SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. — Winners of 12 of their last 14 games, the Slippery Rock University softball team will look to defend their top spot in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division by traveling to California (Pa.) 1 p.m. Sunday and welcoming Gannon University to Kasnevich Field 2 p.m. Tuesday.
 
The Rock are looking to improve upon a 16-14 overall record that includes an impressive 10-2 mark in conference play.
 
The Vulcans are entering the weekend at 8-26 overall and 5-9 in the conference.
 
The Golden Knights are set to host Pitt-Johnstown Saturday and IUP Sunday before traveling to The Rock Tuesday. Gannon heads into the weekend at 18-12 overall and 9-5 in league play.
 
MOTHER NATURE IS UNPREDICTABLE
With the unpredictable spring weather in western Pennsylvania, fans are reminded that any time / location / date changes will be posted on rockathletics.com and all of SRU athletics' official social media accounts as information becomes available. Updates regarding potential postponements and rescheduled games will be included below.
 
NO PETS AT KASNEVICH FIELD
Fans are reminded that there are NO PETS allowed at Kasnevich Field or in any SRU Athletics facilities. Please do not bring dogs or any other pets to the game. Unless they are a registered service animal, you will be asked to remove your pet from the facility.
 
WATCH ON YOUR TV - "ROCK ATHLETICS DIGITAL NETWORK" APPS
• Fans can watch Tuesday's games live and on-demand for free on the Rock Athletics Digital Network, created and operated by the SRU athletic communication office.
 
• Search for Rock Athletics Digital Network in the app stores on Amazon Fire TV, Apple TV, Roku and Android TV devices. The streaming web player linked above will also integrate with Chrome Cast devices to allow viewers to cast the game to those devices.
 
GAMES 31-32 of 46
Opponent: California (Pa.)
Date: Sunday – 1 p.m. / 3 p.m.
Location: Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania
Venue: Lilley Field
Live Stats: California Athletic Communication
In-game Updates: X (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: 41-98
Current Streak: W1
Last Played: April 13, 2024 at SRU (Game One: L, 3-2 | Game Two: W, 2-1)
 
TOP ACTIVE SRU CAREER STATS vs. CALIFORNIA (Pa.)
Arielle Brown (.324) – 12-for-37, 1 2B, 10 RBI, 7 runs (12 GP)
Julia Montie (.243) – 9-for-37, 3 2B, 4 RBI, 6 runs (13 GP)
Aubrey Mansfield (.267) – 8-for-30, 2 2B, 2 RBI, 1 run (10 GP)
Naomi Childs (.875) – 7-for-8, 2 runs (8 GP)
Alexsa Hurd (3-2, 1) – 2.45 ERA, 47 strikeouts (40.0 IP)
 
SERIES HISTORY vs. CALIFORNIA (Pa.)
Game one Sunday will mark the 140^th all-time meeting between The Rock and the Vulcans, a series that Cal owns a 98-41 record in. That said, The Rock have won 15 of the teams' last 24 meetings dating to 2016.
 
Every series between SRU and Cal has been a split since Slippery Rock took both games at home in 2019. The Rock dropped game one on the road last year at Cal, 7-4, but rallied late in game two to steal an 8-7 thriller in eight innings. The two teams split later in the year at Kasnevich Field with the Vulcans again taking game one.
 
SRU is 20-54 when playing California on the road but have not been swept in an away doubleheader versus the Vulcans since 2015. The Rock picked up both wins in 2017, blanking the Vulcans 7-0 and 4-0.
 
GAMES 33-34 of 46
Opponent: Gannon
Date: Tuesday – 2 p.m. / 4 p.m.
Location: Slippery Rock, Pennsylvania
Venue: Kasnevich Field
Live Video: Rock Athletics Digital Network
Live Stats: Slippery Rock Athletic Communication
In-game Updates: X (@Rock_Athletics)
All-Time Series: 28-61
Current Streak: W2
Last Played: March 27, 2025 at Gannon (Game One: W, 4-2 | Game Two: W, 5-2)
 
TOP ACTIVE SRU CAREER STATS vs. GANNON
Emma Kennedy (.375) – 9-for-24, 2 2B, 5 RBI, 4 runs (9 GP)
Julia Montie (.353) – 12-for-34, 3 HR, 2 2B, 9 RBI, 5 runs (12 GP)
Alexsa Hurd (.333) – 12-for-36, 1 HR, 4 2B, 4 RBI, 7 runs (12 GP)
Alexsa Hurd (2-3) – 3.41 ERA, 55 strikeouts (37.0 IP)
Alexa Uphold (1-0) 3.50 ERA, 5 strikeouts (4.0 IP)
 
SERIES HISTORY vs. GANNON
The Rock and the Golden Knights will be completing the second half of their 2025 series with Gannon holding a 61-28 all-time lead in the matchup's history.
 
