Softball Hosts Iona Wednesday with New 1:30 P.M. Start Time

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Bronx, N.Y. – The Fordham softball team (12-13, 4-4) hosts Iona (7-13, 0-0 MAAC) on Wednesday in nonconference action with an updated time: originally set for 3 p.m., the game will now start at 1:30 p.m. to avoid colder temperatures later in the day, and will be streamed live on ESPN+.
 
Last Time Out
Fordham swept Rhode Island over the weekend by a combined 20-3 score. Deservingly, Rachel Hubertus was named the Atlantic 10 Co-Player of the Week and Devon Miller was named the Pitcher of the Week. Fifth-year Brianna Pinto also stole her 74^th career base in the first inning of Sunday's finale and became the program's all-time steals leader. Read all about Saturday and Sunday here and here, respectively.  
 
Hubertus, Miller Garner A-10 Weekly Awards
As mentioned, Hubertus earned her second career weekly accolade from the conference, while Miller picked up her fourth career Pitcher nod. Read about their weekends here.
 
Series History vs. Iona
Fordham leads the all-time series, 33-16-1, since 1985 when both schools were in the MAAC. The lone tie came in 1994. It's been nearly all Rams in the rivalry over the past 20 years, though, and Fordham is currently riding a six-game win streak dating back to 2013, although the two schools haven't met since the 2018 season when current head coach Melissa Inouye held the same position with the Gaels. In that contest, both Brianna Pinto and Rachel Hubertus featured, the former as a pinch-runner and the latter as the starting shortstop in the flex!
 
Milestone Watch
With her first-inning steal on Sunday, Brianna Pinto became Fordham softball's all-time stolen base leader, her 74^th. She is 74-for-75 on the basepaths in her five seasons in the Bronx, having been thrown out just ONCE, way back in April of her freshman year. She is a perfect 14-of-14 this season after stealing double that number last year, ranked third in a single campaign. The Franklin Square, N.Y. native also has a chance to finish in the top-10 for career batting average after setting the single-season record last Spring with a .431 average across 46 contests, currently at .265 this year.
 
Redshirt senior Rachel Hubertus enjoyed a tremendous comeback season last year, hitting 13 home runs with 54 RBIs, ranked T-10^th and 5^th, respectively in a single year, and with a league-leading eight home runs already this year is now solo eighth all-time with 30 career dingers. She is also 17 RBIs shy of that top-10, as well, and is currently fifth with an even .600 slugging percentage.
 
Junior Devon Miller is now eighth all-time with eight career shutouts after Saturday's five-inning blanking of Rhode Island, and just entered the top-10 for career strikeouts, now eighth with 269, and is one win away from joining that category, as well.
 
Makenzie McGrath Named Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Week
The senior earned her first weekly league accolade on February 15 after picking up both of the team's wins opening weekend, one in her fifth career complete game and one in relief. Read all about her stellar performances here.
 
2021 Season Review
The Rams saw a stretch of seven consecutive Atlantic 10 championships snapped last Spring. Fordham earned the #2 seed after finishing the conference season with a 17-3 record, posting a 37-10 overall record by year's end. Devon Miller became the eighth Ram to earn A-10 Rookie of the Year honors, also garnering First Team All-Conference accolades, with Sarah Taffet and Brianna Pinto being named to the Second Team and Bella Ayala and Bailey Enoch landing on the All-Rookie team. The quartet of Miller, Pinto, Madie Aughinbaugh, and Rachel Hubertus all were also selected to the NFCA All-Region Third Team, as well.
 
In the classroom, a program-record 13 Rams also earned Easton/NFCA All-America Scholar Athlete honors, with Aughinbaugh also garnering A-10 All-Academic and both Hubertus and Pinto earning CoSIDA Academic All-District.
 
Fordham saw Aughinbaugh, one of the program's top pitchers and two-way players, graduate among five total, but return every other starter from a year ago, with five freshman joining the program. Coach Inouye, who received a contract extension, also added former Holy Cross head coach Jennifer Lapicki as her associate head coach.
 
A-10 Preseason Poll
The Rams were predicted to finish second in the annual Atlantic 10 preseason coaches poll. Fordham garnered 71 points and three first-place votes, finishing just three points shy of last year's champions, George Washington, who received four first-place votes, and ahead of Saint Joseph's, who earned the final two first-place votes and 55 total points. Read about it here.
 
D1Softball.com's Top 150
Junior pitcher and reigning Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year Devon Miller was named by D1Softball.com as its 149^th-best player in the country heading into the season. You can read about it here, though it is a subscription-based website.
 
Up Next
Fordham travels up to UMass for a three-game series this weekend. Both Saturday's doubleheader and Sunday's series finale are set for noon.