LOWELL, Mass. – After home and America East Conference openers last week, the UMass Lowell softball team (9-14-1, 0-2 AE) is back at it for another week of action. The team will host Merrimack (5-12, 3-3 NEC) for a doubleheader on Wednesday, March 29, as well as Bryant for a three-game set on Saturday, April 1, and Sunday, April 2. 

Wednesday, March 29 
vs. Merrimack (1:00pm EST) Live Stats | Watch
vs. Merrimack (3:00pm EST) Live Stats | Watch  

Saturday, April 1
vs. Bryant (1:00pm EST) Live Stats | Watch
vs. Bryant (3:00pm EST) Live Stats | Watch

Sunday, April 2
vs. Bryant (12:00pm EST) Live Stats | Watch

Team History
Merrimack – All-time record: 8-7 | Last meeting: March 30, 2022 (UML, 2-0)
Bryant – All-time record: 2-4 | Last meeting: April 3, 2019 (UML, 7-6) 
 
Last Time Out
Last week, the River Hawks picked up a Kennedy Cup point in a 3-0 victory against Massachusetts in the home opener. Freshman pitcher Giana LaCedra (Tyngsboro, Mass.) tossed a complete game shutout, allowing six hits and adding seven strikeouts. Junior Morgan Fisher (Glassboro, Mass.) and graduate student Mya Case (Syracuse, N.Y.) each had home runs to help secure the victory. 

Following the game against Massachusetts, the River Hawks traveled to UAlbany for the America East Conference-opening series. Originally, the teams were scheduled to play a three-game set, but the threat of inclement weather took one game off the weekend slate, and the teams played one doubleheader on Sunday, March 26. The Great Danes swept the twin bill, winning game one in extra innings, 7-6, and game two by a score of 8-4.  

Morgan Fisher led the offense throughout the week, finishing 5-for-10 in the team's three games, with a run scored and four RBI. Her four RBI came on a two-run homer and a two-run single. 

Chasing 500 
River Hawks Head Coach Jen Starek is going into this week just two wins shy of 500 for her career. Her head coaching debut came at Mt. Ida, where she tallied 207 wins before heading to Simmons College. She then became the head coach at the University of New Haven where she was at the helm for 15 years, becoming the schools longest-tenured in the school's history. Starek held a record of 418-235-2 (.640) with the Chargers before arriving at UMass Lowell before the 2022 season. If the River Hawks can manage a sweep of Merrimack, she can hit this record as early as Wednesday.     

Emergence of Power
The River Hawks have added the long ball to their bag of tricks as of late. Through the first 12 games of the season, the team had zero home runs, but since March 5, have collected 14 home runs in 14 games, including at least one homer in their last five games. Case leads the way with six home runs during this stretch, while senior Cayla Tulley (Corona, Calif.) collected three, Fisher and junior Ellie Frederick (Sunapee, N.H.) smashed two, and senior Darlene Gutierrez (Colton, Calif.) hit one. The River Hawks still hold the conference-lead in home runs with 15, above UMBC's 13 and Bryant's 10. 

Gone Fishin'
Morgan Fisher has been on fire for the River Hawks' lineup this season. She currently leads the team in batting average (.389), OPS (.969), hits (28), doubles (5) and on-base percentage (.427). She also has at least one hit in 18 of 24 games thus far, and rode an eight-game hitting streak from March 7-March 18. Fisher currently leads the America East in hits, ranks second in RBI and has the third-most total bases (40) behind teammates Case (45) and Tulley (43).  

Scouting the Warriors 
Merrimack concluded the 2022 season with an NEC record of 10-14 (14-28 overall), missing out on the conference tournament. As they look to improve in 2023, they have started the season 5-12 overall with three NEC victories over Sacred Heart (2) and Central Connecticut State (1). Before the season, Merrimack was projected to finish tied for fifth place in the conference in the 2023 Northeast Conference Softball Preseason Poll.

The Warriors return three members of the 2022 Northeast Conference All-Rookie Team in sophomores Nicole Basil, Ellen Hubbard and Sofia Palyan. Basil finished last season starting 27 games and going 9-for-57 at the plate with two runs scored and two RBI. Hubbard found a lot of success as a freshman in 2022 for the Warriors, appearing in all 42 games and starting 41. She led the team in batting average (.362), OPS (.869), hits (46), total bases (59) and slugging percentage (465) while ranking second in RBI (22) and on-base percentage (.404). Palyan contributed as both an offensive weapon and a pitcher in 2022. Offensively, she started 29 of the 36 games she appeared in, with a .203 batting average and 14 hits. She also hit two long balls with seven RBI. In the circle, she only made two appearances and threw 1.2 total innings, allowing five hits and five earned runs with one strikeout.      
 
Scouting the Bulldogs
Bryant is the new kid on the block in the America East, switching over from the Northeast Conference after the 2022 season. They finished their final season in the NEC with a 15-27 overall record and conference record of 13-11, missing out on the NEC Tournament. As a member of the America East Conference in 2023, the Bulldogs are off to a 7-13 start and dropped their first two conference games to UMBC. Before the season, they were ranked tied for fifth in the conference in the 2023 America East Softball Preseason Poll with Maine. 

The Bulldogs will be returning one player that received NEC recognition last season in senior pitcher Kylie Kenney. Last season, the Jamison, Pa. native appeared in 12 games, starting 10, and tossing 48.2 innings. She earned a record of 5-6 with a 4.46 ERA and five complete games. Kenney also averaged 7.19 strikeouts per seven innings on her way to being named a member of the 2022 Northeast Conference Softball All-Conference Second Team.