DURHAM, N.C. – The 2019 Penn State softball team, under the direction of sixth-year head coach Amanda Lehotak, will make its third-straight appearance in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge in Durham, N.C., Feb. 15-17. The Nittany Lions will face ACC foes Syracuse and host Duke twice each.
GAME INFORMATION
- Game 6: Penn State vs. Syracuse - Friday, Feb. 15, 12 p.m. | WATCH | LIVE STATS
- Game 7: Penn State at Duke - Friday, Feb. 15, 7:30 p.m. | WATCH | LIVE STATS
- Game 8: Penn State vs. Syracuse - Saturday, Feb. 16, 3 p.m. | WATCH | LIVE STATS
- Game 9: Penn State at Duke - Sunday, Feb. 17, 12:30 p.m. | WATCH | LIVE STATS
*All games played at Duke Softball Stadium in Durham, North Carolina.
SCHEDULE CHANGE
- Due to expected inclement weather in the Durham area this weekend, Duke softball announced changes to the ACC/Big Ten Challenge schedule.
- Penn State will now play two games Friday, one Saturday and one Sunday. The Nittany Lions will face Syracuse on Friday, Feb. 15 at noon instead of the originally scheduled time of 2:30 pm. Also on Friday the team will face Duke at 7:30 p.m. instead of the schedule game on Saturday evening.
- On Saturday, Feb. 16, Penn State will play Syracuse at 3 p.m. instead of at noon. Sunday, Feb. 17's game against Duke is still scheduled for 12:30 p.m. Playing times for Saturday and Sunday could still be adjusted due to weather.
SERIES HISTORY
- Penn State has met up on the field with both ACC opponents.
- Against Syracuse, the Nittany Lions hold the 7-3 advantage but have not seen the Orange since the 2010 season in which Syracuse won both games.
- Duke is in just its second year as a program, but holds the 2-0 all-time program record over Penn State from last year's Big Ten/ACC Challenge.
- Last season Duke won both games in Durham, 7-5 and 7-2.
SCOUTING THE OPPONENTS
- The Orange are 1-3 to start the year, with two of the three losses being to fourth-ranked Oklahoma.
- Senior Bryce Holmgren leads Syracuse with a .286 batting average, recording two hits and two RBI in the first four games.
- The Blue Devils went 3-2 on opening weekend, with both losses against top-10 teams.
- Jameson Kavel leads Duke with a .462 batting average. The sophomore had six hits in 13 at-bats in the first five games, including a double and a RBI. She is also 3-for-3 in stolen base attempts.
- Freshman Kristina Foreman holds a .417 batting average with five hits, including one double, one triple, one home run and 3 RBI.
ACC/B1G CHALLENGE HISTORY
- The annual event, which debuted in 2016, features 10 teams from each conference with eight of those schools playing four games each at four campus sites, while two more compete in the inaugural ESPN St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational in Clearwater, Fla., all during a four-day period from Feb. 14-17, 2019.
- Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State, Nebraska, Northwestern, Penn State and Wisconsin will represent the Big Ten.
- Duke, Georgia Tech, North Carolina and N.C. State will serve as host sites with the other ACC participants being Boston College, Louisville, Pittsburgh and Syracuse.
- The ESPN St. Pete/Clearwater Elite Invitational will feature Big Ten members Minnesota and Ohio State as well as ACC schools Florida State and Notre Dame.
- Penn State is making its third-straight appearance in the Challenge and holds a 4-4 record in games.
FRESH LINEUP
- All eight freshmen made their collegiate debuts at the FGCU Kickoff Classic in Fort Myers, Fla. on opening weekend.
- In the circle, lefty Bailey Parshall picked up her first career win against Ball State on Feb. 8, striking out eight Cardinals batters.
- In the batters' box, catcher Ally Kurland led her classmates with three hits for a .250 batting average on opening weekend.
- Kurland also led the team in fielding, totaling 31 putouts and four assists.
- Melina Livingston and Anna Deshaies both had two hits and scored two runs for the Nittany Lions.
ROAD WARRIORS
- Penn State will open the 2019 season with 25 straight road games before they play a home contest at Nittany Lion Softball Park and Beard Field.
- The Blue and White participate in five road tournaments to start the season, four of which are in the Sunshine State.
- The first weekend in the Sunshine State features the Nittany Lions in the FGCU Kickoff Classic, Feb. 8-10 in Fort Myers, Fla. The team will face Ball State and Kent State twice and host, Florida Gulf Coast, once.
- From there, the team will make their third-straight appearance in the ACC/Big Ten Challenge, Feb. 15-17 in Durham, N.C. facing Syracuse and Duke twice each.
- Penn State then travels back to Florida for the Knights Classic, Feb. 23-24 in Orlando to face Coastal Carolina, host UCF, Pitt and Louisiana Tech.
- The final trip to Florida includes a 10-day stint during spring break. The team will first play in the Madeira Beach Tournament, March 1-3 against Boston College, Florida International, Detroit Mercy, Florida A&M and Central Michigan. Penn State will then play a mid-week doubleheader against Penn and Villanova on March 6 in Clearwater, Fla. before appearing in the USF Tournament March 8-10 against Holy Cross, South Dakota State, Central Michigan, Saint Joseph's and Toledo.
NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK
- Penn State softball sees 10 newcomers for the 2019 season, including eight freshmen and two transfers.
- The freshmen include Bailey Parshall (Belle Vernon, Pa.), Lilia Crouthamel (Allentown, Pa.), Kylee Lingenfelter (Punxsutawney, Pa.), Melina Livingston (Detroit, Mich.), Anna Deshaies (Kennett Square, Pa.), Claire Swedberg (Lake Villa, Ill.), Chelsea Bisi (Latrobe, Pa.), and Ally Kurland (Burke, Va.).
- The Nittany Lions also added two transfers to the squad in pitcher Hannah Shields (State College, Pa.) from Delaware State and infielder Jade Williams (Fairfax Station, Va.) from Kent State.
FAMILIAR FACES
- In addition to the new faces, Penn State returns 14 letterwinners from the 2018 season, including Second Team All-Big Ten honoree Tori Dubois.
- Dubois (Mt. Vernon, N.H.) is joined by fellow senior classmates Madison Shaffer (New Castle, Pa.), Paige Johnson (Clarksville, Tenn.), Toni Polk (Niagara Falls, N.Y.), and Meghan Williams (Bethlehem, Pa.).
- Additionally, seven starters return to the lineup, including Haley Vallejos (Chandler, Ariz.), Dani Fey (Bangor, Pa.), Delaney Elling (Washington, Pa.), and Christa Wagner (Plainville, Mass.).
THE LEHOTAK FILE
- Head coach Amanda Lehotak enters her sixth year under the helm of Penn State softball.
- Lehotak tallied her 100th win at Penn State in the team's series-opening win over Maryland on March 24 for a 106-165 record with the Nittany Lions.
- Lehotak sits just six wins away from 300 career wins (294-371).
ON DECK
Penn State heads back to the Sunshine State for four games in the Knights Classic, hosted by UCF in Orlando, Fla. The Nittany Lions will face Coastal Carolina and host UCF on Saturday, Feb. 23 and Pitt and Louisiana Tech on Sunday, Feb. 24.