LORETTO, Pa. – The Saint Francis softball team (37-8, 22-2 NEC) hosts the NEC Championships this week after earning the regular season championship this past weekend. The Red Flash plays No. 4 Sacred Heart in the first game of the tournament on Thursday at 12 p.m. All games this week will be broadcast live on ESPN3 and NEC Front Row.
 

The Event: 2021 NEC Championships
Location: Red Flash Softball Field (Loretto, Pa.)
Bracket: NEC Championships Tournament Central
Live Stats: sfuathletics.com
 
FAN/TICKETING POLICY
Fans will be permitted at the Red Flash Softball Field. Individuals on the team guest list for participating student-athletes and coaches as well as anyone with an NEC school I.D. will be admitted at no cost. If capacity is not reached, general admission tickets will be available for $6 for adults, $3 for students ages 6-18 and free for children five and under. Advance ticket orders can be purchased by calling (814)-472-3286.

NO. 2 LIU SHARKS
LIU earned the No. 2 seed in the NEC Championships with a 25-7 record in conference play this season. Prior to last weekend, the Sharks put together a 17-game win streak and were a perfect 12-0 on their home turf before being swept by the Red Flash. LIU's only other conference losses were on opening day at Sacred Heart (doubleheader sweep) and one at Mount St. Mary's on April 3 (9-1 loss in five innings).

This season, senior infielder Alina Castillo leads the LIU offense in batting average (.455) while senior infielder Ciara Granado leads in doubles (12), home runs (5), RBI (37), total bases (58), slugging percentage (.637) and walks (14). Graduate pitcher Tallie Woodson leads the Sharks pitching staff in ERA (1.75), wins (12), appearances (17), starts (15), complete games (14), shutouts (3), saves (2), innings pitched (92.0), strikeouts (79) and opponents' average (.217).

NO. 3 CENTRAL CONNECTICUT BLUE DEVILS
Central Connecticut earned the No. 3 seed in the NEC Championships with a 20-8 NEC record this season. CCSU earned sweeps against Mount St. Mary's, Fairleigh Dickinson, Bryant and Sacred Heart as the Blue Devils were the only remaining undefeated team in conference play at the time. Central Connecticut was swept by LIU for the first NEC losses of the season. The Blue Devils wrapped up the regular season with a sweep against Wagner before being swept by Saint Francis in Loretto last week.

This season, senior infielder Kaitlin Paterson leads the CCSU offense in batting average (.416), walks (21) and on-base percentage (.522) while freshman infielder Paige Stringer leads the offense in home runs (11), RBI (34), total bases (73) and slugging percentage (.753). The Central Connecticut pitching staff features five pitchers, all with at least 36 innings pitched this season. Freshman Anaya Hunte leads the staff in ERA (3.36), appearances (12), strikeouts (45) and opponents' average (.228).

NO. 4 SACRED HEART PIONEERS
Sacred Heart earned the No. 4 seed in the NEC Championships with a 13-15 record against NEC teams this season. The Pioneers secured the tournament spot with a sweep at Bryant last weekend. SHU split a doubleheader at Wagner at the end of April after dropping three of four games at Mount St. Mary's. Against other NEC Tournament participants, Sacred Heart split the series against LIU and was swept by CCSU.

This season, junior catcher Alyssa Gonzalez leads the Sacred Heart offense in batting average (.370), home runs (16), RBI (41), total bases (91), slugging percentage (.910), walks (18) and on-base percentage (.475). Senior pitcher Colleen Walsh leads the Pioneers pitching staff in ERA (3.96), wins (8), appearances (25), starts (17), complete games (10), shutouts (1), saves (3), innings pitched (111.1) and strikeouts (78).

LAST TIME OUT
Saint Francis swept the final series of the regular season at LIU last weekend to earn the NEC regular season championship with a 22-2 record in conference play. The Sharks scored first in game one but a two-RBI single from Jordan Frank gave the Red Flash a 3-1 victory. Rachel Marsden earned her fourth shutout of the season in a 2-0 win in the second game on Saturday as Jordan Pietrzykoski scored both runs with a double.

On Sunday, Saint Francis secured the regular season championship and the chance to host the tournament with an 11-0 five-inning win. Tayven Rousseau began the scoring with her second grand slam of the season in the first inning. Five more runs in the second, including three on a Frank home run, plus a two-run home run from Mekenzie Saban end the game early. Grace Vesco and Marsden combined for the shutout. The Red Flash sealed the sweep with a 7-5 win in the final game of the regular season. Christina Clark earned the win in the circle as a five-inning second inning gave Saint Francis a lead it would not relinquish.

NCAA RANKINGS
The Red Flash pitching staff is currently tied for third in the country in shutouts (18), ranks fourth in ERA (1.29) and 14^th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (3.86) while the SFU offense ranks 29^th in on-base percentage (.394), 31^st in scoring (5.80) and 39^th in batting average (.305). Saint Francis is 13^th in win-loss percentage (.822).

Individually, Vesco and Saban are each ranked in five categories. Vesco is fourth in hits allowed per seven innings (2.99), tied for fourth in shutouts (12), seventh in ERA (0.85), tied for 10^th in wins (20) and tied for 32^nd in strikeouts (174). Saban is fifth in doubles (18), sixth in hits (68), tied for 10^th in doubles per game (.40), 18^th in runs per game (1.09) and tied for 19^th in batting average (.444). Marsden is tied for 27^th in walks allowed per seven innings (1.14) and is ranked 37^th in strikeout-to-walk ratio (5.40).
 
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To learn more about Saint Francis University, visit francis.edu.