PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The University of Pennsylvania softball team is back in action this weekend, hosting Columbia on Saturday and Sunday.

In 73 matchups all-time, the Quakers hold a 48-25 advantage over the Lions. Last season, Columbia took two-out-of-three in New York, as the Red and Blue are 4-6 against the Lions in their last 10 meetings.

Penn (7-15, 2-4 Ivy League) vs Columbia (9-15, 4-2 Ivy League)
 
Saturday, March 6
Penn Park | Philadelphia, Pa.
vs Columbia – 12:30 & 3:00 p.m.
Game 1: Watch | Live stats
Game 2: Watch | Live stats
 
Sunday, March 7
Penn Park | Philadelphia, Pa.
vs Columbia – 12:30 p.m.
Watch | Live stats
 
 Previewing Penn
The Quakers are coming off a 0-3 performance last week, dropping the series at Princeton over the weekend. During Saturday's twin bill Penn fell 8-4 and 5-1. In the Sunday series finale, the Red and Blue fell short, 6-3.

The Red and Blue were scheduled to play Villanova in a Wednesday matchup at Penn Park but was canceled due to inclement weather. 

Throughout the three-game series against the Tigers, in the game one loss, Delaney Smith capped off her career-high three-hit day with her first collegiate home run in the fifth. In the Sunday series finale, Sammy Fenton singled in the top of the first, scoring Megan Huang to give the Quakers the 1-0 lead. After Princeton added three runs in the bottom of the first to take a 3-1 lead and added another in the second, Katie Reagan brought in two to get the Quakers within one, 4-3. From there, the Tigers scored in the fifth and sixth to ensure the 6-3 win. On the weekend, Brown was 4-for-9 with two runs scored, while Fenton was 4-for-10, scoring a run and knocking one home. Huang added four hits, scored a run, walked four times, and stole two bases.

At the Plate
Senior, and Philadelphia native, Reagan leads the team in batting average (.351), RBI (15), and is tied for first in total bases (27) and is tied for first in triples (2). Senior, Fenton heads the lineup with 16 runs and 21 hits. Reagan and Brown have 20 knocks, while Huang and Smith have 19. Brown leads the team with 10 stolen bases.

As a team the red and blue are batting .281, have compiled 171 hits, have scored 95 runs and have driven in 79. As a collective, the Quakers are slugging .368 and have an on-base percentage of .373, with 34 stolen bases.

Penn and Princeton are currently tied for first in the conference in batting average (.281, as the Red and Blue lead the league with 81 walks. The Quakers are second in the conference in hits, triples, and stolen-bases, third in runs and on-base percentage and fourth in RBI.

In the Circle
In 12 appearances, Rachel Riley has made 10 starts and leads the staff with 52 innings pitched. The junior holds a 5.12 ERA a 1.65 WHIP and has struck out 12. Payton Bean has made nine starts in 11 appearances and has tossed 46 innings. The junior leads the team in ERA (3.80), WHIP (1.39), complete games (3) and strikeouts (27).  As a pitching staff, the Quakers hold a 4.94 ERA, have thrown 144.2 innings and have struck out 58 batters.

Freshman Impact
Rookies Chloe Lesko, Maia Hartley, Dakota Farmer, Ella Utschig, and Huang have made an immediate impact on Penn's lineup. Lesko and Huang have started 19-of-22 games and are tops in several offensive categories. Lesko leads the team in walks (15), home runs (2), on-base percentage (.466), OPS (.940) and is tied for first in slugging percentage (.474) and total bases (27). Huang has 19 hits, 11 RBI, 24 total bases and has stolen six bags. Hartley has seen production on the base-paths as a pinch runner, with six stolen bases, while Farmer has made 12 appearances in her catching role.

Previewing Columbia
The Lions are 9-15, 2-5 on the road and have won their last two contests. Columbia sits at second in the Ivy, and took 2-of-3 from both Princeton and Cornell to start Ivy League play.

In its most recent matchup, Columbia fell in game one, 6-2, but bounced back in games two and three with 10-1 and 12-10 victories over the Big Red. Infielder, Cami Neal was named the Ivy League's most recent Player of the Week, batting .583, slugging 1.167 and adding seven hits, two home runs, four RBI, three runs and 14 total bases.

Payton Shimansky leads the team in batting average (.333), as Jaden Hill tops the team in hits (25), runs (16) and stolen bases (5). Neal holds a team-leading four home runs, .941 OPS and slugging percentage (.559). As a team the Lions are hitting .259, have tallied 148 hits, have scored 85 runs, and have driven in 78.

Raquel Reyes has made 11 starts in 14 appearances in the circle, has thrown a team-leading 51.1 innings, has tossed three complete games and has struck out 20. Sarah Mikami has made seven starts in 11 appearances, has thrown 38 innings with 14 strikeouts. Both Reys and Mikami have four wins. As a staff, the Lions hold a 6.95 ERA, 2.17 WHIP, have thrown 140 combined innings, and have struck out a total of 51.