LEADING OFF 
Loyola Chicago (3-15, 0-0 A-10) hits the road to Huntington, W. Va. for its final nonconference tournament, Marshall March Madness, where the Ramblers will take on Valparaiso, Marshall and Buffalo between Friday, March 7 and Sunday, March 9.  

WEEKEND SCHEDULE (All times listed in CT) 

• Friday, March 7 vs. Valparaiso - 10 a.m. | at Marshall - 3 p.m. 
• Saturday, March 8 vs. Valparaiso - 10 a.m. | vs. Buffalo - 12:30 p.m. 
• Sunday, March 9 at Marshall - 12:30 p.m.

• Rookie Alli Pawlowicz nailed two homeruns at the Oregon Classic last weekend. The first of her career came against Portland State on Feb. 28 after she crushed an inside-the-park homer then Pawlowicz launched a solo home run to open scoring at Oregon on March 2. 
• Sierra Sass leads the team in batting average (.417) and on-base percentage (.533) while Bella Crimaldi is the team leader in hits (14). 
• In the bullpen, Andie Broniewicz leads with a 5.92 ERA through 39.0 innings pitched while Petyon Pepkowski is the strikeout leader with 41 through 49.2 innings pitched.
• Head coach Alicia Abbott clinched her 100th career win in the Maroon and Gold after Loyola defeated St. John's, 2-1, on Friday, Feb. 14 in walk-off fashion.   
• The Ramblers' 3-15 start to the season is their worst since opening the season 4-11 in 2021.   
• Loyola tabbed No. 3 in the Atlantic 10 Preseason Poll, raking in 84 points, for its second straight season in the league's preseason top three. 

SCOUTING REPORT 
Valparaiso is 7-6 through its first three preconference tournaments this year, picking up at least two wins in each appearance. The Beacons' first victory of the season was also their largest win margin, a 12-1 rout over Green Bay (Feb. 9). Madison Vrastil is the team leader in BA (.489) and leads the team with 13 runs and 23 hits. Inside the circle, Sydney McDermott is 4-2 overall through 33.2 innings pitched with a 2.50 ERA and 37 strikeouts under her belt.  

Marshall, who had a tough nonconference slate like Loyola's, is 6-11 on the season, picking up its first win of the year against Morgan State (Feb. 9) followed by back-to-back wins over College of Charleston (Feb. 14). Diamond Leslie leads the team in batting average (.405), runs (11) and RBI (12) while Jules King is the bullpen leader with a 4.04 ERA and 42 strikeouts through 34.2 innings pitched.  

Buffalo is 2-12 heading into the tournament with its sole two victories coming a from a 6-0 shutout against UNLV (Feb. 8) and a 12-2 rout over North Dakota (Feb. 28). Offensively, Emily Gorman is the team leader with a .429 average, 18 hits and 10 runs. In the circle, starting pitcher Olivia Russ, 1-5, has a 6.28 ERA and 25 strikeouts through 35.2 innings pitched.  

FOLLOW THE ACTION 
Only games against Marshall will be streamed on ESPN+.  Follow softball on Instagram and Twitter/X @RamblersSB for in-game updates.