Oakland (7-5 / 6-2 Horizon League) vs. RMU (10-8 / 5-5 Horizon League)
Friday, March 26, 2021 • 2:30 p.m.
Saturday, March 27, 2021 • Noon
North Athletic Complex • Moon Township, Pa.
 
Cracker Jack & Sunflower Seeds
 
- The RMU softball team concludes a six-game homestand at the North Athletic Complex with a four-game series against Oakland Friday, March 26, and Saturday, March 27.
 
- The Colonials opened their homestand Tuesday by posting their first doubleheader sweep in Horizon League action. RMU posted a pair of victories in five innings over Cleveland State, earning 10-2 and 14-6 triumphs.
 
- The Colonials have scored 10 or more runs in a game six times on the 2021 campaign, posting a perfect 6-0 mark in those contests. In three seasons under head coach Jexx Varner, RMU is 10-1 when scoring at least 10 runs in a game, including seven consecutive victories.
 
- In the sweep of the Vikings, graduate student Natalie Higgins finished 4-for-6 at the plate with a pair of runs, six RBI, a double and a home run. Higgins, who leads the Horizon League in batting average (.433) and RBI (27), hit her second grand slam of 2021 in RMU's game two win over Cleveland State. The slam gave RMU a 14-6 lead in the bottom of the fourth inning.
 
- Freshman Faith Miller carries a six-game hitting streak into RMU's series with Oakland. During that stretch she is hitting .529 (9-for-17) with eight runs, two RBI and a pair of doubles. Miller has raised her season batting average to .409 (9-for-22).
 
- Fellow RMU rookie Charlotte Grover owns a four-game hitting streak heading into RMU's four-game set with the Golden Grizzlies at the North Athletic Complex. She is hitting .417 (5-for-12) with four runs, six RBI and two of her three dingers on the 2021 season during that span.
 
-  Graduate student Madison Riggle is 2-0 in three appearances from the circle at home, fashioning a 1.11 earned run average (ERA) with 12 strikeouts in 12.2 innings.
 
- RMU enters its series with Oakland this weekend tops in the Horizon League in batting average (.290), on-base percentage (.358) and slugging (.456) as well as runs (111), doubles (37) and RBI (98).

OAKLAND LINKS
- Video (3/26/21) - G1
- Video (3/26/21) - G2
- Video (3/27/21) - G1
- Video (3/27/21) - G2
- Live Stats
- RMU Athletics Gameday App
 
The All-Time Series (Oakland) – The Colonials and Golden Grizzlies have met just once prior to this weekend's four-game series, with RMU coming out on top. As part of the Miami Invitational in Oxford, Ohio, former pitcher Nicole Sleith (2012-15) spun a five-hitter as the Colonials posted a 3-0 victory over Oakland (3/15/15). Sleith struck out eight in the complete-game effort, throwing an even 100 pitches. RMU got all the offense it would need in the top of the third, as an RBI double from Tess Apke drove home Stacey Capp to give the Colonials a 1-0 advantage. Ashley Gerhart added a two-run single in the sixth for a pair of insurance runs.  
 
20/40 – The grand slam for Natalie Higgins in RMU's game two victory over Cleveland State (3/23) marked career home run No. 20 for the graduate student. Higgins is the seventh student-athlete in program history to hit at least 20 dingers and the first since Kristen Gabelt concluded her career in 2016 with 21. Higgins also ripped career double No. 40 in the first game against the Vikings, leaving her one short of the career school record of 41, held by Lauren Dickinson (1998-2001).
 
Home Cooking – As a team heading into this weekend's four-game series with Oakland, RMU is hitting .327 (52-for-159) and has outscored its opponents, 39-16. Five of the six Colonials that have started each of RMU's six home games are hitting .300 or better at home, including Erika Bell (.412), Kristýna Malá (.400), Natalie Higgins (.389), Madison Riggle (.316) and Charlotte Grover (.313).
 
Did You Know? Graduate student Natalie Higgins is hitting .500 (12-for-24) with runners in scoring position, is a perfect 6-for-6 at the dish with a runner on third and less than two outs and is also a perfect 3-for-3 on the season with the bases loaded. Key reasons why she leads the Horizon League in RBI (27) and is on pace to finish the regular season with a whopping 72 driven in. The RMU single-season school record for RBI was set by Kali Byers (2003-06) in 2005 with 51.

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