With Slippery Rock having won both road contests March 27 (4-2, 5-2), SRU has the opportunity to win a third consecutive game over GU for the first time since 2011. The Rock have not gone on a winning streak over Gannon of more than three games since winning the first six meetings between the two sides from 1980-90.
 
The Rock are 17-25 when hosting Gannon, last splitting with the Golden Knights in their 2024 home opener. Gannon took game one 1-0 before The Rock cut game two short after six innings with a 10-2 victory. Gannon's Maggie Lenda saw a perfect game broken up in the seventh inning of game one.
 

TEAM COMPARISON (as of April 11)
The Rock	Stat	Cal	Gannon
16-14	Overall Record	8-26	18-12
10-2	Conference Record	5-9	9-5
.273	Batting Avg.	.290	.289
5.1	Runs per Game	4.7	5.6
6.0	Opp. Runs per Game	7.7	3.7
7.7	Hits per Game	7.5	7.5
7.5	Opp. Hits per Game	9.6	6.7
1.5	Errors per Game	1.8	0.8
1.0	HR per Game	0.4	0.6
.434	SLG%	.400	.447
.353	OB%	.371	.376
.949	FLD%	.936	.971
4.39	ERA	7.10	3.12
.277	Opp. Batting Avg.	.348	.266

THE ROCK BY THE NUMBERS (as of April 11)   |   Roster   |   Stats
Overall Record: 16-14
PSAC West Record: 10-2
Home Record: 7-1
Away Record: 7-3
Neutral Record: 2-10
Last Five Games: 4-1
Streak: W2
PSAC West Rank: 1^st of 8
Head Coach: Stacey Rice | 11^th season at SRU (198-242-1)
 
LAST TIME OUT
Slippery Rock remained in the win column with a gritty home sweep of Edinboro, defeating the Fighting Scots 6-4 in game one before Julia Montie cracked an RBI-single into centerfield to deliver the walk-off game-two win, 8-7.
 
Hurd posted a 3-for-7 day with two home runs while claiming the game-one win from the circle with 13 strikeouts in 7.0 innings. Montie also logged a home run, going 4-for-7 with four RBI. Aubrey Mansfield had a wonderful day also batting 4-for-7 with two doubles and an RBI.
 
LEADING THE ROCK
Shaylyn Shall has served primarily as Slippery Rock's designated player in her freshman year, and she leads the team with a .384 batting average (28-for-73). In the 24 games she has appeared in, Shall has racked up a .479 slugging percentage, a .495 on-base rate and 20 RBI with one home run and four doubles.
 
Emma Kennedy (.311) and Julia Nutter (.300) both join Shall in the .300-level, with Nutter boasting a team-leading .625 slugging percentage as well as a .996 OPS. 12 of Nutter's 24 hits on the year have come with an extra base, recording seven home runs and five doubles.
 
Montie (.292) is up to 18 RBI stemming in large part from six home runs and seven doubles, while Hurd (.277) leads The Rock with eight home runs and 26 RBI. Hurd's 101 at-bats on the year are also a team-high.
 
Mansfield (.273) comes into the weekend on an eight-game hitting streak, with five of her last eight games seeing at least two hits. Arielle Brown rounds out SRU's primary batters hitting .236 while riding a .421 on-base percentage. Brown has reached base in 17 straight games, which is tied for eighth all-time.
 
Jessica Goldhardt and Sydney Brown have become common additions to the lineup in conference play as well. Goldhardt is batting .303 on the season. With two home runs and seven RBI, while Brown has upped her batting average to .394 while slugging .515.   
 
THE BULLPEN REPORT
Hurd (10-4, 1) is continuing her phenomenal season, now ranking third in Division II with 11.1 strikeouts per seven innings. Since throwing eight strikeouts in SRU's season-opening nine-inning win over Shippensburg University, Hurd's last 10 complete-game showings have all come with at least 10 strikeouts. She has a 2.88 ERA through 15 starts.
 
Paige Gresgott (2-7) has tossed 48 strikeouts on the season in 15 appearances, entering the weekend with a 6.08 ERA and a WHIP of 2.16. Gresgott is 2-1 in PSAC West competition.
 
Kayla Williams (2-2, 2) has pitched increasingly well in relief in recent weeks. The freshman from Latrobe, Pennsylvania has tossed eight strikeouts in 20.1 innings with a 5.85 ERA. Williams is 1-0 with two saves in PSAC West play, holding conference opponents to a .254 batting average.
 
Mackenzie Borkovich and Alexa Uphold (2-1) have combined for nine strikeouts in 23.2 innings pitched this season as well.
 
