Madison, N.J. (May 1)- The FDU-Florham Softball team has earned the fourth seed in the Middle Atlantic Conference Freedom (MAC Freedom) Championship Tournament and will travel to first-seed Lebanon Valley for the first round of games tomorrow at 3:30pm in Annville, Pa.
 
You can follow tomorrow's action here!
 
Live Stats | Video



Scouting the Devils

The FDU-Florham Softball team enters the MAC Freedom softball championship tournament as the fourth seed, after going 2-1 in their last three games of the regular season against King's College (Pa) and Delaware Valley University. Overall the Devils stand on 17-16 record in the regular season and on a 6-8 MAC Freedom conference record.

The Devils are led by Head Coach Bridget Rafter, who has been at the Florham campus since 2021. In her first year, Rafter led her team to the MAC Freedom Tournament during the 2021 season. This was the first time the Devils returned to the tournament after making it to the championship game in 2016.

In the field, FDU-Florham is led by 2023 All-MAC Freedom Honorable Mention Designated Player, Jada Lambright (Clifton Park, NY), as she has accumulated 166 putouts with a .977 fielding percentage at first base this season. Helping them defend the field from home plate was first-year catcher Riley Signor (Media, PA) who leads the MAC Freedom in stolen bases against (52) and was caught stealing by (7).

Despite being last in the conference for pitching, the Devils will be relying on the arm and accuracy of Kelly Cornog (Newtown Square, Pa). In her first collegiate season, Cornog pitched a total of 111.2 innings while recording 146 hits against. She helped the Devils collect a non-conference shutout against Neumann on April 17, with five strikeouts and obtained a season-high of 10 strikeouts against Dean in Myrtle Beach, SC for spring break.

Offensively, FDU-Florham leads the MAC Freedom Conference with a .327 batting average and sits second with 149 RBI. With the second-best individual batting average to date (.434), Kacie Centineo (Waldwick, NJ) a 2023 All-MAC Freedom Second Team outfielder recorded her 100th career hit earlier in the season against Notre Dame (Maryland), as well as collected a total of 46 hits so far this season. The 2023 All-MAC Freedom Honorable Mention Outfielder, Abigail Rodriguez (Woodbridge, NJ) sent the ball over the fence twice this season including a 2-run homer during the Devils doubleheader at Stevens, to help them secure the tiebreaker over the Ducks in MAC Freedom action. Rodriguez also notched a .364 batting average so far this season for a total of 32 hits.

Scouting the Flying Dutchman

The Lebanon Valley found themselves with a 30-8 overall record during the 2024 regular season and a 12-2 record in MAC Freedom conference play. The Flying Dutchman reached the MAC Commonwealth finals during the 2023 season but lost the title to York College by scores of 4-3 and 5-4 in games eight and nine. They then earned a bid in the NCAA Division III Regional Tournament and won four out of five games to reach the NCAA Division III Super Regional tournament. The 2023 season for the Flying Dutchman ended with two losses to Salisbury University with scores of 3-1 and 4-0. 


Lebanon Valley is led by Head Coach Scot Adams, who has entered his 6th season with the team and has had almost a winning record with this program every season since 2019, including eclipsing the 100-win mark at the helm of last season.

The Lebanon Valley's defense is led by their superior pitching as posted a 1.95 combined ERA for the second lowest in the conference. Star pitcher Jordan Walter currently holds the second position in the MAC Freedom with a 1.63 ERA and 78 strikeouts. Erin Santra is also responsible for the team's low ERA as she owns a 1.73 along with being first in the MAC Freedom with 122 strikeouts. Santra accounted for a season-high of 12 strikeouts in their doubleheader win at King's on April 14 and recorded half of those strikeouts pitching against FDU-Florham.

On the offensive side of the bat, Lebanon Valley sits fourth in the league with a .308 batting average along with 144 RBI, just five behind FDU-Florham. Individually, Lindsey McCurdy leads the Freedom Conference in triples (6) and has accumulated a batting average of .321 as a 2023 All-MAC Commonwealth Second Team Outfielder. The highest batting average for Lebanon Valley belongs to Megan Heard as she batted a .402 average and accounted for 39 hits so far this season.

The winner of this match up will advance to Game 3 against the winner of Game 1 at 12pm on Friday, May 3. The loser will be playing against the losing team of game 1 at 2 pm on Friday, May 3.


Day 1- Thursday, May 2
Game 1: No. 3 DeSales University vs. No. 2 Misericordia (H) - 1:00 p.m.
Game 2: No. 4 FDU-Florham vs. No. 1 Lebanon Valley (H) - 3:30 p.m.

Day 2- Friday, May 3
Game 3: G1 Winner vs G2 Winner- 12pm
Game 4: G1 Looser vs G2 Loser- 2pm
Game 5: G3 Loser vs. G4 Winner

Day- Saturday, May 4
Game 6: G3 Winner vs G5 Winner
Game 7: If Necessary Game

Ticket Prices: CASH ONLY
$8 – Adults
$6 – Seniors (65+)
$6 – Youth (7-17)
Free – Students with valid school ID
Children Under 6 years of age – FREE

Merchandise
Online sales only at the Squadlocker Store

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