Spring Break Trip
Tournament: Scotsman Invitational
Teams: Saint Peter's (3-2, 0-0 MAAC), Presbyterian (10-3, 0-0 Big South), Youngstown State (8-5, 0-0 Horizon)
Dates: Saturday, March 5-Sunday, March 6
Location: PC Softball Complex | Clinton, S.C.
Mid-Week Series: vs. South Carolina State (1-10, 0-0 MEAC)
Dates: Monday, March 7-Tuesday, March 8
Location: Bulldogs Softball Complex | Orangeburg, S.C.
First Pitch
- The Saint Peter's University softball team is back in action as they head south for a spring break trip to South Carolina where they will compete with Presbyterian College and Youngstown State University in the Scotsman Invitational.
- After the tournament, the Peacocks will remain in South Carolina and travel to Orangeburg to face off with South Carolina State on Monday and Tuesday for a four-game set.
- The Peacocks head into the weeked with a 3-2 start, the best for the program since 2007 while Presbyterian comes in 10-3 overall, Youngstown State is 8-5 and South Carolina State is 1-10.
Looking Back at the Eastern Shore Classic
- The Peacocks started the 2022 campaign strong with three wins over the weekend in Princess Anne, Maryland.
- After dropping the first two games of the weekend, SPU won three straight contests, defeating UMES 7-3 and 10-4 sandwiched around a 3-0 shutout of Lafayette.
- Sydney Senerchia was absolutely dominant in the circle in the shutout of the Leopards, allowing just one hit while striking out four over 7.0 innings to toss a complete-game shutout for the second time in her career.
- Junior Olyvia Smith was an on-base machine for the Peacocks over the weekend, reaching safely in nearly half of the plate appearances she had and scoring seven runs in just five games.
- Christina Colon was also fantastic for SPU as she allowed just four earned runs over 12.2 innings for a weekend ERA of 2.21. The junior punched out 10 in two games in the circle.
- Sophomore catcher Maiah Skakal was the top run producer for the Peacocks with five RBI on the weekend, three of which came in the final game against UMES. Skakal recorded a hit in each of the final four games and is the lone SPU player to produce multiple extra base hits.
Returning Talent Around the Diamond
- SPU returns a wealth of talent to the 2022 squad from last season including nine position players who saw action in at least 20 games a season ago.
- Brandi Feeney highlights the returning talent as she enters her junior year with the Peacocks. Last season, Feeney hit a team-high .321 and also led the team with 14 RBI, two homers, four doubles and 13 runs scored.
- Junior Olyvia Smith is also back for her third season in an SPU uniform after joining Feeney hitting above .300 with a .301 average in 2021. Also a strong option with her speed, Smith was tied for the team lead with five stolen bases in just six attempts last season.
- Seniors Katie Sciglimpaglia and Anja Solveig Kane also return to the roster in 2022 after being the lone two Peacocks to start all 30 games on the year. In total, the duo has started 187 games in their careers.
- Juniors Sophie Wilson and Cara McNulty and sophomore Maiah Skakal are all back for another season as well for SPU. Wilson returns after hitting .290 a season ago while also sitting second on the team with a .419 slugging percentage and a .781 OPS.
- McNulty and Skakal, meanwhile, were staples in the lineup combining for six doubles, a triple, a home run and 13 RBI in 2021.
In the Circle
- The Peacocks return every pitcher from last year's team including Senerchia who finished last season with a team-best 4.27 ERA.
- Senerchia had a 1.48 WHIP across 57.1 innings in the circle and led the team in strikeouts, IP and opponents' batting average last season.
- Junior Taylor Rondon is back after her 2021 season where she was second on the team with a 4.98 ERA in 11 appearances.
- Also returning is junior Kristen Brennan who was tied with Senerchia for the most appearances in the circle last season. Brennan was second on the team with a 1.2 strikeout-to-walk ratio last season.
- Colon was the Peacock who saw the most action in 2021 and is back for another campaign after pitching in 18 games last season. Colon was in the circle and earned the victory for the Peacocks in the 6-5 win over Quinnipiac for one of two total victories a season ago.
New Faces
- Junior college transfers Aubrey Ketcham and Kourtney Ketcham figure to have large roles in the offense for the Peacocks in 2022. The Ketcham sisters combined to steal 30 bases last season and were both selected to the NJCAA All-Region team.
- Last season at Herkimer County Community College, Aubrey Ketcham hit .416 with six doubles, two triples and a home run. She was named the Outstanding Defensive Player at the 2019 NJCAA Division III Championship.
- Kourtney Ketcham, meanwhile, hit .425 for HCCC last season with 13 RBI and 27 runs scored. She had 12 multi-hit games on the year in 25 games and hit safely in 18 of them.
- Freshman Dakota Pitts is expected to figure into the starting rotation both in the circle and on the field. Pitts enters her SPU career as a two-time First Team All-County selection out of Patterson Mill High School in Bel Air, Md.
- Fellow freshmen Kasidy Slusser, Lexi Ross and Nicole Antuna are all also expected to make an impact in their first seasons on the field with SPU.
Up Next
- The Peacocks will head back north and stop in Washington, D.C. along the way as they will take on Howard University Thursday, March 10 at 1:00 and 3:00 p.m.
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