GAMES 25-27
Kent State (8-19) vs. RMU (10-14)
Saturday, April 1, 2023 (DH) • 1:00 p.m.­
Sunday, April 2, 2023 • Noon­
North Athletic Complex • Moon Township, Pa.
 
Cracker Jack & Sunflower Seeds (Dubble Bubble, Too)
 
- The RMU softball team opens a seven-game homestand at the North Athletic Complex with a three-game series against Kent State in non-conference action. The Colonials and Golden Flashes are slated to play a doubleheader Saturday, April 1, before concluding the series Sunday, April 2, with a single game. Anyone for a weather prediction?
 
- The Colonials split a doubleheader @ Green Bay (3/24) in Green Bay, Wisc., posting a 6-0 win in the opener at King Park before falling in the second game, 5-4. The third game of the series scheduled for Saturday, March 25, was canceled due to inclement weather.
 
- Junior Charlotte Grover finished 5-for-7 at the plate in the two games against the Phoenix with two runs and five RBI. In a 6-0 triumph Grover finished 3-for-3 with a run and four RBI, breaking the game open in the top of the seventh with a double with the bases loaded that cleared the bases.
 
- Fifth-year Dana Vatakis notched her second consecutive complete game in a 6-0 victory @ Green Bay (3/24), scattering five hits while issuing one free pass and striking out five. In two games against #HLSB foes in 2023, Vatakis has yet to allow a run, striking out nine in 14 innings and yielding just one walk.
 
- The Colonials opened both the home portion of their 2023 schedule as well as their Horizon League slate by splitting a doubleheader with Detroit Mercy (3/16) at the North Athletic Complex. RMU earned a 7-0 win in game one before falling, 2-0, in the nightcap. The two programs tried to get the third game of the series in on St. Patrick's Day, but inclement weather suspended the game in the bottom of the second.
 
- The Colonials posted a season-high 10 hits in their 7-0 win over the Titans as each of RMU's nine starters safely reached base. Recording multi-hit efforts were senior Avery Winchell and juniors Charlotte Grover and Catalina Saxen, as each went 2-for-4 at the dish.
 
- Fifth-year Dana Vatakis faced just two batters over the minimum in a 7-0 triumph over UDM, allowing four hits and striking out four. She improved to 3-6 and got a huge boost late from the defense, as the Colonials posted a pair of double plays.
 
- RMU returns five starters from a 2022 squad that finished with an overall record of 31-21 (.596), including a mark of 16-9 (.640) in the Horizon League. The Colonials advanced to the championship game of the 2022 #HLSB Tournament in posting its first 30-win season since 2013.
 
- The Colonials are led by head coach Jexx Varner, who is in his fifth season at the helm of the program. He has posted a record of 88-102 (.463) but since joining the Horizon League RMU has notched an overall record of 66-54 (.550), including a mark of 38-25 (.603) in league play.
 
- In a poll of Horizon League head coaches, the Colonials were picked to finish second in the league in 2023. Oakland was tabbed as the favorite and received eight first-place votes in accruing 77 points, while RMU earned a first-place tally and compiled 68 points.
 
- RMU welcomes Pitt to the North Athletic Complex Tuesday, April 4, for a 3:00 p.m. single game before returning to Horizon League action with a three-game series against Norther Kentucky Friday, April 7, and Saturday, April 8.

KENT STATE LINKS
- Video (ESPN+)
- Live Stats
- 2023 Schedule
- RMU Athletics Gameday App
 
The All-Time Series (Kent State) – The Golden Flashes own a 16-10-1 (.611) advantage in an all-time series that dates back to 2000. The last meeting between the two programs came in 2019, when Kent swept a doubleheader from the Colonials at the Diamond at Dix. The last time RMU hosted the Golden Flashes came in 2016, when RMU swept a doubleheader at the North Athletic Complex (3/30). In the second game, a 14-11 victory for the Colonials, former infielder Olivia Lorusso (2015-18) tied an RMU single-game record for hits (4) and RBI (7). She finished 4-for-4, racking up eight total bases thanks to a pair of singles, a double and a three-run home run.
 
Forward March – Sophomore Anna Resnik extended her streak for consecutive games safely reaching base to 11 after going 1-for-4 in a 6-0 win @ Green Bay (3/24) while drawing a pair of walks in the second game. Resnik leads the Horizon League in times hit by a pitch (5) and also ranks in the top 10 in the circuit in on-base percentage (.392), runs (14) and walks (12).
 
Did You Know? RMU head coach Jexx Varner has penciled in Avery Winchell (1B), Anna Resnik (2B), Charlotte Grover (SS) and Alaina Koutsogiani (3B) as his starting infield in each of RMU's 24 games during the 2023 season. That pushes the streak for consecutive starts for the quartet to 30 games dating back to last season. Grover is RMU's active leader for consecutive starting assignments, as she has started each of RMU's last 86 games at shortstop since April of 2021.
 
Paint The Corners – Fifth-year Dana Vatakis enters RMU's seven-game homestand allowing opponents to hit just .236, which ranks second in the Horizon League to Brittany Baneck (.221) of Green Bay. Even more impressive for Vatakis is that of her 48 strikeouts during the 2023 season, 43.8 percent (21-of-48) of those have seen opponents set down looking. That's the highest rate among pitchers in the Horizon League.
 
Local Flavor – Of the 20 student-athletes that make up the 2023 roster for RMU, half played their prep ball in the Western Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic League (WPIAL). That total includes transfer Courtney Poulich, who spent her freshman season at Liberty in 2022 but claimed both WPIAL and Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association (PIAA) Class AAA championships at Mount Pleasant in 2021. Poulich is one of six student-athletes that played in the WPIAL on RMU's 2023 roster that hail from Westmoreland County.
 
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