St. John's University Athletics
Thursday, May 8
Villanova, Pa. (Villanova Softball Complex)
12 p.m.
St. John's University
vs
Creighton
Top-Seeded St. John’s to Begin BIG EAST Tournament with Fourth-Seeded Creighton
5/7/2025 3:16:00 PM | Softball
The top-seeded Red Storm and fourth-seeded Blue Jays will battle at noon on Thursday
VILLANOVA, Pa. – The top-seeded St. John's softball team is set to begin its 15th BIG EAST Tournament when it takes on fourth-seeded Creighton in the second round at noon on Thursday in Villanova, Pa.
The BIG EAST Championship presented by JEEP action will be streamed on FloSports with Matt Janus and Nick Mantegna on the call. Live Stats will be available on RedStormSports.com.
After winning its fourth BIG EAST Regular Season Title last weekend at UConn, the Red Storm begins play on the second day of the tournament following a first-round bye. The Blue Jays took down fifth-seeded Butler, 6-3, in the opening round earlier today, advancing in the winner's bracket.
St. John's has had a historic season, finishing the regular season with a 39-15-1 record and a 19-5 mark in BIG EAST play. The 39 overall wins and 19 victories in conference play signify all-time highs for the program.
Second-year Head Coach Michelle DePolo and her staff were recognized as BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year following the squad's tremendous regular season campaign. In her two years, DePolo has totaled 70 wins and has led the Johnnies to their first back-to-back 30-win seasons in program history.
The Red Storm are coming off a thrilling series at UConn that decided the BIG EAST Regular Season Title. After falling in the opening contest 3-0, St. John's rallied to win the middle game 4-3 before an extra-inning 6-5 victory in the series finale to clinch the title. Melanie Santos provided one of the biggest hits all season with a grand slam in the fourth inning to open the scoring on Sunday.
On Tuesday, five St. John's players received All-BIG EAST honors, marking the most since 2019, when seven athletes were recognized by the conference.
Ana Serafinko was tabbed BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year and named to the conference's first team after a record-breaking regular season. The left-hander set the program's single-season record and ranks second in the country with 276 strikeouts and counting. Against BIG EAST competition, Serafinko racked up 153 punchouts to set a new conference record during the regular season.
Fellow pitcher Loreley Francia joined Serafinko on the All-BIG EAST First-Team as the two have helped lead the St. John's pitching staff to rank first in NCAA DI with 492 team strikeouts this season. The Spring, Texas product has maintained a team-low 1.81 ERA and punched out 187 batters to place 16th nationally in the category.
St. John's offensive and defensive leader, London Jarrard, was recognized as BIG EAST Co-Defensive Player of the Year and earned a second-team selection on Tuesday. The shortstop has filled the position in all 55 games this year and held a perfect fielding percentage in conference play. From the dish, Jarrard has led the Johnnies with a .415 batting average, 12 doubles, 13 home runs and 57 RBIs.
Jess Bianco and freshman Madison Konopka rounded out the All-BIG EAST selection with a pair of second-team honors. Bianco has been a catalyst for the Red Storm offense as she set the single-season program record with 53 runs scored and is the career leader in stolen bases with 96. Konopka has started every game of her rookie campaign at third base and impressively batted .317 during conference play.
Fourth-seeded Creighton enters Thursday with a 28-23 record and finished the BIG EAST regular season with a 15-9 mark after sweeping Seton Hall in the final weekend. Earlier today, the Blue Jays opened the tournament by taking down fifth-seeded Butler, 6-3, to earn a spot in the winner's bracket on Thursday.
Sydney Potter and Sydra Seville highlight the Creighton batting order after the duo picked up a pair of ALL-BIG EAST First Team selections. Potter notched 15 home runs and 58 RBIs, while Seville led the Blue Jays with a .389 batting average.
St. John's and Creighton battled in their regular-season series two weeks ago, with the Red Storm taking two of three games from the Blue Jays in Omaha. The Johnnies pulled off a 13-inning 1-0 victory in the series opener before falling in game two 6-4. In the rubber match, St. John's edged Creighton by a score of 5-4 to take home the series.
In the BIG EAST Tournament, the two programs have squared off twice, with Creighton taking both matchups. Last year, the two programs met on the third day of the tournament as the Blue Jays ended the Red Storm's season with a 2-1 triumph.
