FAIRFIELD, Conn. -- The Fairfield University softball team (22-12 overall) continues play in the 2021 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (
MAAC) Softball Championship with a match up against Manhattan College (19-14 overall) on Thursday afternoon. First pitch is slated for 3 pm and can be viewed on
ESPN+.
The Stags opened the
MAAC Softball Championship with a two-game sweep of Siena College, sending them to Buffalo, N.Y. for the next round of games. The double-elimination portion of the tournament includes second-seeded and host
Canisius College, sixth-seeded Manhattan College, and eighth-seeded Marist College.
The Stags started the postseason with a 3-0 win over the Saints behind a three-hit shutout from All-Rookie pitcher
Allie Bridgman. Fairfield completed the sweep with a 5-2 decision behind the pitching of
Lauryn Rhinehart, who tossed the first six-plus innings before
Bailey Taylor secured the final two outs for the save.
Mikayla Rubin and Lacey
Olaff each picked up a pair of RBI in the doubleheader.
Rubin and
Olaff remain the team's top run producers, placing one and two among the team for RBI. Rubin has registered a team-best 20 RBI while
Olaff stands next in line with 19 RBI.
Olaff, who is hitting .315 on the season, also has 10 extra base hits to her credit with eight doubles and two home runs. Only
Megan Forbes has more extra base hits with her 10 doubles, two triples, and one home run. Forbes has been one of the most consistent hitters on the roster this season, sporting a .352 hitting percentage off a team-best 38 hits in 33 starts.
Freshman
Evie Wright, who joins Bridgman and Kasey
Sekula on the
MAAC All-Rookie Team, owns the top batting average on the team, checking into this week with an impressive .386 mark. Bridgman secured her seventh win of the season, one off the leading total of eight victories by
Rhinehart.
Sekula launched her first home run of the season in the Siena sweep, giving her 12 RBI off her 14 hits this season.
Manhattan won its quarterfinal series with two wins in three contests against Iona College, winning game one (6-2) and dropping game two (3-1) before winning the deciding third game by a 11-5 count. The Jaspers' run total in the final game was a season-high as were the 13 hits they used to plate the runs. Annie Moore paced the offense with six hits in 10 at-bats, registering a homer and five RBI in the series.
Marika Deemer also recorded six hits in the series and added three RBI with two runs scored.
Moore serves as the team's top hitter with a lofty .354 batting average, using her 35 hits to drive in 17 runs and score 18 runs. Christine Gebhardt is the only Jasper who has crossed home plate more times, tallying 19 runs in her 33 starts. Daniela Chiorozzi leads the squad with 18 RBI as well as with five home runs, accounting for nearly one-third of the team's 18 homers.
Nicole Williams has been the staple of the Manhattan pitching staff, collecting 10 wins against just two losses in her 16 appearances. She has fanned 82 hitters in 84-plus innings and has one shutout to her credit. Jessie Rising places second on the staff with five victories, striking out 31 batters in her 45 innings pitched.
Fairfield and Manhattan opened the season against one another with the Stags coming away with three wins in the four meetings at Alumni Softball Field. Fairfield swept the doubleheader on day one by 8-0 and 4-3 scores before splitting the next day as each team came away with a 6-1 win.
