LORETTO, Pa. (Mar. 19, 2015) - The Saint Francis U softball team has been turning on all cylinders over the last two weeks as it heads to the Liberty Spring Classic, hoping to extend its season high six game winning streak. Fans can watch Saint Francis play Liberty on ESPN3 here.

SFU's streak started back in Florida as it defeated Akron to wrap up the Rebel Spring Games. It followed that victory up with a three game sweep at the Delaware Spring Invitational. The Flash then tackled Big 10 member Maryland and it swept a doubleheader from the Terps on Tuesday.

A strong pitching staff has been the key to the 13-4 start for head coach Jennifer Patrick-Swift's team. The right-handed duo of Blaire Lauthers (Doylesburg, Pa./Fannett-Metal) (4-2) and Ethel Santai (Pine Grove, Pa./Pine Grove Area) (4-0) have combined for eight wins and have a joint ERA of 1.20. Alexis Bower (Cogan Station, Pa./Williamsport Area), Ketarah DeVries (Forreston, Ill./Forreston), and Chelsea Rex (Philipsburg, Pa./Philipsburg-Osceola) have rounded out the pitching staff which as a whole has accumulated a team ERA of 2.31, compared to the 4.33 ERA of its opponents. 

Offensively, senior INF/OF Taylor Parsons (Bellefonte, Pa./Bald Eagle) has led the way for the Flash. Her senior campaign has been highlighted thus far, with breaking the all-time doubles record at Maryland Tuesday afternoon. She carries a team-high batting average of .327 into play at the Liberty Spring Classic and she is second on the team in stolen bases (3).

The Flash will play Quinnipiac and Liberty to open the Classic on Friday. First pitch is scheduled for 1 p.m. and 5 p.m. The game with Liberty will be shown on ESPN3. Fans can find the link here.  SFU will continue play on Saturday as it faces North Carolina Central and Rider before wrapping up the Classic on Sunday against Kent State. 

SCOUTING QUINNIPIAC

The Bobcats enter Friday's action with some momentum as it defeated Colgate on Sunday and will play Toledo to open play at the Liberty Softball Classic. Quinnipiac enters the tournament with a 3-14 overall record. The Bobcats have struggled at the plate this season as it carries a team batting average of .219. A bright spot for the Bobcats has been senior INF Nikki Barba who sports a team-high BA of .378.

SCOUTING LIBERTY

The Flames will open the brand-new Liberty Softball Stadium this afternoon when it opens the tournament against Rider. Liberty comes into play with a 9-12 record in 2015. The game with Rider will be Liberty's first home game of the year. Kelby Allen leads the Flames offensively with a batting average of .379. Four other players are batting over .300.
 

SCOUTING NORTH CAROLINA CENTRAL

NCCU comes into the tournament sporting an 8-8 record. Central will play a game versus Maryland Eastern Shore before coming to Liberty where it starts play against Kent State. Emerie Germ leads the way for the Eagles batting a stunning .426. She also leads the team in home runs (3) and RBIs (13).                    

SCOUTING RIDER

Saint Francis and Rider were scheduled to play earlier in the season but due to weather the first matchup will take place on Saturday. The Broncs come into play with a 4-6 record and have six players batting over .300. Megan McDonough leads the pitching staff with a 1-2 record and a 2.80 ERA.

SCOUTING KENT STATE
The Golden Flashes has been playing well in 2015 as it comes into the tournament with a 12-6 record. Though it is coming off a two game losing streak to No. 3 Michigan. Four players have a better than .300 batting average and Michele Duffy leads that quartet with a .388 clip. Maddy Grimm has been the power source for Kent State as she has blasted four home runs on the year.

HEAD-TO-HEAD
SFU VS. Quinnipiac: Quinnipiac leads 10-19
Current Streak: QU W1

SFU VS. Liberty: SFU leads 2-1
Current Streak: LU W1

SFU VS. NCCU: First Meeting

SFU VS. Rider: Rider leads 2-8
Current Streak: SFU W1

SFU VS. Kent State: Kent State leads 1-0
Current Streak: KSU W1

FLASH FACTS:

• The 13-4 start in 2015 is the best start in school history through 17 games.
• Taylor Parsons (Bellefonte, Pa./Bald Eagle) broke the all-time doubles record Tuesday against Maryland with her 38^th career double.
• Tuesday's victories over Maryland marked the fourth and fifth win over a Big 10 team in SFU's history.