St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Visits Fairleigh Dickinson for Wednesday Tilt
4/25/2017 12:00:00 AM | Softball
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QUEENS, N.Y. -- For the third-straight week, St. John's softball (24-15, 11-4 BIG EAST) will be playing a midweek matchup on the road, as the Red Storm visits Fairleigh Dickinson for a Wednesday afternoon tilt beginning at 3 p.m.
SERIES HISTORY
Dating back to the inaugural matchup in 2003, the Red Storm is 10-2 all-time against Fairleigh Dickinson and 3-0 on the road in New Jersey.
Last season, St. John's blanked the Knights, 8-0, in six innings at Red Storm Field.
LEADING OFF
Last Wednesday, St. John's visited LIU Brooklyn and took a 7-3 decision over the reigning NEC Champions.
The game is being made up from a March 28th contest that was moved due to rain.
After tossing a complete-game shutout against Villanova on Saturday, Madison Morris earned a spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll. In that performance, the sophomore fanned five and allowed only two hits against the league's second ranked offense.
Sophomore Christina Melendez has been showcasing some serious power, smashing four home runs with nine RBIs in her last six games.
Lauren Zick was a tough out last weekend as the junior batted .583 and finished with three RBIs and three runs scored. Zick registered three hit games against LIU Brooklyn on Wednesday and Villanova on Saturday, including three RBIs, two runs and a stole bag in the 10-0 victory.
Over her last eight games, freshman Marissa Rizzi has smashed three home runs and nine RBIs. Sophomore Savannah Warren paces the squad in nonconference play, batting .382 with 16 RBIs and seven runs scored.
Gretchen Bowie and Kaitlin Mattera make up the top-hitting freshman duo in the BIG EAST, combining for 58 RBIs and 36 runs scored with both hitters recording a batting average of .320 or more.
The Johnnies have registered double-digit hit performances 11 of 16 games.
SCOUTING REPORT: Fairleigh Dickinson Knights (4-30, 1-11 NEC)
Fairleigh Dickinson looks to turn around the end of its season as the Knights enter the contest winning two of their last 10 games.
The Knights are led by sophomore third baseman Kellie Natham who holds a team-best .344 batting average. Natham has seven runs, 32 hits, one home run, and 19 RBIs.
Fairleigh Dickinson has two additional players who are batting over .300, freshman Summer Mendoza (.308) and sophomore Reanna Cervantes (.336).
On the mound, freshman right-handed pitcher Erica Johnson leads the Knights capturing all four wins this season. In 68.1 innings pitched, Johnson has registered 38 batters and only allowed seven home runs.
In conference play, the Knights have five players batting over .300, including sophomore outfielder Holly Mercier who leads the team in conference games with a .365 batting average. In 12 conference matchups, Mercier has two runs, eight hits, one double, and three RBI's.
The Fairleigh Dickinson Knights led by second year head coach, KJ Kelley.
