Pirates Visit Rider for Midweek Clash

SOUTH ORANGE, N.J. – After winning their BIG EAST series against UConn, the Seton Hall (10-11, 2-4) softball team will hit the road for a midweek doubleheader against the Rider Broncos. First pitch for game one between the two teams is set for 2 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT
Last weekend, the Pirates hosted the UConn Huskies for The Hall's second BIG EAST series of the season. After losing the lead late in game one of the series, Katey Brennan drilled a walk-off home run to secure a 5-4 win. Game two saw the Pirates' pitching fall afoul of the home run ball, ultimately resulting in an 8-6 loss. In the rubber match of the series, despite allowing four runs in the first innings, Karissa Dupuis shut down the Huskies, save a stray solo home run, for the remainder of the game as the Pirates won the game 8-5.
By virtue of taking two of the three games against UConn, Seton Hall secured its first series win against the Huskies since 2013.

Schedule
Tuesday, March 13
2 p.m. – Seton Hall at Rider (Live Stats – Stream)
4 p.m. – Seton Hall at Rider (Live Stats - Stream)

PREVIEWING RIDER

So far this season, Rider is 8-12 this season with wins over St. John's, Iona and St. Joseph's.
At the plate, the Broncos offer a strong top of the order featuring six batters hitting .295 or better this season. While Aspen Wheeler leads the team with a .344 batting average, the trio of Maddie Luedtke, Kendall Reda-Fehsal and Abby Cruz each lead the team with three home runs. Another player, Emma Morgan, leads the team with 18 RBI.
In the circle, Rider holds a 6.11 staff era with a .353 batting average allowed. While Gabi Rodriguez leads the team in ERA with a mark of 4.73, senior Fallyn Stoeckel tops the team in innings with a total of 58 innings pitched.

NEWS AND NOTES

The Pirates entered the season on the precipice of 1000 wins in program history. As of now, Seton Hall has 993 all-time wins, dating back to the 1976 season.
For the first time since 2013, the Pirates claimed a series win over the UConn Huskies.
Stepping into the leadoff spot this season, Angelina Benitez has been a key cog to the Pirates' offensive game plan. The sophomore is hitting .400 with a team-leading 30 hits while also being tied for second on the team in RBI with 16.
At first base, Sophia DeMarco has filled in perfectly since taking over the position from single-season RBI record holder Olivia Gilbert this season. So far this season, DeMarco is hitting .333 with both a team-leading four home runs and 22 RBI.
After recording two hits in her first 16 at-bats this season, Andrea Perez has been on fire at the plate. The senior shortstop has hit .429 with 15 RBI over her last 16 games with the team going 9-6 during that time.