St. John’s Downs Loyola-Chicago, 5-1

Sunday, February 16

Tampa, Fla. (USF Softball Stadium)

9 a.m.

St. John's University

Loyola-Chicago

2/16/2025 11:40:00 AM | Softball

Box Score Box Score (PDF)

The Red Storm caps its time at The Fonseca Memorial Tournament in the win column

By: Josh McLaren

TAMPA, Fla. – The St. John's softball team (3-6-1) downed Loyola-Chicago, 5-1, to end its time at The Fonseca Memorial Tournament at USF on Sunday morning.

The Red Storm finished the tournament with two wins after picking up a walk-off victory against Penn State on Friday and today's win against the Ramblers.

Starting pitcher Loreley Francia recorded her first complete game of the 2025 campaign. The Spring, Texas product gave up just one run while punching out seven batters in the full seven innings of work.

Second baseman Natalie Casto cracked the scoreboard for the Johnnies in the third inning, drilling her first home run of the season to left field. The homer marked the third of Casto's career and first since the 2023 season.

London Jarrard recorded an RBI single in the contest, marking her third straight game with a hit. The shortstop now has two RBIs on the year after setting the program's single-season RBI record in 2024.

Cassidy Stouffer and Elanna Lysiak paced the Red Storm lineup with two hits against the Ramblers.

Francia started the game off on fire inside the circle, holding the Ramblers hitless while recording six strikeouts through the first three innings, 0-0.

In the bottom of the third, the Red Storm offense struck as Casto drilled her first home run of the season off to left, 1-0. Lysiak was then hit by a pitch and swiped second to put a runner in scoring position for the Johnnies, but Loyola-Chicago's starter Peyton Pekowski was able to record the next two outs and limit the damage.

The Ramblers threatened to respond in the top of the fourth, putting together a pair of singles to open the frame. Francia worked her way around the threat, retiring the next three batters to keep the score at 1-0 in favor of St. John's.

Stouffer and Anese Thompson recorded a single apiece with one out in the home half of the fourth to put runners on the corners. Stouffer then came across on a wild pitch to extend the Red Storm lead to 2-0.

Francia continued her dominant performance, recording her fifth consecutive scoreless frame while striking out her seventh batter to hold St. John's two-run advantage.

With one out in the bottom of the fifth, Lysiak bunted for a single before Madison Konopka hit a ground-rule double down the left-field line, putting runners on second and third. Jess Bianco then bounced a ball back to the pitcher, and a throwing error allowed both runners to score, 4-0, and Bianco to advance to third. Jarrard then singled to shortstop, plating Bianco and extending the Johnnies' lead to five runs.

Loyola-Chicago found the run column in the top of the sixth when Kayci Rigby hit an RBI single into center field, cutting into St. John's lead, 5-1.

Francia closed out the game for the Red Storm, sitting the Ramblers down 1-2-3 in the top of the seventh to secure the 5-1 victory.

St. John's will be back in action next weekend when it heads to Winthrop's Garnet and Gold Tournament in Rock Hill, S.C., from Feb. 21-23.