Softball at USF Tournament this Weekend

Live Stats
Twitter Updates @FordhamSoftball
 
Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham softball team's (0-5) 2018 campaign rolls on this weekend at the USF Tournament, hosted by South Florida, in sunny Tampa, Fla. The Rams will kicks things off Friday morning against Bryant at 9:15 a.m., play the hosts at 2 p.m., and Drake on Saturday morning at 9:15 a.m. Two games are still to be determined depending on seeding, with the first of those contests coming later on Saturday and the final game on Sunday. Stay tuned to @FordhamSoftball on twitter and FordhamSports.com for more info.
 
No video or audio streams for this weekend, unfortunately, but live stats will be available at the link above.
 
Last Time Out
The Rams are 0-5 for the first time to begin a season since 2001, the year before head coach Bridget Orchard took over in the Bronx. Fordham, dealing with the loss of six starters from a year ago, scheduled a very challenging opening week, taking on three nationally-ranked schools and one receiving votes in both polls. Fordham fell, 4-0, at #5/4 UCLA in a standalone game, opened the Mary Nutter Classic with a 9-2 defeat to #23/22 California and 12-7 to UC Santa Barbara, and then, 7-2, in a rematch of last year's NCAA Regional opener against #21/24 Utah. After that contest, the Rams took on the number one ranked country in the world, Team Japan, and, despite leading briefly early on after a Madi Shaw three-run home run, falling, 13-3, to the two-time reigning international runners-up. Fordham rounded out the tournament with a tight 4-2 loss to RV/RV Arkansas.
 
Two freshmen, Rachel Hubertus and Paige Rauch, started all five contests and one, Brianna Pinto, started four, while newcomer junior catcher Molly Roark made four starts, as well. The Rams struggled at the dish, batting .173 as a team, with a 60/10 K/BB ratio. The Rams also committed 15 errors in the field. In the circle, the pitching staff totaled a combined 6.97 ERA.
 
Series History vs. This Weekend's Opponents
- The Rams hold a 2-0 all-time lead over the Bulldogs. Both meetings came a year ago at East Carolina's Pirate Clash. The Rams won, 8-0, in six innings in their opening game of the weekend and then 16-0 in six innings in the closing game. Lauren Quense became the fifth Ram to ever throw a no-hitter in that latter contest, blanking the Bulldogs over six frames and allowing just one fourth-inning walk. In the top half of that inning, Fordham plated 11 runs.
- South Florida holds a slim 4-3 all-time series lead since 2006. Fordham won in 2011 and 2015 but the last time the two schools met, the Bulls won, 11-2, in five innings at the Michele Smith Foundation Invitational in Clearwater. Jordy Storm notched her first career hit and RBI as a pinch-hitter in the fourth inning, singling home Lindsay Mayer.
- Fordham and Drake have never played each other before.
 
Fordham Picked to Successfully Defend A-10 Title
Like a year ago, Fordham received nine of 10 possible first-place votes and 99 points from the league's head coaches and have thus been picked to successfully defend its Atlantic 10 championship for a sixth consecutive year. You can read more about that, here. The Rams have won five straight tournament titles and six of the last seven, plus five regular season titles, as well, in the past eight years.
 
Keeping up with the Record Book
As mentioned, 17 school records were broken or tied last year. Quense and Shaw continue their climbs up the all-time lists in their final campaigns in maroon and white. Check it all out, here.
 
Fordham Softball Archived Stories
Read up on Fordham's offseason turnover, season previews, game previews and recaps. Read all of the team's archived stories from this season and beyond, here.
 
Fordham Quick Facts
You can find this season's full schedule, roster, and quick facts, plus last year's season statistics, all here.
 
Welcoming New Faces
The program welcomed seven new players to the Bronx this season, six freshmen and one transfer. Infielder Rachel Hubertus, infielder Brianna Pinto, pitcher Anne Marie Prentiss, pitcher/infielder Paige Rauch, and pitcher Gianna Ranieri were announced last November in the initial five-person class, while utility player Kelly Bright and JuCo transfer catcher Molly Roark were announced in June. Coach Orchard also revealed her initial five-player 2018 recruiting class this past fall.
 
Up Next
The Rams head to Orlando for the Diamond 9 Citrus Classic II, held at Disney's Wide World of Sports complex. Fordham will start things off with Ball State at 12 p.m. next Friday, March 2, and will also take on RV/RV Notre Dame, Robert Morris, Troy, and RV/RV Florida International. All games will, like last weekend, be streamed live on FloSoftball.com.
 
Continue to keep up to date with the program on social media: @FordhamSoftball on Twitter and Instagram, and here at FordhamSports.com!