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The Yale softball team (5–14, 3–3 Ivy) fell 9–1 to Fairfield University (6–14, 0–0 MAAC) on Wednesday after the Bulldogs’ 1–0 lead from a Carmen Muscolina ’24 solo homer in the second inning slipped away.

This weekend, the Bulldogs look to bounce back in their home series against Brown (9–14, 1–5 Ivy) for the third weekend of Ivy League play. Over spring break, the Elis lost the series against Harvard in the team’s first Ivy series since 2019. The next weekend, Yale rebounded by beating Dartmouth in two out of the three games in the series. 

“Ivy play has been very fun so far! There is something special shared by the team when we play our Ivy opponents,” rookie pitcher Maddie Latta ’25 wrote.

Latta earned Ivy League Softball Rookie of the Week last week after hitting four home runs in just five games. She ranks second on the team at the plate with a .302 batting average. Nicole Conway ’23 and Latta have been regulars in the pitching circle for the Elis this season, so they will likely be starting during the Brown series. Latta ranks first amongst the pitchers with a 4.99 ERA with Conway close behind with 5.09.

While in the batter’s box, the Bulldogs are likely to face either Bears first-year Alexis Guevara or senior Lauren Innerst. The two pitchers are tied for most games pitched for Brown this season. Guevara has a 2.46 ERA and Innerst has a 2.55 ERA.

“I really feed off of being able to look at a pitcher and know exactly what you’re going to do, exactly how we both feel and exactly are up,” said catcher Sam Goodcase ’24, who has the highest batting average for Yale at 0.408. “It’s been really awesome getting to know the first year pitchers.”

Brown’s Elayna Tsiouplis has the best batting average for the Bears with 0.288.

Yale and Brown have not competed against each other since April 2019. Yale won that game 4–2. Currently, Yale ranks fifth in the Ivy League, while Brown sits in eighth. 

With only three upperclassmen on the Yale team, senior captain Kortney Ponce ’22 has been leading the team from the dugout due to an ACL injury. Despite not being able to play, Ponce has found success in leading and inspiring a young team.

“Our captain has exceeded our every expectation. We are so fortunate to get to be on this team with her and to get to experience the epitome of a good teammate,” Muscolina, who has scored two home runs in the last four games, said about Ponce. “Despite her injuries and the universe’s attempt to throw obstacles her way, she shows up with the biggest smile and it’s contagious. Her journey, her optimism and her support inspire me to take advantage of every opportunity I am given when playing our sport.”

Yale will play Brown at home this weekend in a double-header on Saturday, April 2 along with a third game on Sunday. The first games of the day both begin at 12:30 p.m. 

Correction, April 17: A previous version of this story said that Conway and Latta pitched from “the mound.” In fact, there is no mound for pitchers in Softball, but rather a pitching circle. The article has been updated to reflect this change.