Softball Escapes to Miami for FIU Panther Invitational

Friday, February 22

Miami, FL

1:30 PM

Rutgers University

Monmouth

Softball Escapes to Miami for FIU Panther Invitational

Feb 20 | Softball

Game Notes Live Stats Live Audio

Scarlet Knights set for five games in the Sunshine State opposite Monmouth, Columbia and host Florida International.

MIAMI, Fla. (Feb. 20, 2019) - Rutgers softball heads to The Magic City for the FIU Panther Invitational from Friday through Sunday, Feb. 22-24 for two games each against Monmouth and host Florida International, and a single contest opposite Columbia.

The Scarlet Knights and Monmouth pick up a longtime rivalry that Rutgers leads 31-8 all-time, but meet the Hawks for the first time since 2013. Rutgers looks to avenge a two-game sweep by Florida International in this same invitational from 2017, while Columbia will see its first action of 2018 in Miami.

THE SLATE \| All Times Eastern
Fri. 2/22	vs. Monmouth	1:30 p.m.
Fri. 2/22	at Florida International	7:15 p.m.
Sat. 2/23	vs. Columbia	11 a.m.
Sat. 2/23	at Florida International	4 p.m.
Sun. 2/24	vs. Monmouth	9 a.m.

FOLLOW LIVE
Live Stats | Friday Live Video (vs. FIU) | Live Audio | Twitter

HEAD-TO-HEAD

KNIGHT NOTES
• RU currently ranks tied for 15th in the nation with 14 home runs.

Rutgers softball led the nation in home runs at the end of opening weekend with 13.
Eight different Scarlet Knights have a hit a home run this season.
Rutgers didn't reach 14 team home runs until its 26th game on March 16 last season.
The five home runs against Army is a school record for a single game and tied for third all-time in Big Ten history for a single game.

• Senior shortstop Jess Hughes is ranked fourth among the NCAA Division I softball active leaders in career walks drawn with 123. She also ranks sixth with 165 career runs scored. The New Jersey native has a career on-base percentage of .471.

• Junior outfielder Anyssa Iliopoulos ranks 12th in the nation with her five doubles, 13th with 15 RBIs and 19th with four home runs. Of her 10 hits this season, all but one of them have gone for extra bases while leading the Big Ten with 27 total bases.

• Rutgers received standout debuts from three freshmen during the first two weeks of the season. Pitcher Corah Price won a game and posted a 1.75 ERA and 0.92 WHIP during opening weekend, catcher Katie Wingert has two home runs and seven RBIs, and second baseman Aleah Marra has a homer, five RBIs and five runs scored through the first 10 games.

• First-year head coach Kristen Butler won her first game at the helm of the Scarlet Knights on Saturday, Feb. 9 against Jacksonville State. A former SEC Player of the Year and record-setting professional softball player in the United States and Japan, Butler has spent the last four seasons turning around the program as head coach at Toledo while earning the 2018 Mid-American Conference Coach of the Year honor.

TRENDING
• Rutgers is 3-1 when scoring 6+ runs.
• Rutgers is 3-3 when scoring first.
• Rutgers is 3-0 when hitting 2+ home runs.
• Rutgers is 3-1 when leading after 5.
• Rutgers is 2-0 in night games.
• Rutgers is 11-for-13 in stolen base attempts.
• Rutgers' five doubles against No. 22/17 Texas A&M were the most in game since hitting five against Lehigh on March 4, 2017.
• After hitting a home run in six straight games to start the season, Rutgers hasn't homered in four consecutive games.
• Jess Hughes' four runs scored against Army was Rutgers' most in a game since April 2017.

SEASON PREVIEWS
Infield | Outfield | Battery

UP NEXT
The Scarlet Knights make a stop at Virginia for a Thursday, Feb. 28 date with the Cavaliers before continuing on to Lynchburg, Virginia for the Liberty Spring Classic from March 1-3 against the host Flames, Robert Morris, Quinnipiac, Sacred Heart and Cleveland State.