LORETTO, Pa. – The Saint Francis softball team (8-1) travels to Marshall this weekend to compete in a round robin on Saturday and Sunday. The Red Flash begins the weekend against Bowling Green at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday, followed by a game against Marshall at 1:30 p.m. On Sunday, SFU plays Valparaiso at 9:30 a.m. and Marshall at 11:30 a.m.
 
FAN POLICY
Fans are permitted at Dot Hicks Field and games are open to the public. All fans in attendance must adhere to social distancing guidelines and be masked while on the property. For Marshall games, visiting team fans are asked to sit on the first-base side and in the outfield. Seating is open for neutral-site games.
 
The Event: Marshall Round Robin
Location: Dot Hicks Field (Huntington, W. Va.)
Live Stats: herdzone.com
 

The Matchup: Saint Francis (8-1) vs. Bowling Green (6-5)
Date and Time: Saturday at 9:30 a.m.

SCOUTING THE FALCONS
The Falcons enter the weekend with a 6-5 record and is scheduled to play both Valpo and Marshall on Friday prior to the meeting with the Red Flash. Last weekend, BG traveled to Western Kentucky where it beat Indiana State by an 8-2 margin before falling to WKU 8-0 in five innings.

Redshirt freshman infielder/outfielder Greta L'Esperance leads the Falcons offense so far this season in batting average (.415), at-bats (41), runs (6), hits (17), doubles (3), total bases (20), slugging percentage (.488) and stolen bases (7). Redshirt freshman pitcher Payton Gottshall leads the pitching staff in ERA (0.56), wins (6), appearances (7), complete games (6), shutouts (4), innings pitched (50.1), strikeouts (108) and opponents' batting average (.109). Gottshall pitched a perfect game during opening weekend against Cleveland State.

SERIES WITH THE FALCONS
Bowling Green leads the all-time series with Saint Francis 4-2. The most recent meetings between the teams was in 2019 when each program earned one win. BG won the game on February 22 by an 8-7 margin before SFU took the game on February 24 by a 12-7 mark. In the 12-7 win, the Red Flash used a six-run sixth inning to take the lead after the game was tied at six aside after five complete innings. SFU hit four home runs in that game.
 

The Matchup: Saint Francis (8-1) at Marshall (2-0)
Date and Time: Saturday at 1:30 p.m. and Sunday at 11:30 a.m.
Live Stream: Saturday | Sunday

SCOUTING THE HERD
The Herd enters the weekend at 2-0 after sweeping a doubleheader against Akron on Wednesday. Marshall won by a 7-4 margin in the first game and shutout the Zips 8-0 in five innings in the second game. The Herd is slated to face Bowling Green on Friday and Valpo on Saturday prior to the game against Saint Francis.

Senior catcher Katie Adams led the Herd in the Akron doubleheader with a .833 batting average (5-of-6), five hits, four doubles, three RBI, nine total bases and a .857 on-base percentage. Pitchers Laney Jones and Ashley Blessin each pitched a complete game against the Zips. Jones pitched a shutout in the five-inning game while Blessin gave up just one earned run in the 7-4 win.

SERIES WITH THE HERD
Marshall leads the all-time series 5-3 against Saint Francis, though the Red Flash owns the most recent meeting between the two programs. SFU beat the Herd in the 2020 season opener by a 5-4 margin. With the Red Flash trailing 4-3 entering the seventh inning, Tayven Rousseau and Madeline Barnes both hit home runs to lift Saint Francis to the 5-4 victory.
 

The Matchup: Saint Francis (8-1) vs. Valparaiso (2-4)
Date and Time: Sunday at 9:30 a.m.

SCOUTING VALPO
Valparaiso enters the weekend with a 2-4 record and is scheduled to play Bowling Green on Friday and Marshall on Saturday before meeting Saint Francis. Last weekend, Valpo split a doubleheader against Belmont, losing the first game 2-1 before winning the second game by a 9-1 margin.
Senior infielder Addi Burke leads the Valpo offense through the first six games in batting average (.500), hits (7) and on-base percentage (.563). Freshman pitcher Caitlyn Kowalski leads the pitching staff with both of the team's wins as well as ERA (1.31), appearances (5), complete games (2), strikeouts (21) and opponents' batting average (.193).

SERIES WITH VALPO
Saint Francis and Valparaiso have just one previous meeting in program history. Valpo claimed a 6-1 victory on March 3, 2010.
 

LAST TIME OUT
Saint Francis was a perfect 5-0 last weekend at the Winthrop Eagle Classic to extend its win streak to eight games and improve to 8-1 on the season. The Red Flash earned wins over Syracuse (6-3, eight innings), Tennessee Tech (6-2 and 10-0 in six innings), UIC (4-3 in eight innings) and College of Charleston (9-1 in five innings).

Following last weekend's performance, five Red Flash players earned conference honors. Sophomore pitcher Grace Vesco was named Northeast Conference Pitcher of the Month and was also named a top performer by the NFCA. Senior utility player Tayven Rousseau was named NEC Player of the Month and freshman outfielder Sydney Baker was named NEC Rookie of the Month. Senior infielder Mekenzie Saban and junior infielder Lindsay Ward joined Rousseau and Vesco on the NEC Prime Performers list.

The Red Flash pitching staff currently ranks 12^th in the country in strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.27) and 21^st in the country with a combined ERA of 1.49. the Red Flash offense ranks 29^th in the nation in scoring as it averages 6.67 runs per game. The SFU offense is one of 50 Division I teams in the country that's averaging at least one home run per game and ranks 31^st in on-base percentage through the first nine games (.410).
 
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To learn more about Saint Francis University, visit francis.edu.