Dependent on the result of tomorrow's contest, St. John's will continue to play at the BIG EAST Championships presented by JEEP at either noon or 3 p.m. ET on Friday.
The BIG EAST Championship presented by JEEP action will be streamed on FloSports with Matt Janus and Nick Mantegna on the call. Live Stats will be available on RedStormSports.com.
After winning its fourth BIG EAST Regular Season Title last weekend at UConn, the Red Storm begins play on the second day of the tournament following a first-round bye. The Blue Jays took down fifth-seeded Butler, 6-3, in the opening round earlier today, advancing in the winner's bracket.
St. John's has had a historic season, finishing the regular season with a 39-15-1 record and a 19-5 mark in BIG EAST play. The 39 overall wins and 19 victories in conference play signify all-time highs for the program.
Second-year Head Coach Michelle DePolo and her staff were recognized as BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year following the squad's tremendous regular season campaign. In her two years, DePolo has totaled 70 wins and has led the Johnnies to their first back-to-back 30-win seasons in program history.
The Red Storm are coming off a thrilling series at UConn that decided the BIG EAST Regular Season Title. After falling in the opening contest 3-0, St. John's rallied to win the middle game 4-3 before an extra-inning 6-5 victory in the series finale to clinch the title. Melanie Santos provided one of the biggest hits all season with a grand slam in the fourth inning to open the scoring on Sunday.
On Tuesday, five St. John's players received All-BIG EAST honors, marking the most since 2019, when seven athletes were recognized by the conference.
Ana Serafinko was tabbed BIG EAST Pitcher of the Year and named to the conference's first team after a record-breaking regular season. The left-hander set the program's single-season record and ranks second in the country with 276 strikeouts and counting. Against BIG EAST competition, Serafinko racked up 153 punchouts to set a new conference record during the regular season.
Fellow pitcher Loreley Francia joined Serafinko on the All-BIG EAST First-Team as the two have helped lead the St. John's pitching staff to rank first in NCAA DI with 492 team strikeouts this season. The Spring, Texas product has maintained a team-low 1.81 ERA and punched out 187 batters to place 16th nationally in the category.
St. John's offensive and defensive leader, London Jarrard, was recognized as BIG EAST Co-Defensive Player of the Year and earned a second-team selection on Tuesday. The shortstop has filled the position in all 55 games this year and held a perfect fielding percentage in conference play. From the dish, Jarrard has led the Johnnies with a .415 batting average, 12 doubles, 13 home runs and 57 RBIs.
Jess Bianco and freshman Madison Konopka rounded out the All-BIG EAST selection with a pair of second-team honors. Bianco has been a catalyst for the Red Storm offense as she set the single-season program record with 53 runs scored and is the career leader in stolen bases with 96. Konopka has started every game of her rookie campaign at third base and impressively batted .317 during conference play.
Fourth-seeded Creighton enters Thursday with a 28-23 record and finished the BIG EAST regular season with a 15-9 mark after sweeping Seton Hall in the final weekend. Earlier today, the Blue Jays opened the tournament by taking down fifth-seeded Butler, 6-3, to earn a spot in the winner's bracket on Thursday.
Sydney Potter and Sydra Seville highlight the Creighton batting order after the duo picked up a pair of ALL-BIG EAST First Team selections. Potter notched 15 home runs and 58 RBIs, while Seville led the Blue Jays with a .389 batting average.
St. John's and Creighton battled in their regular-season series two weeks ago, with the Red Storm taking two of three games from the Blue Jays in Omaha. The Johnnies pulled off a 13-inning 1-0 victory in the series opener before falling in game two 6-4. In the rubber match, St. John's edged Creighton by a score of 5-4 to take home the series.
In the BIG EAST Tournament, the two programs have squared off twice, with Creighton taking both matchups. Last year, the two programs met on the third day of the tournament as the Blue Jays ended the Red Storm's season with a 2-1 triumph.
Dependent on the result of tomorrow's contest, St. John's will continue to play at the BIG EAST Championships presented by JEEP at either noon or 3 p.m. ET on Friday.
Players Mentioned
SS/OF
/ Softball
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/ Softball
UTIL
/ Softball
MIF
/ Softball
C
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P
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