Newburgh, N.Y. – The Mount Saint Mary College Softball team returns to action with a pair of doubleheaders this week, traveling to #16 Manhattanville on Tuesday before hosting league rival Sarah Lawrence on Thursday. Both sets are scheduled for 3:00 p.m.
 
At A Glance: The Knights begin the week with an 11-15 overall record and a 10-2 mark in Skyline Conference play following a split with the College of Mount Saint Vincent on Saturday afternoon. The Mount has won five of its last seven overall heading into Tuesday's clash with the Valiants.
 
The Mount Saint Mary offensive attack is led by Emily Lang (Westtown, N.Y.) who is hitting .417 on the season in 84 at-bats. She has totaled a team-high 35 hits, including five doubles, a triple and a home run to go along with 14 RBI. Lang holds a .536 slugging percentage on the season and a .457 on-base percentage.
 
Junior Bridget Bennett (Gardiner, N.Y.) is hitting .316 for the Knights with a trio of doubles, while senior Nicolette Moustouka (Seaford, N.Y.) checks in with a .291 batting average and a team-high 15 walks. Classmate Amanda Almodovar (Goshen, N.Y.) has scored a team-high 17 runs for the Knights and is a perfect 14-for-14 in stolen base attempts.
 
Bennett leads the pitching staff thus far, making 11 appearances and posting a 5-3 record. Bennett holds a 2.07 earned run average over 54.0 innings pitched, totaling 45 strikeouts and holding opponents to a .199 batting average.
 
Mount Saint Mary enters the week ranked second in the Skyline Conference standings and ranks seventh in team batting (.265), but third in team pitching (4.04 ERA). Individually, Lang ranks fourth in the league in hits and eighth in on-base percentage, while Almodovar sits second in stolen bases. Bennett ranks second in the league in earned run average and fourth in strikeouts.
 
A Look At The Valiants: Manhattanville finds itself ranked #16 in the NFCA National Poll released on April 10 and holds a 27-2 overall record and a 9-1 mark in the MAC Freedom. The Valiants had a nine game winning streak stopped with a 6-2 game two loss to Misericordia on Saturday.
 
The Valiants feature nine players hitting at least .350 on the season, led by a .451 average from Giovanna Liggett who has scored 22 runs and driven in 24. Isela Casillas leads the team with 31 runs scored and is hitting .413 with Aarin Hartenstein and Evonne Torres tied for the team lead with 26 RBI while hitting .422 and .400, respectively.
 
As a team on offense, Manhattanville in hitting .385 and holds a team OPS of 1.044. The Valiants have slugged 34 home runs and are slugging .596 as a unit while holding a .448 on-base percentage. Manhattanville has drawn 85 walks as a team against only 80 strikeouts and has outscored its opponents thus far 236-56.
 
The pitching staff features a pair of hurlers with an earned run average under 2.00, led by a 1.02 mark from Hartenstein covering 14 appearances. Over 75.1 innings pitched, Hartenstein holds a perfect 13-0 record and is holding opponents to a .220 batting average and has worked two shutouts while striking out 43. Jasmine Feliciano holds a 1.37 ERA and is 4-1 in 17 appearances. She has fanned 22 batters in 30.2 innings of work and holds opponents to a .198 batting average. Alycia Feeney is 10-1 in the season with a team-high 54 strikeouts in 75.0 innings pitched.
 
As a unit, the pitching staff has worked to a 1.77 earned run average and has struck out 119 opponent batters against just 39 walks.
 
Scouting Sarah Lawrence: The Gryphons enter a non-conference set with the College of New Rochelle on Wednesday with a 13-12 overall record and a 4-6 mark against league rivals. Sarah Lawrence is coming off a split with the College of Mount Saint Vincent on Sunday and has six of its last seven overall.
 
Hannah Akin paces the Sarah Lawrence offense with a .463 batting average and a 1.056 OPS, recording 38 hits, nine doubles and 18 RBI. Mikayla Cunningham is hitting .408 in 49 at-bats with Tiffany McBrayer and Alexa Zartman-Ball checking in at .403 and .400, respectively.
 
The Gryphons are hitting .362 as a team through 25 games and hold a .420 team on-base percentage. Sarah Lawrence enters the week outscoring its opponents 162-139.
 
Karissa McAuley holds a 6-4 record in the circle for Sarah Lawrence and has worked a team-high 67.1 innings. She has recorded one shutout and fanned 41 opponent hitters. Bailey Nguyen is 4-4 on the season and has fanned 48 in 42.2 innings of work.
 
As a staff, the Gryphons hold a 4.94 team earned run average and are allowing opponents to hit .343. Sarah Lawrence pitchers have struck out 113 batters thus far and allowed only 25 walks.
 
What's Next: The Mount returns to action after Easter when it closes the regular season against FDU-Florham on April 23 and Farmingdale State on April 27.