Softball Continues Road Swing with Games at St. John's and Saint Louis

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Bronx, N.Y. – Fordham softball (13-19, 4-5) plays at St. John's (14-20, 4-8 Big East) on Wednesday afternoon at 3 p.m. then heads out to Saint Louis (15-21, 7-4) for an important three-game series. Both days will begin at 1 p.m. ET.
 
Pride Game and The Trevor Project
Fordham's doubleheader against Drexel were the Rams' Pride games, honoring and celebrating all members of the LGBTQ+ community. Embracing diversity and promoting acceptance is crucial for creating a supportive, inclusive society. One resource that struck our team was The Trevor Project, a nonprofit organization founded in 1998 with a focus on LGBTQ+ youths and suicide prevention. The Rams hope to raise awareness and build a more welcoming space for every individual. Please join us in donating to this great cause. Thank you!
 
Ramses Challenge
Join the Ramses Challenge, a new philanthropic initiative supporting our student-athletes! Pledge a set amount of money for each win, home run, strikeout, and stolen base this season for the Rams, or make a one-time gift to the program. All proceeds are tax-deductible and go directly to Fordham Softball. Thank you for all your continued support!
 
Last Time Out
Fordham took one of three at Rhode Island over the weekend, defeating the host Rams in style, 10-0, in six innings in the opener, but falling 3-0 in the second game and 6-5 in the finale. Devon Miller tossed her 12^th career shutout in the win, moving into solo sixth all-time, with all 10 runs coming on hits inside the park and a season-high 14 base knocks. The offense was stymied in the middle contest by Liz Lynchard, who started the finale, but got to her for three four runs by the fourth to knock her out of that game. Rhode Island rallied for five runs in the fifth, three earned, to snatch the victory away.
 
Neleh Nogay Named Atlantic 10 Co-Rookie of the Week
The freshman speedster deservedly earned her first piece of collegiate hardware, hitting .750 over four games last week, including a 4-for-4 performance in the series-opening win at Rhode Island on Friday. Nogay led the squad with nine hits and three stolen bases and tallied at least one hit in every contest. Over the past two weeks, the New Castle, Pa. native has raised her rally 100 points, up to .395 on the year, partly due to hitting an absurd .593 across nine conference contests thus far.
 
Series Histories
St. John's – The Red Storm hold a 16-11 record since the first meeting in 1985, the first year of this program's existence. St. John's won 10 of the first 11 meetings, up until 1992, before an 11-year break in the series, which resumed for a split of two contests on neutral ground in 2003. Since 2009, the schools have met in all but one season, with Fordham taking nine of 14. Most recently, St. John's won, 9-0, at Bahoshy Field in five innings as an impromptu addition to the schedule after the Rams' series at Dayton was canceled.
 
Saint Louis – Fordham leads the all-time series, 29-9, since the Billikens joined the league in 2006. Most of the Rams' success has been at home, winning 16 of 18 contests, but Saint Louis has been tougher on its home ground, winning six of 14 meetings. Last year, the two teams split a midweek doubleheader in the Bronx. Game one was a 9-4 SLU victory in nine innings. Devon Miller set a career-high with 8.1 frames, striking out 10, and allowed just two runs over eight innings before the Billikens rallied in the ninth. Game two was Fordham's turn to rally, turning a 3-0 deficit into a 5-3 victory, helped by two, two-run home runs in the sixth by Sarah Taffet and Rachel Hubertus.
 
Where They Rank
Neleh Nogay's hot stretch has the freshman up to a .395 batting average, fifth in the A-10 and 83^rd in all of Division I. Bailey Enoch reaches base quite often thanks to her 20 walks, tied for second in the league, and nine hit-by-pitches, tops in the conference and 31^st on a per-game basis in the country. Her 0.62 walks per game is 78^th nationally. The trio of Enoch, Eva Koratsis, and Sydney Wells are in a share of sixth in the league with four home runs. In the circle, Holly Beeman's 1.57 ERA is second in the league and her .214 opposing batting average is fourth. She's walking just 1.39 batters per seven, 82^nd in the nation.
 
Two-Time A-10 Pitcher of the Week Holly Beeman
The freshman hurler enjoyed a stellar start to her season by earning two straight Pitcher of the Week honors from the Atlantic 10. She became the first Ram, and first freshman, to earn the season's first two accolades since Lauren Quense in 2017 and just the third all-time. Beeman outdid her opening weekend, when she pitched once but nearly threw a no-hitter, with a three-hit shutout over Saint Francis to give her team its second win of the year, allowing just three singles with no walks and three strikeouts, and appearing in relief twice with a combined two runs allowed, one earned, over 4.2 innings. She finished with a 0.60 ERA over a team-high 11.2 frames and currently leads the pitching staff in nearly every category.
 
A-10 Preseason Coaches Poll
The Rams have been predicted to successfully defend their title and garnered six first-place votes in the league's annual poll of head coaches. Read more here.
 
New Faces
Head coach Melissa Inouye welcomed five freshman to the Bronx in the Fall: pitcher Holly Beeman, infielder Eva Koratsis, infielder Kate McGuire, outfielder Neleh Nogay, and catcher Nicki Sudall. Inouye also welcomed new assistant coach Nikki Cuccio to the program.
 
Milestone Watch
Senior hurler Devon Miller continues her steady climb up the program ranks, sitting fifth in strikeouts, sixth in shutouts, ninth in wins, and ninth in starts.  Bailey Enoch is currently joint-fourth all-time with a .435 on-base percentage. Fifth-years Julia Martine and Sarah Taffet have enjoyed essentially four full seasons, including the COVID-shortened campaign, and will likely push to enter several top-10s of their own later this season.
 
Next
Fordham closes out its lengthy road swing with next Wednesday's doubleheader at Saint Joseph's beginning at 1 p.m. on ESPN+.