UTICA, NY - The Utica University softball team is set to wrap up its regular season against St. John Fisher University on Saturday, May 4 at 1 p.m. with game two scheduled for 3 p.m. 
 
Follow Along: Fisher will provide live video here and live stats here. 
 
Last Time Out: The team topped Hamilton College 6-3 on April 28 to collect a non-conference victory. Emily Joss (South Glens Falls, NY/South Glens Falls) led the offense, going 2-for-2 with a pair of runs and walks while also driving in one. Jennifer Rodriguez (Sylmar, CA/John F. Kennedy) added a pair of hits with one RBI with Rachel Little (Burbank, CA/John Burroughs) also recording two base knocks. Frankie Luster (Granada Hills, CA/Granada Hills Charter) smacked one hit with a team-leading two RBIs, with Maddie Zulager (Moorpark, CA/Moorpark) and Taylor Kraft (Loudonville, NY/Shaker) each driving in one. Jordyn Conte (Newport, NY/West Canada Valley High School) got the nod in the circle and was terrific, going six innings on 12 hits, allowing three runs, all earned, while punching out seven to collect her eighth win of the season. Maggie Habernig (Kingston, NY/Kingston) closed the game out, pitching the final inning allowing just one base runner via a hit by pitch. Walks by Joss and Zulager gave the Pioneers two on with just one out in the 1st when Rodriguez singled down the right field line to plate Joss. Kraft hit a deep sacrifice fly to score Zulager and give Utica a 2-0 lead. Yet Hamilton responded with a leadoff triple and trimmed the lead to 2-1 after one inning of play. Utica's bats remained hot in the 2nd as Joss drove in Little on a double to center field to push the lead to 3-1. Luster followed this up by driving in Joss on a single up the middle to make it a 4-1 advantage for the Pioneers. Utica was on the basepaths again in the 4th as walks by Lauren Paul (Guilderland, NY/Guilderland) and Joss plus a Little single loaded the bases with just one out. Luster walked to force in a run and Zulager singled to center field to increase the lead to 6-1. The next few turns for each side remained quiet until Hamilton tacked on a pair in the bottom of the 6th to make it 6-3 which would stand as the game's final score.
 
Ticket Punched: Utica has clinched the No. 3 seed in the upcoming Empire 8 Tournament. The Pioneers will play Alfred in its opening game of the E8 Tournament on May 9 in Rochester, NY with the time to be determined. The Pioneers hold the head-to-head over Elmira if both teams finished 8-6, locking up the three seed for Utica.
 
Swinging a Hot Rod: Freshman sensation Jennifer Rodriguez (Sylmar, CA/John F. Kennedy) continues her historic freshman campaign and her .529 batting average ranks seventh in the NCAA Division III. She turned in another great week recording a hit in all seven games including multi-hit games in six of them. She has continued to succeed with runners on base driving in seven RBIs over the week and her 29 RBIs rank first on the team and are tied for fourth in the conference.
 
Stunting on Em': Emily Joss (South Glens Falls, NY/South Glens Falls) has been scorching at the dish recording a hit in her last seven games including multiple hits in five of those appearances to raise her batting average to .446. Her impressive average ranks fourth in the E8 and she is also the conference leader in on base percentage (0.585), runs scored (40), and walks (28). EmJ is swinging a hot bat at the perfect time as the team tunes up for the Empire 8 Conference Tournament.
Little Hit Streak: Rachel Little (Burbank, CA/John Burroughs) turned in an impressive week and is in the midst of a six-game hitting streak including going 2-for-3 in her last three appearances. Little turned in a gaudy week going 11-for-21 with three doubles, seven runs, and two RBIs and raised her season batting average to .320 which ranks fourth on the squad.
 
Magnificent Murray: Kylie Murray (Eastchester, NY/Eastchester) had an unreal week collecting three wins and turning in three quality starts with at least five innings and allowing less than one run in each of them. The junior's success has lowered her ERA to 2.89 which is tied for fourth in the conference with teammate Jordyn Conte (Newport, NY/West Canada Valley High School). Murray's eight wins are tied for her career-high which she set in 2022 and her 2.89 ERA is a career-best. The team looks to lean on her arm heading into a big series ahead the looming Empire 8 Conference Tournament. 
 
Scouting Fisher: The Cardinals are 28-4 this season and a perfect 12-0 in E8 play which has secured the one seed and home field advantage in the upcoming Empire 8 Conference Tournament. Fisher also received five votes in the latest NFCA Top 25 Poll and is ranked fourth in the latest NCAA DIII Region III Rankings. The team topped Keuka College 12-0 in its last outing on Saturday, April 27 and will clash with SUNY Cortland on Monday, May 6 before the Empire 8 Conference Tournament. The offense is very balanced with nine qualified hitters hitting at least .299 with Maddie Donlin, Amalia DeMartino, Emily McManus, and Mari Spitz all hitting over .400 with at least 33 hits and 19 RBIs. McManus remains the top power hitter in the conference with an incredible 10 home runs with her 33 RBIs ranking third in the league. In the circle the duo of Cassidy Ormond and Ainsley Evanetski are phenomenal, each holding an ERA under 1.77, with at least 12 wins, 79 innings pitched, and 94 strikeouts.

Up Next: The team will travel to Rochester, NY and clash with second-seeded Alfred University in the Empire 8 Conference Tournament beginning on Thursday, May 9 with the time to be determined.