Nittany Lions Continue Season-Opening Travels at Houston Invitational
Penn State carries 4-1 record into five-game weekend at tournament hosted by Houston, HCU
HOUSTON – Penn State softball looks to continue its impressive start to the 2026 season the weekend of Friday through Sunday, February 13 through 15, as the Nittany Lions travel to the Lone Star State to take part in the Houston Invitational.
PSU will play a pair of games Friday against Incarnate Word and Houston at 2 p.m. and 7 p.m. (ET) respectively, from Cougar Softball Stadium on the campus of the University of Houston. Then, the Blue & White travel across town to Husky Field and the Houston Christian University campus to battle Lafayette and HCU at 1 p.m. and 3:30 p.m. (ET), respectively. Action concludes Sunday with the Battle of the Keystone State against Pittsburgh back at Cougar Softball Stadium on the UH campus, with play to begin at 1 p.m. (ET).
Follow the Action
Penn State’s scheduled matchup against Houston on Friday evening will stream live to a worldwide audience of authenticated subscribers via ESPN+ and the ESPN app. Fans are invited to follow along with Friday evening’s coverage, with Matt Pedersen and Shae Sloan calling the action from the Cougar Softball Stadium press box, and Kendra Sheehan reporting from the sidelines. Fans are encouraged to follow along with the Penn State softball social media channels for live updates against Incarnate Word, Lafayette, Houston Christian and Pittsburgh. Live stats for all five games will be available at via the Penn State StatBroadcast hub, or by visiting the links on the Penn State softball schedule webpage. All games hosted by the University of Houston are ticketed, with links to purchase tickets available via the PSU softball schedule page. Games hosted by HCU are free to the public.
QUICK HITS
The Blue & White return to work following a productive 4-1 weekend at the NFCA Division I Leadoff Classic presented by MaxBP, with PSU registering a trio of power four conference victories highlighted by extra-inning wins over Missouri and BYU. Penn State’s pitching staff served as a major point of success on opening weekend, with PSU using five different pitchers to help lead the team to its 4-1 start. The Nittany Lion staff published the best ERA in the Big Ten Conference with a 1.63 mark in the statistic, with the quintet of pitchers throwing for no less than five and no more than nine innings individually across all five games. Freshman right-hander Mackenzie Duncan led the way statistically with a 1.00 ERA and 12 strikeouts in just seven innings of effort across two appearances versus Boston College and Auburn. Offensively, the Blue & White were led by breakout performances from a pair of freshman infielders in Kirsten Finarelli and Allison Oneacre, who powered the Blue & White with a combined trio of home runs in addition to team-leading marks in batting average (Finarelli, .368) and OPS (Oneacre, 1.035).
PRESEASON PRAISE
The Blue & White picked up a wide array of preseason accolades in the preseason top-100 player rankings presented by both D1Softball and Softball America. Junior utility Brooke Klosowicz earned the No. 79 ranking nationally per D1 and the No. 92 mark according to Softball America, while junior right-handed pitcher Bridget Nemeth picked up D1’s No. 91 spot. Klosowicz was named the No. 7 DP/Utility by D1 and the No. 10 player at that position by SA, while simultaneously earning the No. 13 nod in the Big Ten Conference from D1Softball. Nemeth ranked No. 15 in the league by D1. Penn State saw a trio of student-athletes named Big Ten Softball Players to Watch by the league office in the preseason, with junior team captains Michela Barbanante, Kaylie Walters and Klosowicz picking up that distinction. Softball America named a quintet of Penn State rookies as Big Ten Conference freshmen to watch in January, with infielder/catcher Kirsten Finarelli, pitcher/infielder Gabby Gradishar, outfielder Breanna Hanik, infielder Kalli Karwowski and left-handed pitcher Brevyn Kellepouris landing those honors.
Penn State vs. UIW
Record | 4-1 | 0-0 B1G
Record | 5-0 | 0-0 SLC
Introducing UIW
ABOUT THE CARDINALS
Led by fifth-year head coach Kimberly Dean, the Incarnate Word Cardinals head into their second weekend of competition following an unblemished 5-0 start to the 2026 campaign at the UIW Invitational. The Cardinals registered two wins apiece over Manhattan and Bradley before wrapping the event with an 8-0 win over Prairie View A&M. Jaisy Caceres leads the team with a .588 average, and Victoria Altamirano built UIW-best marks in home runs (two) and RBI (nine). In the circle, UIW saw Bella Mitchell and Samantha Portillo log identical 1.91 ERAs in a combined 18.1 frames.
