LOUISVILLE, Ky. – The Bellarmine University softball team opens its longest home stand of the season this weekend, hosting Ball State University, Stonehill College and University of Evansville at Knights Field for a full weekend slate.

The Knights will kick off their 10-game home stand on Friday, March 7 at 10:30 am E.T. against Ball State. Action will resume on Saturday, March 8 at 10:30 am E.T. with a game against Stonehill before the weekend finale on Sunday, March 9 at 3:30 pm E.T. versus Evansville.

Live stats will be available for all games on the Bellarmine softball web page.

Bellarmine (4-7) is coming off a successful weekend at the Make it Happen Games in Madeira Beach, Fl. where the Knights went 3-2, defeating the likes of UAlbany, Bethune-Cookman and Butler. Offensively, Chloe Collins found her groove at the plate, leading Bellarmine with a .400 batting average across the five-game weekend. She tallied her first two extra-base hits of the season with a double and a home run, adding four RBI and two runs. Megan Konermann was second on the team, hitting .385 with a double and two RBI. In the circle, Bellarmine turned in a 1.06 team ERA. Claire Lehmkuhler helped the charge with a 2-0 record, owning an 0.45 ERA and 0.96 WHIP in 15.2 innings of work. She added 12 strikeouts, including a season-high six against Butler. Selena Zuniga also showed her stuff, appearing in three games as a reliever without allowing a run on two hits. She tossed 5.1 innings to earn a win and a save.

Overall, Konermann leads Bellarmine's offense in hitting (.333), home runs (2) and RBI (7), adding a double and four runs. Harlie Bickett ranks second on the team hitting .281 with a team-high four doubles, five stolen bases and nine runs, adding a home run and six RBI. Lehmkuhler leads the pitching staff with two wins and 3.59 ERA in 25.1 innings of work. She has made seven starts on the year and owns 14 strikeouts.

As a team, the Knights .201 with 35 runs, 16 extra-base hits and nine stolen bases. On the rubber, Bellarmine's pitching staff deploys a 3.80 ERA and 1.50 WHIP while allowing opposing hitters a .284 batting average.

Ball State is off to an 8-6 start to its season. The Cardinals are coming off a 7-5 loss to Northern Iowa in the Purple & Gold Challenge last Sunday. Before the loss, they went 1-3 in the MTSU Invitational. Ball State was picked to finish fourth in the MAC in the league's preseason poll. Six Cardinals boast a .300+ batting average, led by McKayla Timmons. Timmons is hitting .455 this season with 15 total hits, a double, a triple, three home runs, 14 RBI, 16 runs and eight stolen bases. Timmons is highly touted in the media, ranked No. 36 on Softball America's Top 100 Preseason List and the No. 8 utility/designated player in the country by D1Softball.com. Behind her, Hayley Urban ranks second on the team, hitting .387 with 12 total hits, two doubles, three home runs, seven RBI and 11 runs. The rest of Ball State's top hitters are Maia Pietrzak (.359), Kara Gunter (.325), Maddie Weaver (.314) and Ella Whitney (.311). As a team, Ball State is hitting .296 with 94 runs, 26 extra-base hits and 24 stolen bases. In the circle, Whitney leads the Cardinals' pitching staff with a 5-1 record, owning a 2.07 ERA and 1.25 WHIP in eight games, seven starts. In 40.2 innings of work, she has turned in six complete games and one shutout and has tallied 18 strikeouts. As a team, Ball State owns a 3.58 ERA and 1.77 WHIP while allowing opponents a .285 batting average. Bellarmine and Ball State have met twice previously with the Cardinals owning a 2-0 advantage in the all-time series. Both prior meetings came in February 2023 at a neutral site event in Murray, KY. In the last meeting, Ball State topped the Knights 14-4.

Stonehill has seen limited action so far this season, entering the weekend with a 3-2 record. The Skyhawks opened their season at the Paladin Invitational February 7-9. Stonehill dropped its season opener to Evansville 13-5 before going on a three-game win streak. In the final game of the weekend, Stonehill fell 8-0 in five innings to UT Martin. The Skyhawks were tabbed to finish sixth in the NEC this season in the conference's preseason poll. Harper Sullivan leads the offense, hitting .429 with six total hits, five RBI and a run. Natalie Bottiglieri follows with a .333 batting average, adding five hits, a double, two RBI and two runs. Chloe Kelly and Shannon Conte are tied for third, hitting .333 while Kelly leads the team with four runs scored. Overall, Stonehill is hitting .275 a team with 21 runs, three extra-base hits and five stolen bases. On the rubber, Alex Sciarretto leads with a 2.86 ERA, adding a 1.77 WHIP in two games, one start. She shares the team lead with one win. As a team, the Skyhawks own a 6.15 ERA and 1.73 WHIP and are allowing opponents to hit .298 against them. This weekend's meeting will be the first between the Knights and Skyhawks.

Evansville has played the most games of anyone coming to Knights Field this weekend, owning a 10-8 record to start the year. Last week, the Purple Aces played in a five-game tournament at WKU, opening with a 7-5 win over No. 24 Kentucky. Overall, Evansville ended the week 3-2, falling to UK in round two 8-0 in six innings. The win over the Wildcats was Evansville's first ranked win since 2007. Evansville's offense features six players hitting above .300 and are led by a pair hitting over .400 this season. Kynadee Warned leads the team hitting .419 with 13 total hits, a double, two RBI, eight runs and five stolen bases. Niki Bode is second on the team, hitting .412 with 14 hits, a home run, seven RBI and eight runs. Morgan Adams leads the Purple Aces with eight home runs this season, adding 17 RBI and a double while hitting .295. Taylor Howe ranks fifth on the team with a .321 batting average but leads the team with 18 RBI and six doubles, adding four home runs and 13 runs. As a team, Evansville is hitting .312 with 112 runs, 46 extra-base hits and 17 stolen bases. Elle Jarret leads the Purple Aces pitching staff with a 1.66 ERA. She owns a 3-0 record in eight appearances, three starts, and has turned in a complete game and a shutout in 25.1 innings of work with 10 strikeouts. Overall, Evansville features a 3.28 ERA and allows a .256 opponent batting average. Bellarmine and Evansville have met six times previously with the Purple Aces owning a 4-2 advantage in the all-time series. The Knights and Purple Aces met three times last season with Evansville winning the last meeting 17-7 and Bellarmine taking the first 14-3. This weekend's game will be the sixth in Louisville.

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