Becca Shipper, the reigning Conference USA Player of the Week, is slashing .633/.703/.767 with 11 runs, 19 hits, two doubles, one triple, 12 RBI and five stolen bases. Haley Pace is slashing .321/.439/.500 with the squad's lone home run and a team-high 14 RBI. Lexi Betancourt, the reigning Conference USA Pitcher of the Week, is 6-0 with six complete games and a microscopic 0.88 ERA. She has one shutout to her credit and 38 strikeouts while yielding 28 hits and 11 walks over 40.0 innings of work. Haley Wiseman is 3-0 with an even better ERA of 0.67. She has completed all three of her starts, including one shutout, and has allowed only 10 hits and four walks while whiffing 27 over 21.0 innings. The Rams lead the all-time series, 12-7, dating back to 2006.

Up Next
Fordham returns to action March 4-6 when the Rams travel to Macon, Ga. to participate in Mercer's Black & Orange Challenge. Fordham will take on Iowa State, Boston College and the hosts, before being seeded 1-4 to crown a tournament champion.