Softball Set To Compete In The Raleigh Times

PROVIDENCE, R.I.- The Providence college softball team is set to compete in the Raleigh Times tournament hosted by NC State. The Friars will compete in five games from Feb. 20-22 in Raleigh, N.C. The team will open tournament play on February 20 against Akron at 10:30 a.m., followed by a matchup against the host team, NC State, at 3:30 p.m. On February 21, Providence will take on Illinois at 12:00 p.m. before facing NC State again at 5:00 p.m. The Friars will wrap up tournament action on February 22 with a rematch against Illinois at 9:00 a.m.

SCOUTING PROVIDENCE

Providence enters the weekend with a 1-4 overall record after competing in the Aggie Classic opening weekend hosted by Texas A&M. The Friars are coming off a bye-week.

Junior Cameron Dunn (Bothell, Wash.) leads the team with a .417 batting average, 1.000 slugging percentage and three RBI. Dunn had a standout weekend at the Aggie Classic, recording home runs against top-ranked Texas Tech and No.11 Texas A&M, earning her a spot on the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll.

Junior Alyssa Twomey (Warwick, R.I.) leads the Friars' pitching staff with a 0.81 ERA and a 1-0 record. She recorded 12 strikeouts while allowing one earned run across 8.2 innings opening weekend.

The Friars completed the season with a 25-31 overall record, including an 11-13 mark in the BIG EAST. Providence finished sixth in the final BIG EAST standings and broke program records for stolen bases (51) and triples (18). The Friars earned their 12th appearance into the BIG EAST Softball Championship. The sixth-seeded Friars went on a postseason run, earning upset wins over No. 3 Villanova, No. 4 Butler and top-seeded St. John's. It marked the Friars' first postseason win in 30 years.
Providence returns 13 student-athletes, including graduate student Tori Grifone (Sussex, N.J.), seniors Elisa Smith (Glenn Allen, Va.) and Gabriella Lee (Belmont, Calif.), and juniors Alyssa Twomey and Cameron Dunn, all of whom received BIG EAST recognitions last season.

Grifone and Smith both earned All-BIG EAST Second Team selections last year. Grifone led the pitching staff with a 10-11 record and 115.2 innings pitched while holding opponents to a .256 batting average. Grifone pitched six complete games and recorded 67 strikeouts.

Smith led the Friars in batting average (.390), total hits (67) and triples (seven). Her 67 hits ranks second on the program's all-time single-season list while her 42 runs are tied for third-most in a single season in program history.

Lee started all 56 games for the Friars, recording a .304 batting average, .327 slugging percentage and a .366 on-base percentage. She is tied for a team-best 16 stolen bases across 18 attempts. Lee earned All-BIG EAST Second Team honors in 2024.

Twomey pitched in 29 games, making 21 starts and pitching 111.1 innings. She pitched six complete games and dished out 69 strikeouts. Twomey was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on March 24 and was named to the 2025 All-BIG EAST Tournament Team. During the Friars' postseason run, she played a pivotal role in the circle, posting a 3-2 record and recording five strikeouts in the Friars' upset win over top-seeded St. John's. In her freshman campaign, Twomey was named BIG EAST Pitcher of the Week two times (2/26/24, 3/25/24) and earned BIG EAST Freshman of the Week three times (2/26/24, 4/15/24, 4/30/24).

Dunn led the Providence squad in home runs (10), slugging percentage (.655) and RBI (41) a season ago. Dunn was named to the BIG EAST Weekly Honor Roll on March 24.

The Friars welcome one transfer, Zoe Krizan (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and eight freshmen, Sofia Lieto (Monroe, Conn.), Brooke Aldrich (Taunton, Mass.), Grace Brooks (Meridian, Idaho), Emerson Buckley (Methuen, Mass.), Olivia Petrillo (Estero, Fla.), Addyson Frye (New Castle, Pa.), Dominique Gallardo (Lexington, S.C.) and Hailey Frantz (Danville, Calif.). This talented group is expected to make an immediate impact and play a key role in the Friars' success.

The Friars were picked fifth in the 2026 BIG EAST Softball Preseason Poll.
Results (First Place Votes)
1. St. John's – 62 (6)
T2. Creighton – 51 (2)
T2. UConn – 51 (1)
4. Villanova – 50
5. Providence – 32
6. Butler – 31
7. Seton Hall – 24
8. DePaul – 15
9. Georgetown - 8

SCOUTING AKRON

Akron enters Raleigh Times play with a 4-7 record. Over the weekend, the Zips played in Charleston, S.C. where they posted a 4-2 mark, earning wins over Charleston, Western Carolina and Charleston Southern while going 1-1 with UConn and falling to Sacred Heart. Madie Jarmong was named MAC Pitcher of the Week after posting a 0.78 ERA and recording 11 strikeouts. Sydney Selker leads the team with nine RBI and two home runs. The Zips were picked to finish fourth in the MAC preseason poll.

SCOUTING NC STATE

North Carolina State enters the weekend with a 4-7 record with a 0-4 record against ranked opponents. The Wolfpack share two common opponents so far with the Friars, losing to both No.1/1 Texas Tech and No.11/8 Texas A&M last weekend at the Shriners Children's Clearwater Invitational. Through 11 games, Hannah Church leads the Wolfpack with seven RBI and three home runs. Maia Townsend leads the team with 11 hits. The Wolfpack were picked to finish 12th in the ACC preseason poll.

SCOUTING ILLINOIS

Illinois heads into the weekend with a 3-7 overall record. The Fighting Illini are paced by Ellie Haggard, who is batting .417 with eight RBI. Illinois also had three players named to the Big Ten Players to Watch list for 2026: Adisyn Caryl, Eileen Donahue and Megan Nuechterlein.

ON DECK…

The Friars will travel to College Park, Md. to conclude regular season tournament play at the Terrapin Invitational hosted by University of Maryland. Providence will play in five games from Feb. 27- March 1, consisting of two games against UMBC and single matchups against Fairfield, Maryland and Syracuse.

-GO FRIARS!-

Next Event

Players Mentioned

Brooke Aldrich

Grace Brooks

Emerson Buckley

Cameron Dunn

Hailey Frantz

Addyson Frye

Dominique Gallardo

Tori Grifone

Zoe Krizan

Gabriella Lee

Sofia Lieto

Olivia Petrillo

Elisa Smith

Alyssa Twomey

Completed Event: Softball versus Bryant on February 6, 2026 , Win , 1, to, 0

Completed Event: Softball at #11 Texas A&M on February 6, 2026 , Loss , 1, to, 9 , (6 innings)

Completed Event: Softball versus Utah State on February 7, 2026 , Loss , 1, to, 3

Completed Event: Softball versus #1 Texas Tech on February 7, 2026 , Loss , 1, to, 13 , (5 innings)

Completed Event: Softball at #11 Texas A&M on February 8, 2026 , Loss , 2, to, 8

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Akron on February 20, 2026 at 10:30 A.M.

Upcoming Event: Softball at NC State on February 20, 2026 at 3:30 P.M.

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Illinois on February 21, 2026 at 12:00 P.M.

Upcoming Event: Softball at NC State on February 21, 2026 at 5:00 P.M.

Upcoming Event: Softball versus Illinois on February 22, 2026 at 9:00 A.M.

Providence College Athletics