STORY OF THE SERIES
Penn State will challenge Incarnate Word for the first time in program history this weekend in Houston.
Penn State at Houston
Record | 4-1 | 0-0 B1G
Record | 4-0 | 0-0 Big 12
Introducing Houston
ABOUT THE COUGARS
Guided by second-year skipper Chrissy Schoonmaker, the Houston Cougars enter their second season as a power conference program and boast a 4-0 mark through opening weekend with two wins apiece over Houston Christian and Fairfield in hand. The host-Cougars are anchored by a pair of impressive .545 hitters in Maddie Hartley and Ariel Redmond, who led the way offensively on opening weekend. Hartley added a pair of home runs last week while Redmond finished tied for the team lead in RBI with five. Nevaeh Brown and Gigi Solis lead the way in the circle, with neither pitcher surrendering an earned run through this point in the 2026 season.
STORY OF THE SERIES
Penn State faces off against Houston for just the second time in program history on Friday, with the Nittany Lions seeking their first-ever win over the Cougars. The Blue & White last met the Cougars on March 11, 2018, in Houston, with UH winning the inaugural matchup by a 3-0 differential.
Penn State vs. Lafayette
Record | 4-1 | 0-0 B1G
2025 Record | 7-31 | 5-13 PATRIOT
Introducing Lafayette
ABOUT THE LEOPARDS
In-state rival Lafayette heads down south to open its 2026 campaign under the direction of head coach Kelliner Croushore. The Leopards finished last season with a 7-31 overall record and logged a 5-13 mark in Patriot League action, with all six of the program’s home runs returning from a season ago in Regan Dillon and Katie Harrington (three apiece). Makayla Lecky returns in the circle after leading Lafayette with 81.2 innings pitched in the 2025 season.
STORY OF THE SERIES
The Nittany Lions face off against Lafayette for just the second time in school history this Saturday despite the two programs sharing the same home state. Penn State played its inaugural matchup against the Leopards at home in Happy Valley on March 9, 2025, dispatching Lafayette by way of a 13-0 run-rule decision in five innings of play. Then-sophomore Michela Barbanente led the way with a pair of home runs and six RBI to her credit.
Penn State at HCU
Record | 4-1 | 0-0 B1G
Record | 0-4 | 0-0 SLC
Introducing HCU
ABOUT THE HUSKIES
Veteran head coach Mary-Ellen Hall guides Houston Christian into its second weekend of competition in 2026 following an 0-4 start at the Houston Tournament last week. HCU dropped a pair of games each to Houston and Fairfield in the opening action of the campaign. Cara Pitman stands atop the team leaderboard in batting average with a .333 mark, while Jade Moreno (one home run) and Jocelyn Briseno (three RBI) add team-high marks in key offensive stats. Christin Haygood leads the pitching staff with an 8.65 earned run average.
STORY OF THE SERIES
Penn State will challenge Houston Christian for the first time in program history this weekend in Houston.
Penn State vs. Pittsburgh
Record | 4-1 | 0-0 B1G
Record | 3-2 | 0-0 ACC
Introducing Pittsburgh
ABOUT THE PANTHERS
Head Coach Jenny Allard brings Pittsburgh to the Lone Star State following a 3-2 start to the 2026 campaign a week ago at the NFCA Division I Leadoff Classic presented by MaxBP, with the Panthers facing a pair of common opponents with PSU. Pitt defeated Auburn in extra innings and fell by a 3-1 score to Eastern Kentucky on Sunday. Alena Ball leads the way with a .611 average in the batter’s box, while staff ace Kyra Pittman controls things from the circle with a 0.57 ERA. Sunday’s getaway game marks the first of two meetings between PSU and Pitt in 2026.
STORY OF THE SERIES
PSU’s weekend in the Lone Star State concludes with a Sunday showdown against arch-rival Pittsburgh in the first of two matchups in the 2026 season. Penn State will play Pitt for the 29th time ever, with the Nittany Lions wielding a dominant 19-9 edge in the series highlighted by wins in four of the last five meetings dating to 2019.
Follow the Nittany Lions
Visit GoPSUsports.com for more information on Penn State softball. Fans can keep up to date with the Nittany Lion softball team on Facebook at /pennstatesoftball as well as Instagram and X @PennStateSB.
The 2026 Penn State softball season is presented by Highmark.