Chestnut Hill, Mass. – The Boston College softball team (7-12) will play in their final early season tournament at the Hokie Invitational in Salem, Va. The Eagles will face Michigan, Radford, JMU, Bryant and Penn State. The tournament is set to start March 5 at 4 p.m. at the James Moyer Sports Complex.
LAST TIME OUT
The Eagles went 1-2 on the weekend, highlighted by handing the University of North Carolina its first loss of the season. Emma Knight opened the series with a record-breaking performance, blasting a grand slam and a three-run home run to power the offense. In game one, Kelly Colleran not only tossed a complete game in the circle but also recorded her first career hit. In the Eagle’s victory on Sunday, BC out-hit UNC 14-3. Meghan Schouten launched her first home run of the season and seventh of her career, while Kae DePerio turned in a career-high four hits, going 4-for-5 at the plate.
The Eagles also had a midweek matchup at North Carolina A&T where they won 11-2. Maycee Hilt hit her first home run of the season, a grand slam, for her fourth of her career. The team totaled a season high 11 RBI and with 10 runs in the first inning, Boston College recorded its first inning of more than eight runs since 2015.
GOOD KNIGHT
Knight delivered a historic performance over the weekend, highlighted by her grand slam on Friday, the program’s first since 2019. Knight became just the sixth Eagle in program history to hit two home runs in the same game, finishing with a grand slam and a three-run shot. She totaled seven RBI, tying Boston College Hall of Famer Tatiana Cortez for the most RBI in a single game in program history, a mark last reached in 2017. Knight also recorded a hit in each game of the series, posting a .364 batting average and .909 slugging percentage across the weekend.
Wait? How many games?!
Abby Ptak extended her hitting streak to 16 games following the midweek matchup and has recorded a hit in all but one contest this season. DePerio is riding a streak of her own, tallying a hit in 10 consecutive games. Ptak (15), Schouten (13), Knight (11) and DePerio (11) have each reached base safely in double-digit games this year.
A Look at the Leaderboard
Knight leads the Eagles with 17 RBI on the season, highlighted by five multi-RBI performances. Ptak is pacing the team with a .444 batting average, a .651 slugging percentage and 28 hits, a total that ranks among the top 10 in the ACC.
In the circle, Halie Pappion owns the lowest ERA on the staff at 3.18 through four appearances. Colleran leads the pitching staff with 35 strikeouts, while Emily Van Cleef has limited opposing hitters to a team-best .235 batting average against.
The Hokie Invite
This will be the fourth meeting between BC and Michigan, the Wolverines have beaten the Eagles in all three meetings with the last being in 2014. The Wolverines head into the weekend with a 17-5 record. Lauren Putz leads the team in home runs (11), AVG (.473), and OPS (1.781).
The last time the Eagles met JMU was in 2019. BC is 0-2 against the Dukes. JMU has tallied a 9-7 record this season and has won its last two games. The Dukes have six players hitting above .300 and two who have tallied 20+ hits led by Kylee Gleason with 22.
The Eagles will meet Penn State for the second time this season. The Nittany Lions are now 16-4. Allison Oneacre earned Softball America nod coming into March ranked No.1 at third base while Bridget Nemeth was ranked No.24 pitcher.
Bryant is 7-6 on the season. Bryce Clendenin was named the America East Player of the Week after her performance at the Blue Hen Invitational. She tallied a .500 average with five hits, two doubles, and six RBI. Maddy Wachter threw her third complete game of the season in the victory against Delaware. She had a season-high five strikeouts.
Radford heads into the tournament with a 5-11 record with Grace Hogie and Peyton Simmons hitting above .400. BC is 3-0 all time against Radford with their last meeting coming in 2013.
Michigan will play JMU in a midweek matchup before the tournament starts.
UP NEXT
Boston College will travel to South Carolina for a three-game series at Carolina Softball Stadium at Beckham Field beginning March 13 at 6 p.m. All three contests will be broadcast on SEC Network+.
