PHILADELPHIA, Pa. – The University of Pennsylvania softball team opens their 2026 season Friday, heading down south for the Lowcountry Classic tournament.
 
Penn (0-0, 0-0 Ivy League) vs. Western Carolina (2-0, 0-0 SoCon)
Friday, Feb. 13 | 10 a.m. | Live Stats
 
Penn (0-0, 0-0 Ivy League) vs. Massachusetts (0-0, 0-0 MAC)
Friday, Feb. 13 | 12:30 p.m. | Live Stats
 
 
Penn vs. Western Carolina Series
* The Quakers enter this game against the Catamounts with an all-time record of 1-1.
 
* The first meeting came in 2007, when the Quakers won 7-6. The second meeting went the way of the Catamounts, when they topped the Quakers 5-4.
 
Penn vs. Massachusetts Series
* This will be the first meeting between Penn and UMass in program history.
 
Quaker Notemeal
* The Quakers return 12 members of the 2025 squad, including batting average leader Gigi Ganje and slugging percentage leader Jade Montgomery. Sophomore Ganje his .302 last season while senior Jade Montgomery led the way in slugging percentage (.495) and homeruns (six).
 
* The Quakers also return their top three pitchers from last season, with Ainsley Pemberton, Kelly Zybura, and Morgan Sullivan accounting for 65 total appearances and 63 strikeouts last season.
 
* Head coach Christie Novatin enters her third season at the helm of the Quakers. She is joined by assistant coaches Kristin Hallam (third season) and Laurin Krings (first season).
 
* The Quakers are joined by a host of fresh faces, with freshmen Jaz Johnson, Alex Holeman, Hannah Graveline, Caroline Putnam, Tannar Keenan, and Sienna Acosta all making their Penn debuts this season.
 
Scouting the Catamounts
* The Catamounts enter this meeting with a record of 2-0. They played host to North Carolina A&T, where they swept a double header 12-4, 16-2.
 
* Last season, the Western Carolina went 22-31, 6-14 in the Southern Conference. The Catamounts finished sixth in their conference, falling to ETSU 12-9 in the first round of the conference tournament.
 
* The Catamounts are led by four Preseason All-Southern Conference honorees, with juniors Lily Bell and Sydney Dirks leading the way on the first team.
 
Scouting the Minutewomen
* UMass enters this game with a record of 0-5. They've fallen to North Florida, Jacksonville, and Colgate to open the year.
 
*Last season, the Minutewomen went 14-33 with a MAC record of 6-16.  
 
* The Minutewomen return a number of key players. Sophomore Brooke Musch returns a .304 batting average and 24 steals from 2025. Junior Riley Kairer hit .300 with 12 RBI's last year as well.