LORETTO, Pa. – Saint Francis University softball has its second tournament weekend of the season Feb. 16-18, where the Red Flash are set to face Northern Kentucky, Rhode Island and Wofford at the Wofford Invitational.  
 
Saint Francis Quick Hits
» Grace Vesco earned the first Northeast Conference Pitcher of the Week award after she started the season with a 1.17 ERA, 2-0 record, five hits, three walks, 16 strikeouts and .088 batting average against in 18 innings. She eclipsed the 600-strikeout mark for her career at the CSU Kickoff Tournament and ranks 11th among active NCAA Division I pitchers with 602.
» Kaylie Walters was named the first NEC Rookie of the Week after she hit .462 with five runs scored, one RBI and went 5-for-6 in stolen base attempts. She drew four walks and carried an NEC second-highest .588 on-base percentage during the first weekend. Her five stolen bases are already one-third of the Saint Francis lead from last season.
» Rachel Marsden carries a 1.47 ERA with one walk, 11 strikeouts and .180 batting average against in 14.1 innings pitched. She also hit the first home run of the season for Saint Francis.
» Savannah Nash earned an NEC Prime Performer selection after she hit .357 with two runs scored, one double, one triple and four RBIs. In the season opener against Siena, she recorded the first three-hit performance of her career.


Last Time Out
Saint Francis took home a 4-1 record at the CSU Kickoff Tournament with two victories over Siena and one over Bellarmine and Charleston Southern. The Red Flash lost its only game of the weekend to Charleston Southern 3-1. Saint Francis opened the season with a 4-1 win over Siena behind the first three-hit game of Nash's career. Later in the day, Saint Francis took a 3-2 win in eight innings over Charleston Southern. Vesco threw a one-hitter in the game and allowed only one earned run. Saint Francis kept its winning streak going with an 8-5 win over Bellarmine after the Knights led 4-0 early in the game. Charleston Southern handed Saint Francis its first loss of the season 3-1 later that day behind a three-run first inning. The Red Flash capped off the weekend with a 4-3 victory over Siena on a Walters go-ahead single in the seventh inning.
 
Scouting Northern Kentucky
The Norse opened the 2024 season with a 2-3 record at the UNCW Home Weekend Tournament. The program earned an 8-0 win over Queens and 8-5 win over DePaul. Tatum Biddle led the way with a .385 batting average and four runs scored. Ella LeMonier had a team-high two doubles, six RBIs and added a .368 batting average. Trinity Robertson hit the only home run of the weekend for the Norse. Madisyn Eads led Northern Kentucky on the mound with no runs allowed on 10 hits with eight walks and seven strikeouts in 15.1 innings pitched. Northern Kentucky won the Horizon League for the first time in 2023 and was selected to finish first in the 2024 Preseason Poll.
 
Scouting Rhode Island
The Rams open their 2024 season at the Wofford Invitational after a 23-31-1 overall record last season. Skyler Rapuano leads returners with a .301 batting average, 11 doubles, two home runs, 19 walks and .388 on-base percentage from last season. Becca Zawistowski returns a team-high 20 RBIs and she carried a .237 batting average. Pitcher Katie Zaun returns a team-leading 2.99 ERA, while Liz Lynchard returns a team-high 10 wins, nine complete games and 144 strikeouts in 145.1 innings pitched. Rhode Island was picked sixth out of 10 teams in the Atlantic 10 Preseason Poll.
 
Scouting Wofford
The Terriers are in their inaugural season and earned a 3-1 record at its first hosted tournament with victories 3-0 and 3-2 over Robert Morris and 7-5 over George Mason. Hope Ingle led the way with a .400 batting average, two doubles, one home run and five RBIs. She was the only Wofford player to hit above .275 during the opening weekend. Margaret Axelson allowed no runs in her 7.2 innings pitched with one walk and five strikeouts to earn Southern Conference Pitcher of the Week. Abby Greenwood added a 2.84 ERA with 13 hits, one walk and eight strikeouts in 12.1 innings pitched.
 
All-Time vs. Northern Kentucky
Saint Francis and Northern Kentucky are set to play for the first time in program history. The Norse are the only Horizon League opponent for the Red Flash this season, while Saint Francis is Northern Kentucky's only NEC opponent.
 
All-Time vs. Rhode Island
Saint Francis owns a 4-1 all-time record over Rhode Island with the most recent meeting a 4-3 Red Flash victory in 2020. The Rams earned their only victory of the series 2-1 in 2012 before the Red Flash won three in a row between 2017-20. All-five games of the series were played at a neutral site.
 
All-Time vs. Wofford
Saint Francis and Wofford face off for the first time during the Terriers' inaugural season. Wofford is one of two SoCon opponents for Saint Francis this season, as the Red Flash also faces Chattanooga March 2-3 at Central Arkansas. Saint Francis is Wofford's only NEC opponent of the season.

Next
Saint Francis heads to the Liberty Softball Classic Feb. 23-25, where the Red Flash are set to face four different opponents.