Softball Faces Holy Cross in Critical Series

LEWISBURG, Pa.- As the softball season draws rapidly to a conclusion, the Bucknell Bison (10-26, 2-10 PL) remain in contention for the fourth and final slot in the Patriot League Tournament. The Holy Cross Crusaders (14-29-1, 2-10 PL) have the same opportunity making the upcoming three-game series a set of elimination games. The Bison will travel to the Outremer of Massachusetts to battle the Crusaders.

The Starting Lineup
What: Patriot League Series against Holy Cross
Where: Freshman Field (Worcester, Mass.)
When: April 22-23

Bucknell Schedule (All Times EST)

Saturday, April 22
12:00 p.m. | at Holy Cross | Live Stats | ESPN+
2:30 p.m. | at Holy Cross | Live Stats | ESPN+

Sunday, April 23
12:00 p.m. | at Holy Cross | Live Stats

The Inside "Herd" on the Bison

In their last game out on Tuesday, the Bison dropped a midweek game, 9-0, to Penn State.
Savannah Jones, Chase Knapp, and Bella Radican all collected a single.
Hunter Vestal retired two batters without yielding a run.
Bucknell, Holy Cross, and Lafayette all are tied for fifth place in the Patriot League with a 2-10 conference record. Bucknell has yet to play Holy Cross or Lafayette but has played all the top four teams in the league. Colgate sits at fourth in the PL at 5-4 but the Raiders still has to play league-leading Boston, Lafayette, and Army.

Overview of the Opposition

Holy Cross is 14-29-1 overall and 2-10 in the Patriot League. They recently dropped a 3-2 decision to Siena. The Crusaders, unlike most eastern teams, has not seen their schedule riddled by cancelations caused by inclement weather. Anna Brait leads the Crusaders with a .351 batting average. The freshman from Florida leads the team with 24 RBIs. The Crusaders mainly use two pitchers in Sophia Roncone and Megan Yurchick who have tossed 249 out of 283 innings for the Worcester program. The weak spot in the Crusaders' armor is the team ERA of 4.58, however, Yurchick hurled an eight-inning shutout against Merrimack.

History with the Foe

The Bucknell have dominated the series with Holy Cross leading 69-39 all-time with the first meeting, a 16-4 win, occurring back in 1991. The Bison lost two out of three games against the Crusaders last season. The win was 8-0 in five innings and the pair of losses were by one run. Coach Caffrey is 4-3 all-time against Holy Cross.

Up Next

The Bison have a week full of nonconference foes when they travel to play Saint Francis University on Tuesday and St. John's on Saturday.