Le Moyne (5-18) at UAlbany (9-10)
Info: Wednesday, Mar. 25 | 2:00 P.M. / 4:00 P.M. | Albany, N.Y. | UAlbany Field
Watch: AmericaEast.TV
Live Stats: https://ualbanysports.com/sidearmstats/softball/summary
UAlbany's Links: Schedule | Roster | News

Albany, N.Y. – The Le Moyne College softball team will travel to UAlbany to take on the Great Danes in a non-conference doubleheader this Wednesday, Mar. 25. The Dolphins and Great Danes will play at 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. in the midweek set.

Season Summary:
Le Moyne possesses a 5-18 record overall and a 2-4 mark in NEC play so far in the 2026 season.

The squad opened the season at the Blue Hose Invitational with losses at the hands of Dayton (7-3) and Presbyterian (2-1) on Feb. 6 before coming out on top against Morehead State, 19-16, the following day. They closed out the weekend with a five inning 10-1 loss against Western Michigan on Feb. 8. 

From Feb. 13-14, the Dolphins traveled to compete in the Winthrop Garnet & Gold Tournament, and came away with losses against Robert Morris twice (12-4, 9-1), Winthrop (7-4), and Kent State (6-5).

The following weekend, the team took on Bryant and Delaware twice each at the Blue Hen Invitational and came away with four losses. Bryant took down the 'Phins, 19-11, in six innings in game one and 9-0 in five innings in game two while Delaware came away with 9-3 and 8-0 victories over Le Moyne.

To round out non-conference play, the Dolphins went 2-3 at the Longwood Spring Break Classic from Mar. 6-8. The team fell to Youngstown twice (9-0, 4-3) and the host Lancers (7-1) before finishing out the tournament with a pair of wins over Lafayette, 3-1 and 6-2. 

Le Moyne opened NEC play on Mar. 14 and fell to LIU in three consecutive games, 8-0 (6 inn.), 12-4 (5 inn.), and 5-4 on the road through the weekend.

Most recently, the Dolphins traveled to NEC-newcomer New Haven for a three-game set this past weekend and came away with their first series victory of the year. Le Moyne shutout the Chargers, 9-0, in five innings in game one on Saturday before falling 2-1 in 10 innings in game two and taking the rubber match, 4-3, in eight innings on Sunday.

Stat Leaders:
Through 23 team games, junior outfielder Sydney Nesci (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) is first on the team with an .887 OPS, going 20-65 (.308) at the plate with five doubles, two homeruns, and 11 walks to go along with eight RBI and 14 runs scored. Nesci leads the squad with both a .410 on-base rate and a .477 slugging percentage while starting in all 23 games this season.

Senior infielder Audrey Benderski (Spring Lake Park, Minn./Spring Lake Park) sits just behind Nesci with an .867 OPS, posting a .475 slugging rate and .392 on-base percentage. Benderski is hitting .262 (16-61) with a team-high three homers and 15 RBI, four doubles. She is second on the team with 13 runs scored while working 11 walks. 

Sophomore centerfielder Maddie Martin (Carlisle, Pa. / Cumberland Valley) has gone 20-58 in the box to register a team-best .345 batting average while also starting in every team game. She has tallied two RBI, one walk, 11 runs scored, and a team-leading 10 stolen bases.

Junior DP Arianna Exarchakis (Monroe, N.Y./Monroe-Woodbury) sits just behind Benderski with 10 RBI while walking 10 times this season and adding one home run for a .277/.373/.323 slash line.

In the circle, sophomore Isabella Kwashek (West Deptford, N.J. / West Deptford) leads all Dolphins with a 4.05 ERA in eight starts and another nine relief appearances in 55.1 innings pitched so far this season. She also leads the team in WHIP with a 1.72 mark while registering two complete games, one save, and a 3-6 record.

Series History:
Wednesday's doubleheader will mark the first meeting between Le Moyne and UAlbany in the histories of the two programs. 

The Dolphins and Great Danes were scheduled to play a doubleheader on Apr. 16 last season before it was canceled due to inclement weather in the area.

Newcomers:
The Dolphins have brought in six freshmen this offseason, including utility players Coral Enscoe (Webster, N.Y. / Bishop Kearney) and Adrianna Laraway (Colonie, N.Y. / Colonie), catchers Camryn Shenk (Rome, N.Y. / Camden) and Elizabeth Gleghorn (West Henrietta, N.Y. / Rush-Henrietta), outfielder Kayla Dunkerley (Purcellville, Va. / Loudon Valley), and pitcher Tatum Nessman (Calgary, Alberta / National Sport School).

NEC Outlook:
Le Moyne was selected to finish fifth in the regular season standings in the NEC preseason coaches' poll, after going 7-11 in conference play a year ago. They placed behind favorite LIU, CCSU, FDU, and Wagner while ranking ahead of Saint Francis, Stonehill, Mercyhurst, and New Haven.

2026 NEC Weekly Award Winners & Prime Performers:
Dolphins players have earned two NEC Weekly Awards and eight NEC Prime Performer honors so far this season.

Rookies of the Week:
Tatum Nessman (Feb. 10)
Kayla Dunkerley (Mar. 10)

Prime Performers:
Maddie Martin (Feb. 10)
Shannon Gavigan (Feb. 10)
Sydney Nesci (Feb. 17)
Cianna Benamati (Mar. 3)
Audrey Benderski (Mar. 3, Mar. 10)
Kayla Dunkerley (Mar. 10)
Adrianna Laraway (Mar. 10)

Coach Roman:
Tracey Roman was named the head coach of the Le Moyne softball program on Oct. 7, 2019 after gaining over 20 years of coaching experience as an assistant coach at the University of Massachusetts, head coach for the Baldwinsville Central School District, Cicero Renegades, and Sports Zone organizations, and head coach and recruiting coordinator with the UNY Revolution club program. 

Scouting the Great Danes:
UAlbany has played to a 9-10 record through the conclusion of their non-conference slate and the opening weekend of America East play in head coach Chris Cannata's 32nd season as leader of the program.

The Great Danes opened the 2026 season with a pair tournament weekends from Feb. 13-Mar. 1, going 3-6 with wins over Mercyhurst (6-0), Bowling Green (8-2), and Bellarmine (10-0). Between then and the start of conference play this past weekend, UAlbany went 5-2, splitting a doubleheader against Syracuse (2-1) on Mar. 8, falling to Siena (5-4) on Mar. 11, and sweeping a four-game set against Mount St. Mary's from Mar. 14-15.

Last weekend, UAlbany kicked off AE action with a three-game set at Bryant where they fell in games one and three, 6-3 and 10-2, while taking the middle matchup, 9-3, against the Bulldogs.

Freshman outfielder Katie Parisi leads all qualified hitters with a 1.116 OPS while starting in all 19 team games so far this season. Parisi has registered a team-high .698 slugging percentage with 11 doubles, one triple, and a pair of homeruns while tallying 16 RBI and coming around to score 16 times, as well.

Sophomore pitcher Hayley Wieczerzak leads UAlbany's staff with a 1.29 ERA in seven starts and one relief spot, going 3-1 on the year with three complete games in 43.1 innings of work.

The Great Danes added eight freshmen to their squad after going 20-26 overall and falling in the America East Tournament a season ago.

UAlbany was voted to finish fourth in the America East Preseason Coaches' Poll after going 9-8 in the conference last year.

What's Next:
Le Moyne will host their home-opening weekend with a three-game series against Saint Francis this coming Saturday and Sunday, Mar. 28-29.