THE VERSATILITY OF ALEXSA
Hurd is quickly climbing the ranks as one of the best utility players in Division II softball. She is the only player in NCAA softball, including Divisions I, II and III, who averages more than 0.25 home runs per game and more than 11 strikeouts per seven innings. There are six utility players who average more home runs but do not rank higher in strikeouts:
 
• Maddie Pleasants (Marist) – 0.46 HR/gm – 10.1 Ks/7
• Emilee Boyer (West Texas A&M) – 0.4 HR/gm – 9.3 Ks/7
• Jordyn Bahl (Nebraska) – 0.32 HR/gm – 9.5 Ks/7
• Brianna Copeland (Indiana) – 0.3 HR/gm – 8.2 Ks/7
• Maddi Rutan (Eastern Kentucky) – 0.29 HR/gm – 9.4 Ks/7
• Syerra Rogers (Carson-Newman) – 0.27 HR/gm – 7.8 Ks/7
 
Hurd ranks third in both Division II and in the PSAC in strikeouts per seven, as the conference holds the top three spots nationally:

1. Madelayne Ruffner (Shepherd) – 13.7 Ks/7
2. Sarah Davenport (East Stroudsburg) – 11.6 Ks/7
3. Alexsa Hurd (Slippery Rock) – 11.1 Ks/7
 
In the Division I ranks, only Belmont's Maya Johnson (12.6) and Arizona State's Kenzie Brown (12.1) average more strikeouts per game than Hurd. There are five Division III players who average more than 11.1 strikeouts per seven innings, led by Roanoke's Maggie McCray (13.4).
 
GOING YARD
Slippery Rock has seen 10 different players combine for 29 home runs through 30 games, on track to compete with last year's record-breaking season that included 11 players total 50 home runs.
 
Hurd, Nutter and Montie all rank in the top 10 in the PSAC for home runs per game:
2. Alexsa Hurd (0.27)
3. Julia Nutter (0.26)
8. Julia Montie (0.20)
 
Hurd is one of three players in the conference with at least eight home runs, along with Kutztown's Morgan Slomkowski (10) and East Stroudsburg's Delaney Ridgell (8). Nutter ranks just one spot behind them with seven home runs, while Montie has six.
 
KEEPING THE BROOMS OUT
Slippery Rock has posted four sweeps in six PSAC West doubleheaders this season, drawing splits versus Clarion and IUP. The Rock picked up four sweeps last year in PSAC West play while going 18-13 in conference action.
 
The Rock's sweeps this year have come against Pitt-Johnstown (5-1, 18-14), Gannon (4-2, 5-2), Seton Hill (3-2, 8-3) and Edinboro (6-4, 8-7). If Slippery Rock takes two against Gannon Tuesday, it will mark the first four-game series sweep on the season since going 4-0 against IUP in the 2023 season.
 
TAKING BASES
Arielle Brown, who now holds the program record for career walks, ranks third in the PSAC and 26^th in Division II for drawing 0.72 walks per game. Shall is right behind her at sixth in the conference and 41^st in the nation with 0.67 walks per contest.
 
Brown also ranks eighth in the PSAC with 0.4 stolen bases per game, while Goldhardt's 15 total stolen bases lands her sixth in the league. With an on-base percentage of .495, Shall ranks fifth in the PSAC.
 
AUBREY AS OF RECENT
While Mansfield is batting .273 on the season, she's hitting .364 in PSAC West play, slugging .591 against conference opponents. Mansfield's nine doubles lead the team and place her 11^th in the conference with 0.3 doubles per game.
 
THE ROCK vs. THE PSAC WEST
As a team, Slippery Rock is batting .349 against PSAC West opponents, led by Nutter with a .421 average. Shall is hitting .405 against conference opponents, while Montie (.395), Hurd (378), Goldhardt (.375), Mansfield (.364) and Sydney Brown (.364) are all batting above .300.
 
Nutter, Montie, Goldhardt, Hurd and Shall all boast an OPS of over 1.000 in conference competition, led by Nutter's 1.541. The senior from Columbiana, Ohio is slugging 1.053 in league play while producing an on-base percentage of .488.
 
RICE CLOSING IN ON 200
Slippery Rock head coach Stacey Rice enters the weekend with 198 career wins, just two shy of picking up her 200^th career victory. Rice made history earlier in the year by claiming the all-time wins record with a program-best 185^th win over the University of Sioux Falls.
 
STACKING UP THE W's
Since returning from The Spring Games in Florida, Slippery Rock has won 12 of its last 14 games. The last time Slippery Rock went 12-2 through a 14-game span was in 2023 thanks to a 10-game win streak. Prior to that, The Rock have not won this many games this quickly since rolling to 13 consecutive wins in 2011.
 
