Softball At Towson Tiger Classic This Weekend

Live Video (Friday vs. Towson) | Live Video (Saturday vs. Towson)

BRONX, N.Y. – The Fordham softball team, fresh off a thrilling walk-off 12-11 midweek win over Hofstra, travels down to Towson, Md. to participate in the Towson Tiger Classic this weekend, featuring two contests each against the hosts and Mount St. Mary's and one versus Villanova. The Rams will take on Towson on Friday at 11:30 a.m. and then the Mountaineers at 4:30 p.m., while Saturday sees the same two opponents with Towson in the first game at 9:30 a.m. and the Mount 30 minutes following the conclusion of game one. On Sunday, the Rams will play the Wildcats at 11 a.m.
 
Both contests against Towson will be streamed live online for free via the links above. Live stats are available for all four contests and can be found through the Softball schedule page. 
 
Last Time Out
Wednesday afternoon's contest against visiting Hofstra started quickly and never let up, eventually ending in a 12-11 come-from-behind Fordham victory on a walk-off Madison Shaw double in the bottom of the seventh inning. The extra base hit capped off a three-run rally in the frame after the Pride had extended their lead to by one, to 11-9, in the top half.
 
Reigning A-10 Pitcher of the Week Lauren Quense started in the circle but struggled out of the gate. The junior yielded two singles and a home run to the first three batters she faced and eventually was replaced by teammate Rachel Gillen with two outs in the frame. Sydney Canessa's RBI double in the first cut the lead to two but Hofstra put two more on the board in the second with another four-bagger. The Rams offense continued to match the Pride's step for step with six runs in the second, on an Amy Van Hoven RBI single and home runs from Canessa and Lindsay Mayer, to take a 7-5 lead.
 
Hofstra's Kim Smith roped a three-run home run in the fourth and the Pride added two more in the inning to push the score to 10-8. The top of the order for Fordham, Jessica Hughes and Van Hoven, the reigning A-10 Co-Rookie of the Week and Player of the Week, respectively, continued jump-starting the offense with a pair of RBI singles in the fifth to cut the deficit to 10-9. The duo finished the day hitting a combined 5-for-7 with five runs and four RBIs.
 
After Hofstra had pushed its lead to 11-9 in the top of the seventh, the Rams rallied for the victory. Hughes tallied her third walk to start the inning, Van Hoven doubled and pushed Hughes to third, and after Canessa grounded out to short, Mayer singled to shortstop that allowed Hughes to run home. With one out and the tying run on third base, Gillen stepped to the plate and ripped a line drive to center field on the second pitch to tie the game at 11, although Jordana Storm, who pinch ran for Mayer, was thrown out at third. With two outs and Cailin Winokur, pinch-running for Gillen, in scoring position, Shaw got the green light on a 3-0 fastball and deposited it into left center field for the game winner.
 
Gillen earned her eighth win of the season in the circle and at the plate and now stands at .500 on the season (8-8). The Rams offense totaled 15 hits with seven walks to just one strikeout.
 
Get To Know Towson
The Tigers are sitting at 17-4 after winning their last five contests and 10 of their last 11. Most recently, Towson took part in the St. Mary's (California) Tournament and, despite three of their six matches getting postponed, the team finished perfectly with three wins over Manhattan, Portland State, and Pacific by a combined score of 15-2.
 
Shelby Stracher paces the offense with a robust .484 batting average and a team-high seven home runs. The sophomore has not let her average slip under .400 since the first game of the season. Also above that mark is Daria Edwards, at .410, with six home runs and six stolen bases in six attempts. Speaking of stolen bases, the team as a whole has been successful 40 out of 41 times on the base paths this season. The offense is batting .339 with 27 total home runs.
 
In the circle for the Tigers, Ambar Hickman has appeared in 10 contests and has earned a 7-1 record with a 1.88 era despite allowing 66 hits in 52.0 innings. Megan Dejter has started 10 contests and has a 3.19 era with a 6-3 record.
 
Get To Know Mount St. Mary's
The Mountaineers enter the weekend having just won their first two contests of the year, both against Coppin State, at the UMBC Dawg Pound Invitational. The Mount lost the final contest, against Marist, and now have a 2-16 record overall.
 
At the plate, Mount St. Mary's hits .279 as a team and are paced by Rachel Heinze, who has a team-high five home runs and a .291 average, plus three steals, second on the team. Mount does have four regulars above .300 but the bottom of the order has struggled this season.
 
 In the circle, four different pitchers have started at least three contests and made at least eight appearances. Katie Olson's 6.23 era is the best of the bunch.
 
Get To Know Villanova
The Wildcats are 9-10 this season and have lost three straight heading into the weekend. Nova went 1-3 at the University of Delaware Invitational but before the three loses, the team had rattled off five straight victories.
 
Lauren Herschberg paces the Wildcats with a flat .400 average and team-highs in home runs (2), RBIs (17), runs (16), and slugging (.585). In the circle, Kate Poppe has made the most starts, 10, and has a 3.26 era with 70 strikeouts in 64.1 innings.
 
Up Next
The Rams travel to Jamaica, Queens, to face St. John's next Wednesday afternoon at 2:30 p.m. Following that contest, Atlantic 10 play begins with a three-game set in the Bronx against Massachusetts next weekend.