Elmira vs. Lycoming
Game Details	Tuesday, April 24 | Elmira, N.Y. | 3:00 p.m. (DH)
Game Coverage	Live Stats: Stats Link
Lycoming Links	Roster | Schedule | Stats

ELMIRA, N.Y. -- The Elmira College softball team will host three doubleheaders in three days at Eldridge Park, beginning on Tuesday, April 24, with a non-league twin bill against the Warriors of Lycoming College. The opening game will begin at 3:00 p.m.

LAST TIME OUT
The Soaring Eagles faced their first nationally-ranked opponent of the season on Sunday, April 22, in a home Empire 8 Conference doubleheader. No. 15 St. John Fisher College proved to be too much for the Purple and Gold to handle, as the reigning NCAA Tournament runners-up won both contests by scores of 6-0 and 13-0. Elmira produced a combined five hits between the two games, three of which came against Fisher All-American pitcher Lindsey Thayer in the opener. McKenzie Slaven '20 had one of those hits in the early game, in addition to hurling a complete 7.0 innings in the pitcher's circle. Slaven allowed just three earned runs and struck out three in her sixth complete game of the year. In the nightcap, Maddy Johnson '19 reached base twice with a hit and a walk, and Amber Wallach '19 picked up her first hit in her first at-bat of the season.
 
WALK-OFF WINNER
On Saturday, April 21, the Soaring Eagles split an E8 doubleheader at Eldridge Park against the Golden Flyers of Nazareth College, as the two teams traded 6-5 wins. In the early game, EC withstood a late rally and walked off for the first time in 2018 to secure the victory. After Naz tied the game at 5-all in the top of the seventh inning, Rachel Katzenberger '19 led off the home half of the frame with a walk. She then moved to second on a groundout and scored the game-winning run on a Sarah Garner '20 RBI single. Last time Elmira walked off was on April 26, 2017, in a 6-5 win over Houghton College. Ironically, it was Garner who tallied the game-winning run in that contest, as she scored on an error by a Houghton outfielder.
 
CLARK CLEARS THE FENCE
Junior Emily Clark '19 had herself a day in Elmira's 6-5 victory over Nazareth on Saturday. The slugging third baseman posted her second three-hit game of the season and finished a triple shy of the cycle. She singled in the first inning, hit a solo home run in the fourth, and nearly left the yard again with an RBI double off of the fence in the sixth inning. The homer was the fourth of Clark's career, leaving the Trumbull, Connecticut, native just one shy of moving into a tie for eighth-place all-time in program history.
 
SCOUTING LYCOMING
What a difference a year can make; this time in 2017, the Wildcats were fighting for a spot in the MAC Commonwealth Tournament. Although they missed out on a postseason berth by just one game, the Warriors won a program-best 24 games last season. However, this year Lycoming is just 8-22 overall and 2-12 in league play. Noticeably absent from the lineup is 2017 First Team All-MAC Commonwealth infielder, Kayla Kline, who suffered a season-ending injury during the women's basketball season. Without Kline's .445 batting average from a year ago, the team's average as fallen from .298 to .225. This spring, All-MAC Commonwealth Honorable Mention outfielder Ashley Shoenstadt leads the team with a .289 average and a .406 on-base percentage. In the pitcher's circle, Rachael Shady is 3-12 in 18 appearances (15 starts), and boasts a team-low 3.45 ERA. Shady is also tied with Schoenstadt for the team lead in hits (24), but her .255 clip is much lower than the .385 she produced as a junior.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Elmira's homestand continues on Wednesday, April 25, when the Soaring Eagles wrap-up Empire 8 play against The Sage Colleges at Eldridge Park. The first game of the doubleheader will begin at 3:00 p.m.