RECORD WATCH
• Montie, Arielle Brown and Hurd all moved up in the all-time record books for most games started and played, with Montie leading the way now with 169 appearances, fourth all-time. Head coach Stacey Rice leads the way with 179. Arielle Brown moved up to 168, with Hurd improving to 162. Arielle Brown and Montie also started their 168^th games, tied for fourth. Alexa Guglielmino holds the all-time record with 176.
 
• Hurd became the fourth Rock softball player to reach 500 at-bats all-time, now up to 502. She joins Arielle Brown in that echelon, who reached the milestone last week. Katie Kaiser leads the way with 546.
 
• With three runs against Edinboro, Hurd became the fifth recorded SRU softball player all-time to reach 100 runs scored (102). Stacey Rice leads that all-time record book with 143, while Arielle Brown has made her way up to 118.
 
• Hurd's two home runs in the Edinboro series tied her for second all-time with 35, matching her head coach's career tally. Jessica Kortz holds the school record with 40 homers launched from 2007-10.
 
• Hurd surpassed Stacey Rice for most RBI against Edinboro, now up to 134 – second all-time. Kortz's 153 RBI leads the program.
 
• Hurd's game-one win in the circle against Edinboro was the 33^rd win of her career, tying Brooke Dawson for second. Kelsi Anderson became the first Rock softball player to reach 34 career wins last year, finishing her career with a school-record 39 victories.
 
THE VULCANS BY THE NUMBERS  |   Roster   |   Stats
Overall Record: 8-26
PSAC West Record: 5-9
Home Record: 3-5
Away Record: 4-10
Neutral Record: 1-11
Last Five Games: 2-3
Streak: L2
PSAC West Rank: 5^th of 8
Head Coach: Nikki Yanchak | First season at Cal (8-26, .235)
HC Career Record: 57-117 (.328) – Four seasons
 
CALIFORNIA (Pa.) SCOUTING REPORT
The Vulcans will open up a six-game homestand against Slippery Rock, coming off a pair of five-inning losses at Seton Hill University, 10-2 and 8-0. Prior to being swept by the Griffins, Cal split with IUP, falling 11-1 in five innings before stealing a 7-5 game-two win.
 
Freshman infielder Amarah McCutcheon leads Cal with a .392 batting average and ranks second in the PSAC slugging .703. The Scottdale, Pennsylvania native has produced at least two hits in five of her last eight games and leads the Vulcans with a 1.174 OPS. In conference play, she is slugging .889 with four home runs.
 
Pitching has been Cal's main struggle this season, ranking 268^th of 268 in Division II with 1.69 Ks per seven innings. The Vulcans are also allowing a conference-high 11.6 hits per game. Taylor Babcock (3-6) has generated a 6.96 ERA through 65.1 innings, while Cheyenne Beayon (3-10) has a 5.66 ERA through 64.1 innings pitched.
 
THE GOLDEN KNIGHTS BY THE NUMBERS (As of April 11)  |   Roster   |   Stats
Overall Record: 18-12
PSAC West Record: 9-5
Home Record: 7-3
Away Record: 5-4
Neutral Record: 6-5
Last Five Games: 5-0
Streak: W6
PSAC West Rank: 3^rd of 8
Head Coach: Michelle Wiley | Seventh season at Gannon (155-112, .581)
HC Career Record: Same
 
GANNON SCOUTING REPORT
Since being swept by Slippery Rock March 27, Gannon has earned six consecutive victories, taking two from each Cal, Seton Hill and Clarion. Gannon will look to do that again Saturday when it attempts to earn the complete-season sweep of Pitt-Johnstown. Gannon will also look to avoid the four-game sweep of IUP Sunday.
 
Ford City, Pennsylvania sophomore Emma Smerick leads the GU offense batting .402 and slugging .691, contributing seven triples, which ranks second in Division II. Smerick also leads the PSAC and ranks 11^th in Division II with 0.9 stolen bases per game. Natalia Mallozzi (.384) and Jenna Clontz (.319) round out Gannon's qualified batters above .300.
 
Katie Armstrong (11-3) ranks fourth in the PSAC with 9.4 strikeouts per seven innings, allowing opponents to hit just .209 while totaling a 2.40 ERA and a WHIP of 1.13. Maggie Lenda (5-6, 1) has accumulated a similar 2.83 ERA and 1.51 WHIP throughout a team-high 16 appearances in the circle.
 
LOOKING AHEAD
Slippery Rock will return to the road 2 p.m. April 17 to face Seton Hill in a PSAC West twin bill before returning home the next day to host Clarion 2 p.m. April 18 at Kasnevich Field.





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