KINGSTON, R.I. – Rhode Island opens Atlantic 10 play on Saturday with a three-game series at Saint Joseph's. All three games will be streamed on ESPN+, with the links available below.

Saturday, March 7
at Saint Joseph's, 12:00 p.m. - ESPN+ | Live Stats
at Saint Joseph's, 2:00 p.m. - ESPN+ | Live Stats

Saturday, March 8
at Saint Joseph's, 2:00 p.m. - ESPN+ | Live Stats

RHODE ISLAND VS. SAINT JOSEPH'S - SERIES NOTES 

• Rhode Island and Saint Joseph's have met 91 times previously.
• The Hawks lead the series, 58-33.
• Rhode Island will be trying to win a road game against Saint Joseph's for the first time in 19 years.
• URI has lost 25 consecutive road games at Saint Joseph's, with the last victory coming in a a 7-6 win on April 21, 2007.
• Last year the teams played three games in Rhode Island, with Saint Joseph's winning twice.
• The first game was an 8-7 Hawks' win that that took nine innings to complete.
• In that game, Rhody got two runs in the bottom of the seventh on a two-out, two-run single by Kylie Bulinski, which forced extra innings. Sierra Fretz hit  solo home run in the top of the ninth to provide the winning run for Saint Joseph's.
• Rhody won the second game 6-2 before Saint Joseph's took the rubber game, 14-1 in five innings.
•  This weekend marks the start of Atlantic 10 play for both programs.
• Saint Joseph's entered the week with the highest team batting average in the league, hitting .282.
• Julia Shearer (.444) and Riley York (.441) began the week ranked second and third in the league in the category.

PITCHING STAFF HAS BEEN STINGY FOR RHODE ISLAND

• Rhode Island goes into the weekend with a 1.04 earned run average, which ranked third in the country at the start of the week.
• The Rams have allowed just six earned runs in 40.1 innings pitched.
• The six runs came in just two games - two in a 3-2 victory over Marist in the season opener and four in a 4-1 loss at Missouri State on Feb. 15.
• Senior Ashley Hibbard has yet to allow a run through two starts this season.
• Hibbard is 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA, 10 strikeouts and six hits allowed in 11.1 innings of work.
• Her walks/hits per innings pitched is 0.71, which is second in the Atlantic 10 and 15th nationally.
• Junior Avery Vale-Cruz is 2-0 with two complete games and a 0.93 ERA in two starts.
• In her last appearance, she allowed four hits and one unearned run over 8.0 innings in a 2-1 victory over Tennessee Tech.
•  Sophomore Brooke Gerry is 0-2 despite a 2.55 ERA.
• She has allowed four earned runs in 11.0 innings of work, all of which came against Missouri State.
• Gerry has 10 strikeouts and four walks allowed.
• Junior Sarah Trosin (0-1) has made two relief appearances for Rhode Island and has given up just one hit and one unearned over the course of 3.0 innings of work.
• The lone run she allowed was a ghost runner in an extra-ining loss to East Texas A&M on Feb. 13.
• Trosin picked up a save in her most recent appearance, retiring all three batters she faced in a 3-0 victory over Eastern Kentucky.
• Last season, Rhode Island had a 5.51 team ERA for the year. 
• Vale-Cruz and Gerry both have thrown complete games in each of their first two starts.
• Gerry now has five complete games in eight career starts.
• As a staff, the Rams have allowed just 26 hits and 10 total runs in 40.1 innings over six games.
• Rhody pitchers have combined for 29 strikeouts while giving up just 11 walks.
• That 2.64 strikeout-to-walk ratio leads the Atlantic 10 and ranks 26th nationally. 
• The team WHIP of 0.92 leads the league and is fifth in the country.