Le Moyne (7-20, 4-5 NEC) vs Cornell (11-13, 4-5 Ivy League)
Info: Wednesday, Apr. 1 | 2:00 P.M. / 4:00 P.M. | Ithaca, N.Y. | Niemand-Robison Softball Field
Watch: ESPN+ (2:00PM) | ESPN+ (4PM)
Live Stats: https://cornellbigred.com/sidearmstats/softball/summary
Cornell's Links: Schedule | Roster | News
Ithaca, N.Y. – The Le Moyne College softball team will travel to Cornell for a midweek non-conference doubleheader against the Big Red on Wednesday afternoon. The Dolphins and Big Red will match up at 2:00 p.m. and 4:00 p.m. at the Niemand-Robison Softball Field.
Season Summary:
Le Moyne has played to a 7-20 overall record with a 4-5 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.
The team then traveled to NEC-newcomer New Haven for a three-game set on Mar. 21-22 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.
Most recently, the Dolphins dropped a mid-week non-conference matchup on the road against UAlbany, 10-2, on Wednesday, Mar. 25 before taking two of three against Saint Francis in their home-opening series this past weekend.
Stat Leaders:
Through 27 team games, Senior infielder Audrey Benderski (Spring Lake Park, Minn./Spring Lake Park) leads all 'Phins with a 1.007 OPS, posting a .575 slugging rate and .432 on-base percentage while starting in every contest. Benderski is hitting .315 with a team-high four homers and 19 RBI to go along with five doubles. She is tied for the team-lead with 17 runs scored and 13 walks.
Freshman left fielder Kayla Dunkerley (Purcellville, Va. / Loudon Valley) sits just behind Benderski with a .983 OPS, slashing .327/.393/.545 while starting in 19 games for Le Moyne. Dunkerley has tallied 18 hits with a team-best seven doubles and one home run. She's driven in seven runs and crossed the plate nine times.
Junior right fielder Sydney Nesci (Cicero, N.Y./Cicero-North Syracuse) has gone 24-79 (.304) at the plate with six doubles, three homeruns, and 13 walks while adding 14 RBI and 17 runs scored. Nesci ranks second on the squad with a .400 on-base rate while starting in all 27 games this season.
Sophomore center fielder Maddie Martin (Carlisle, Pa. / Cumberland Valley) has gone 23-70 in the box to register a team-best .329 batting average while also starting in every team game. She has tallied three RBI, two walks, 15 runs scored, and a team-leading 12 stolen bases.
Junior DP Arianna Exarchakis (Monroe, N.Y./Monroe-Woodbury) sits with 13 RBI and has walked 11 times this season, adding one home run for a .289/.379/.329 slash line.
In the circle, sophomore Isabella Kwashek (West Deptford, N.J. / West Deptford) leads all Dolphins with a 3.91 ERA through 10 starts and another 10 relief appearances in 68.0 innings pitched so far this season. She also leads the team in WHIP with a 1.74 mark while registering three complete games, one shutout, one save, and a 4-6 record.
Series History:
Cornell sits with a 5-3 all-time record against Le Moyne as the two programs met eight times between 1994-98.
Wednesday's doubleheader will mark the teams' first matchups in 28 seasons.
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 four NEC Weekly Awards and 12 NEC Prime Performer honors so far this season.
Pitcher of the Week:
Isabella Kwashek (Mar. 24)
Rookies of the Week:
Tatum Nessman (Feb. 10)
Kayla Dunkerley (Mar. 10, Mar. 31)
Prime Performers:
Maddie Martin (Feb. 10)
Shannon Gavigan (Feb. 10)
Sydney Nesci (Feb. 17, Mar. 24)
Cianna Benamati (Mar. 3)
Audrey Benderski (Mar. 3, Mar. 10, Mar. 31)
Kayla Dunkerley (Mar. 10, Mar. 31)
Adrianna Laraway (Mar. 10)
Isabella Kwashek (Mar. 24)
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 Cornell:
The Big Red sit with an 11-13 overall record and a 4-5 mark in Ivy League conference action in 2026. This season marks interim head coach Tara Smith's seventh with the program.
Cornell opened the campaign with a 5-5 record through a pair of early season tournaments hosted by the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga and Towson University from Feb. 20-Mar. 1.
Since then, the Big Red have gone 4-5 through three conference series against Yale, Princeton, and Penn while claiming a pair of non-conference wins over Bucknell and falling to Lehigh and Drexel, as well.
Senior catcher Lauren Holt leads Cornell with a 1.610 OPS through 24 starts, registering a .486 batting average, .596 on-base rate, and a 1.014 slugging percentage (all team-highs). Holt has recorded four doubles, 11 homeruns, and 19 walks while adding 33 RBI and 25 runs scored.
Senior Madalyn Covelli leads all qualified pitchers with a 6.20 ERA through 10 starts and 16 total appearances, going 5-7 with three complete games through 55.1 innings this season.
The Red Flash added six freshmen to their squad this season after going 16-22 overall and missing out on the Ivy League Tournament in 2025.
Cornell was voted to finish seventh in the Ivy League Preseason Coaches' Poll after going 6-15 in the conference last year.
What's Next:
Le Moyne will host FDU in another three-game NEC set at home this coming weekend, Friday and Saturday, Apr. 3-4.
