CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – With only three Ivy League series left in Harvard softball's 2026 regular season slate, the Crimson welcome Penn to Soldiers Field for a three-game set at Soldiers Field on Saturday, Apr. 18 and Sunday, Apr. 19.

The series begins on Saturday, Apr. 18 with a doubleheader set to begin at 12:30 p.m., as the two sides return to the diamond on Sunday, Apr. 19 for a 12:30 p.m. series finale. Admission to Soldiers Field is free of charge and all three contests will air live on ESPN+. 

CRIMSON UPDATES

• Harvard enters the weekend with a 16-16-1 record and an 8-4 mark in Ivy League action. The Crimson is 6-2 in its last eight contests and currently stands alone in second place in the Ivy League standings.
• In its last outing, the Crimson hosted crosstown rival Boston University, as the Terriers earned a 11-6 win.
• At the plate, sophomore infielder Alexa Muller led the way against the Terriers, driving in four runs with three hits. A native of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, Muller owns career-highs in both hits (33) and RBIs (23) this season.
• Along with Muller, senior infielder Finley Payne, junior infielder Sophie Sun and junior catcher Quinn Salazar-Stewart all logged multiple hits against the Terriers as well.
• Against a Boston University team that ranks fourth nationally in shutouts with 14, the Crimson recorded 11 hits, marking the Crimson's 12^th contest with double-digit hits this season.
• Across the last five outings, both Payne and Sun lead all Crimson with 8 RBIs, as Harvard is also hitting .336 as a team during that time frame.
• Harvard ranks second in the Ivy League in ERA (3.57), strikeout-to-walk ratio (2.02) and team strikeouts per seven innings (5.55).
• The Crimson's team captains this season are senior pitcher Ryan Grace, junior outfielder Audrey Szollosi and junior utility Megan Davies.
• Head coach Jenny Rohn is in her third season at the helm of the Harvard softball program, leading the Crimson to the Ivy League Tournament in consecutive seasons and an Ivy League regular season title in 2024. Rohn is 104-93-1 in her collegiate coaching career and is 69-46-1 in her Crimson tenure.

SCOUTING THE QUAKERS

• Penn is 15-19 this season, as its 6-6 record in Ivy League action has the Quakers in sole possession of fourth place in the Ivy League standings. Penn has improved on its win total by 12 victories compared to last year.
• Last weekend saw Penn make the trip to Princeton, as the Quakers dropped all three contests in the series.
• Sophomore outfielder Gigi Ganje leads the Ivy League in OPS (1.654) and slugging percentage (1.112) this season.

SERIES HISTORY

• Harvard leads the all-time series against Penn, 70-20-1, as last season saw the Crimson earn the sweep on the road at Penn Park.
• The Crimson outscored the Quakers, 18-3, in the three-game set in the Keystone State during the 2025 campaign.
• Harvard owns a 12-game winning streak against Penn, a streak that dates back to the 2019 season. Penn's last win at Soldiers Field arrived during the 2010 season.

LIGHTS OUT

• Once again, Harvard's pitching is a defining component of its success this year, as the Crimson's pitching staff is defined by its skill and depth.
• After 33 contests, Harvard ranks second in the Ivy League with a 3.57 team ERA, as the Crimson is only one of three teams with an ERA below 4.00 in the Ivy League this season.
• Junior pitcher Nicolette Hunter, who won Ivy League Pitcher of the Week honors twice so far this season, is third in the Ivy League in ERA (2.63) and strikeouts (70). A native of Camarillo, California, Hunter earned All-Ivy League Second Team honors last season and leads the Crimson with three complete games.
• Grace's 2.90 ERA is fourth in the Ivy League, as Sammamish, Washington native ranks fourth in opposing batting average (.268) as well.
• Harvard is the only school in the Ivy League to have multiple pitchers with an ERA below 3.00 this season.

R.O.Y. FACTORY

• The last three Ivy League Rookies of the Year are all products of the Crimson, as Harvard is the first school in conference history to produce three consecutive Rookie of the Year honorees.
• Muller won Ivy League Rookie of the Year after shining at the plate, especially in conference play.
• Muller led all first-years last season in the Ancient Eight in batting average (.368) and hits (28). A native of Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, Muller ranked third in batting average (.436) and second in on-base percentage (.515) in Ivy League contests last season.
• The 2024 season saw Sun orchestrate one of the greatest rookie seasons in recent memory, leading all first-years in the NCAA in slugging percentage (.797) and ranked third among all first-years in the nation in batting average (.421).
• Senior pitcher Riley Flynn was the 2023 Ivy League Rookie of the Year after setting a new program record for saves in a season with six, as the Phoenix, Arizona native was the 2023 Ivy League Tournament Most Outstanding Player after tallying 11 innings in all three wins for the Crimson.
• First-year outfielder Sheila Forbes is a two-time Ivy League Rookie of the Week honoree this season, as the Naples, Florida native ranks second on the Crimson with a .482 on-base percentage and fourth with a .355 batting average. Against Ivy League opposition, Forbes leads all Crimson with a .462 batting average and a .563 on-base percentage.

HERE COMES THE SUN

• Now in her third season with the Crimson, Sun is one of the most explosive and exciting offensive talents in the Ivy League.
• Starting in all 33 games at shortstop this season, Sun leads Harvard in OPS (1.072), RBIs (35), total bases (69) and slugging percentage (.627). Sun ranks in the top five in the Ivy League in RBIs this season.
• The first student-athlete in conference history to win Ivy League Player and Rookie of the Year in the same season, Sun ranked in the top five in the Ivy League in batting average (.411), on-base percentage (.469), runs scored (33), hits (53) and total bases (81) during the 2025 season.
• A 2024 Top 10 Finalist for the Tucci/NFCA Freshman of the Year award, Sun is the current all-time program leader in slugging percentage (.692) and batting average (.403). With her grand slam against Cornell, Sun became just the seventh Crimson in program history to record 100 career RBIs.

SAVING THE BEST FOR LAST

• Harvard is shining in the final game of last contests of Ivy League series this season.
• The Crimson is undefeated with a 4-0 record in Ivy League series finales.
• In those contests, Harvard is outscoring its opponents, 39-20, as Harvard is batting .373 with a .571 team slugging percentage.
• Salazar-Stewart leads all Crimson with a .538 batting average in series finales, as Payne has homered three times in these contests as well.

IVY LEAGUE EXCELLENCE

• Over the last five full seasons, Harvard is one of the top softball programs in the Ivy League, owning a league-best 90-36 record in conference play from 2018 to 2025.
• In that time span, Harvard is the only team in the Ancient Eight to not drop double-digit conference games in a single season.
• Harvard won back-to-back Ivy League regular season titles in 2023 and 2024, as it won the inaugural Ivy League Tournament in Princeton in 2023.

CRIMSON ALL ACROSS THE COUNTRY

• Harvard softball is rolling with a roster that pulls talent from across the nation this season.
• 11 different states are included on the Crimson's roster this season including Arizona, New Jersey, Hawaii, Washington, California, Missouri, Ohio, Virginia, Texas, Georgia, North Carolina.

UP NEXT

Harvard hits the diamond next on Tuesday, Apr. 21, as the Crimson host Stonehill at Soldiers Field for a 4 p.m. showdown.

For complete coverage of Harvard Softball, follow the team on Twitter (@HarvardSB) and Instagram (@harvardsb).