Bucknell University Athletics
Softball Set for Three-Game Series at Colgate
4/22/2016 10:16:00 PM | Softball
LEWISBURG, Pa. – The Bucknell softball team looks to solidify its spot as one of the top four teams in the Patriot League standings when it travels to play Colgate for a three-game series this weekend. The Bison and Raiders will play a doubleheader at noon on Saturday and one game at noon on Sunday. All three games can be seen free of charge on the Patriot League Network.
Weather has wreaked havoc on the league schedule this season, so it's difficult to project what each team needs to do to finish in the top four of the standings and qualify for the Patriot League Tournament. Bucknell, however, is the only team to have played all 12 of its scheduled league games to this point and is 7-5 with six games remaining on the slate. That puts the Bison in third place, but teams like Colgate (3-5) and Boston University (2-4) lurk close behind.
Bucknell is coming off a doubleheader split in non-conference play at Saint Francis on Tuesday. The Bison, who are tied with Colgate for the league lead with 12 home runs, used homers from Christina Martinez, her first of the season, and Meghan Kovac, her fifth of the year, to top the Red Flash 9-3 in the first game. They fell 8-1 in the second game and returned to Lewisburg with an overall record of 23-19.
In addition to her five home runs, Kovac has already broken Bucknell's single-season record for doubles with 17. That is two more than anyone else in program history.
Colgate is 8-22 overall after splitting its two games with Syracuse earlier this week. Katie Bushee hit a three-run double in the fourth inning of the Raiders' 3-2 win over The Orange in the second game.
In Patriot League play, Colgate was swept in its three games with Lehigh, split a doubleheader with Army West Point, and took two of three games against Holy Cross.
Bucknell and Colgate met five times last season. The Bison went 4-1 in the season series, including two wins over the Raiders in the Patriot League Tournament. The Bison have won six of the past seven meetings but trail 53-51 in the all-time series.
Led by Amanda Fazio with 116 and Dana Nielsen with 56, the Bucknell pitching staff leads the Patriot League with 204 strikeouts. The Bison will look to add to that total against a Colgate lineup that has struck out more than any other team in the conference with 171.
Following the series with Colgate, Bucknell will close the regular season with a three-game home series against Patriot League favorite Lehigh. The defending champion Mountain Hawks are in first place at 29-10 overall and 8-1 against conference opponents.
