ITHACA, N.Y. -- The Cornell softball team will begin an eight-game home stand and will celebrate its seniors as Cornell begins a busy nine-day stretch this week at Niemand*Robison Field. The Big Red will play a doubleheader against Central New York rival Colgate on Tuesday, April 26 at 3 p.m., then hosts Brown with two games on Saturday, April 30 at 12:30 p.m. and a single game on Sunday, May 1 at 12:30 p.m.

Cornell will celebrate its eight seniors in a pregame ceremony before its 12:30 p.m. first pitch on Sunday: Hanna Crist, Ashley Delany, Katie Hale, Allison Kerce, Emily McKinney, Emily Muniz, Olivia Rooney and Ruby Sugayan will be honored for their commitment to Cornell softball and their ability to overcome adversity during their careers.

Cornell posted a 3-2 last weekend and is now 10-9 over its past 19 games with three of the defeats walk-off losses on the road. Olivia Rooney is hitting a robust .346 with six doubles, two home runs and 16 RBI, with Emily McKinney (.298, six doubles, two home runs, 21 RBI) and Lilly Travieso (.289, six doubles, 11 RBI) not far behind. The power comes from Hanna Crist, who is hitting .278 with a 1.013 OPS and seven home runs in 72 at bats. Her seven long balls ranks second in the Ancient Eight. She also paces the team with 17 runs scored and six stolen bases. In the circle, Mai Burd (6-5, 3.49 ERA, 38 strikeouts) and Gabrielle Maday (3-8, 4.12 ERA) have pitched a majority of the team's innings and have limited opponents to a sub-.300 batting averages.

Colgate enters the week with a 17-20 record after being swept at home this past weekend against Boston University to fall to 7-5 in Patriot League action. Head coach Marissa Lamison-Myers' team features Jillian Herbst (.393, nine doubles, two home runs, 16 RBI, 26 runs), an all-league candidate who has started every game. Steph Jacoby has a team-best five home runs and 24 RBI for an offense that is hitting .246 collectively. Bailey Misken is 8-1 2in the circle with 101 strikeouts in 117.2 innings, more than twice any other pitcher on the roster. Kaitlyn Borruso is 7-2 with a pair of saves in 56.0 innings, while Mia Edwards is 2-6 with a two saves and 47 strikeouts in 53.0 innings.

Brown is 13-23 with a 5-13 Ivy record entering a midweek doubleheader at Rhode Island on Tuesday. Elayna Tsiouplis (.293, six doubles, two home runs, 13 RBI) paces the team in batting average and doubles, with Laurel Moody hitting a team-best four home runs. Katie O'Leary is hitting .286 with 15 runs scored, 19 RBI and three home runs while posting a .432 on-base percentage. In the circle, Alexis Guevara (4-5, 2.41 ERA, 52 strikeouts in 61.0 innings) and Lauren Innerst (4-5, 2.79 ERA, 41 strikeouts in 57.2 innings) lead the team in innings, with Erin Elgas (2-3, 2.40 ERA, 20 strikeouts in 49.2 innings) not far behind. The Bears lead the Ivy League in fielding percentage (.967).