JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The Jacksonville University softball team kicked off its 2026 season with the River City Leadoff on Friday, splitting a pair of games between Colgate and North Dakota State.
The Dolphins defeated Colgate in their opener 6-2 before falling 5-2 in the first ever meeting with the Bisons. Jacksonville takes its 1-1 record into Saturday where they will conclude The Leadoff with a pair of games against UMass, starting at 3:30 p.m. EST.
6-2 win over Colgate
The Dolphins started their season in emphatic fashion, picking up a 6-2 win over Colgate. It was the second straight year JU opened the season up with a win, following last year's 8-0 win over Western Carolina.
The player of the game for Jacksonville was junior right hander
Jordan White, who earned the opening day start and fanned 10 batters to begin her 2026 campaign. Her 10 Ks shattered her previous career-high of four set last season against West Georgia.
White sent the opening three batters packing before striking out the next two in the second inning. It wasn't until the fifth when Colgate even had a baserunner, at that time already finding itself down 5-0 after some big hits from the Dolphin offense.
The big hits came first by way of graduate transfer
Sarah Beth Brake who turned a double into two-RBIs in the third inning. Returner Reece Wells reached on an error which scored a runner, followed by an RBI-single from returner
Tatum McCool and an RBI-single for freshman
Vic Brunette.
In the sixth, fellow freshman
Emma Mansfield capped off the day with a sac-fly to right to end the day's scoring and hand Jacksonville the win.
Coach
Erica Ayers started four freshmen in the game against Colgate: Brunette, Mansfield,
Jaida Thomas and
Madisyn Weathers. Freshman
Margaret Jenkins also saw action as a pinch runner. At the plate, the freshmen class accounted for five of the team's 10 hits. JU's freshmen alone outhit Colgate 5-4.
The team's two transfers, Brake and
Kate Linkletter, accounted for four hits and two of the team's RBIs. Jacksonville batters struck out just three times total and had the opportunity to add more runs, leaving seven runners on base.
In the field, JU went errorless.
5-2 loss to NDSU
In the second game of opening day, Jacksonville was a bit quieter against the visiting Bisons.
Led by a 3-3 showing from Weathers, the 'Phins tallied six hits. Weathers tied the game at one apiece in the bottom of the first with a single down the right field line before NDSU jumped out to a 5-1 lead.
In the sixth, Wells singled down the left field side to score a runner, pushing the score to its final.
Sophomore pitcher
Jacy Harrelson took to the circle for the complete seven innings, tossing a career-high 134 pitches. It was her second career game over 100 pitches thrown. Harrelson struck out three and allowed eight hits. Of Harrelson's total pitches, 80 were for strikes, good for an almost 60% strikes thrown percentage.
Despite being errorless in the prior game, JU had three fielding mishaps in game two. The team also left six runners stranded.
The team saw seven total freshmen play during the contest. Mansfield collected a double at the plate, earning hits in both games Friday.
Coach's Comments
"I thought we had two really good pitching performances," Ayers said. "Game Two, we shot ourselves in the foot defensively and gave up a big inning. Maddie Weathers had a day at the plate."
Next Up
Jacksonville continues its opening weekend of the River City Leadoff on Saturday against the University of Massachusetts. The Dolphins and the Minutewomen square off in a doubleheader starting at 3:30 at the Pruitt Softball Complex.
