Fitchburg State 2020 Softball Schedule Released
Falcons open 2020 season against Medaille on March 8th
Fitchburg, Mass. – The Fitchburg State softball team's 2020 season has been announced with the Falcons scheduled to play a total of 40 games, including ten games during its annual spring trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C.
The Green and Gold finished last season with an overall record of 26-16 and an 8-6mark within Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC) play, en-route to earning the fourth seed in the 2019 MASCAC Softball post-season tournament.
This season, Fitchburg State is scheduled to play a pair of teams who qualified for the 2019 NCAA DIII Regionals, while also playing nine teams that won at least 20 games last season.
"We are very young team with eleven under classmen on the roster this season. It will depend on how well they adapt to the college game and are able to communicate on the field with an entire new infield going into this season." Said Fitchburg State head coach Merry MacDonald"
"With the incoming group of several newcomers and under classmen to this team, they will learn to play together and have some of the sophomores step up to become leaders." "This year's squad has a veteran core of pitchers returning to the circle with the entire pitching corp returning from last season, while we've added a solid group of freshman into the starting role with lots of potential." MacDonald continued.
Senior McKenzie Lambert (Wilbraham, Mass.) returns as the Falcons top offensive threat, ranking second with a .378 batting average with 16 doubles, four triples, five home runs, 36 RBI and 40 runs scored, while classmate Mikayla Harnios (Attleboro, Mass.) hit a team-leading .397 with nine doubles, 12 RBI and 20 runs scored.
Other impact returners include sophomore Audrey Johnson (Fitchburg, Mass.), who finished with a .372 batting average, including seven doubles, three home runs, 28 RBI, 16 runs scored and six walks, while Harnois returns as the Falcons pitching ace after recording a 2.67 ERA with 13 wins and 46 K's in 105 innings of work.
Junior Taylor Colvin (Lancaster, Mass.) also returns to provide pitching depth in the circle for the Green and Gold after posting a team-best 2.20 ERA with 35 strikeouts over 60.1 innings of work, while senior Emna Campbell (Goffstown, N.H.) adds versatility for the Falcons after hitting .333 with two doubles, nine RBI and six runs scored as well as registering a 3.53 ERA with 21 punch outs, en-route to an overall record of 5-3.
Key incoming players for the Fitchburg State softball team this season include freshmen Sophia Sousa (Dartmouth, Mass.), Abbie Roderick (Woonsocket, R.I.), Casey Medeiros (Swansea, Mass.) and Molly Grass (Rockland, Mass.) to name a few.
The Falcons open their 2019 slate at the Fast Pitch Dreams Spring Classic in Myrtle Beach, S.C. as they take on Medaille and Penn State-Harrisburg (3/8), Albertus Magnus and Lycoming (3/9), St. Joseph (CT) and Rhode Island College (3/11), Penn College and Keystone (3/12) and Franciscan and Iowa Wesleyan (3/13).
Fitchburg State returns up north as it hosts the AMCATS of Anna Maria for a non-conference double header on March 19th before the Green and Gold travel to Regis College for a non-conference matchup (3/22).
The Falcons then hosts the Hawks of Becker College for a non-conference twin bill (3/24) before opening up MASCAC play on March 28th as they visit MCLA for a conference double header. Fitchburg State hits the road as it travels to Lasell University for a non-league twin bill (4/2), while visiting Westfield State on April 4th for a conference double header.
The Green and Gold continue their road trip as they visit Worcester State (4/7) for a MASCAC twin bill before returning to Coolidge Park on April 10th as they host the Vikings of Salem State. Fitchburg State hits the road again as it visits Curry College (4/14) for a pair of non-conference game, while hosting the Wildcats of Bay Path on 4/16.
The Falcons travel to Framingham State on April 18th for a conference double header, while returning home on April 20th as they host the Buccaneers of Massachusetts Maritime Academy for another MASCAC twin bill.
Fitchburg State concluded its non-conference slate on April 21st as they travel to Clark University for a double header before wrapping up its 2020 regular season by hosting the Bears of Bridgewater State (4/25) for a MASCAC twin billing.
The Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Tournament starts on April 29th and runs through the championship game on May 3rd.