Minutewomen Host Home Openers Against UMass Lowell And Fordham

University of Massachusetts Softball Game Notes & Information
Opponents	UMass Lowell & Fordham
Dates \| Times	vs. UMass Lowell - Wednesday, March 20, 2024 / 3 p.m. vs. Fordham - Friday, March 22, 2024 / 1 p.m. vs. Fordham - Friday, March 22, 2024 / 3:30 p.m. vs. Fordham - Sunday, March 24, 2024 / 4 p.m.
Location	Amherst, Mass. (Sortino Field)
Live Stats	Live Stats
Schedule/Results	UMass Softball Schedule
Twitter	@UMassSoftball
Instagram	UMass Softball
Facebook	UMass S oftball

AMHERST, Mass. - UMass opens play at Sortino Field facing UMass Lowell in a midweek matchup on Wednesday, March 20 before hosting Fordham for a three-game series from March 22-24. Links and live updates can be found at umassathletics.com and @umasssoftball on X (Twitter). **Due to local temperatures Sunday's game against Fordham will now feature a 4 p.m. first pitch at Sortino Field.**

Last Time Out:
The Minutewomen come into the week after opening Atlantic 10 play against Saint Louis, going 1-2 across three games in Missouri. Massachusetts dropped both games in the Saturday doubleheader, before capping the series with a 5-4 victory on Sunday. Junior Julianne Bolton started two games on the weekend, earning her fourth win of the season while combining for six strikeouts. Junior Catcher Lydia Castro provided the highlight of the weekend offensively, blasting a grand slam on Sunday to help lift the Minutewomen to victory. The grand slam marks the first of the season for Massachusetts and first of Castro's career. Senior Bella Pantoja continues to pace UMass at the plate, leading the team in batting average (.299), slugging percentage (.403) and hits (20).

2023 Rewind:
Massachusetts comes into 2024 after earning a 16-34 record a season ago. The Minutewomen return 13 players from the 2023 campaign including eight who played in over 30 games. At the plate, Massachusetts brings back Chloe Whitter who led the team in batting average (.315) and senior Bella Pantoja who paced the Minutemen in home runs (3) and runs batted in (24). On the rubber, Julianne Bolton comes back to Sortino Field after leading the pitching staff in innings pitched (112.0) and appearances (27.0).

Scouting The Field:

UMass Lowell: The River Hawks enter the midweek matchup after dropping three games to Mount St. Mary's in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Sophomore Giana Lacedra pitched 4.1 innings across two extra innings games, allowing a combined nine hits and only three earned runs. Senior Lea White leads the River Hawk offense, ranking no. 1 on the roster in batting average (.333), hits (20), and RBIs (10).

Fordham: The Rams come into Amherst after claiming a series win over Rhode Island, claiming a pair of victories on Atlantic 10 opening weekend. Graduate Student Devon Miller combined for 14.0 innings of scoreless pitching and a pair of wins across the two starts, giving up just three hits in Fordham's Sunday afternoon matchup. Catcher Sydney Wells leads the Rams at the plate, sitting a top the roster in batting average (.301), home runs (6) and RBIs (24).

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Minutewomen Host Home Openers Against UMass Lowell And Fordham

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Players Mentioned

Julianne Bolton

Lydia Castro

Bella Pantoja

Scoreboard

University of Massachusets Athletics