Games #1 & 2
ART U Urban Knights (0-0, 0-0 PacWest) vs. Dominican Penguins (0-0, 0-0 PacWest)
Friday, March 5, 2021 at Noon & 2 p.m.
San Rafael, Calif. – Penguin Field
Live Stats

Games #3 & 4
ART U Urban Knights (0-0, 0-0 PacWest) vs. Dominican Penguins (0-0, 0-0 PacWest)
Saturday, March 6, 2021 at Noon & 2 p.m.
Brisbane, Calif. – Mission Blue Field
Live Stats & Video

Rejuvenated and motivated, Academy of Art University softball takes the field for its 2021 season this week after nearly a full calendar year since the team's last competitive action. A talented returning core and energetic new faces have united to navigate the journey ahead, guided by first-year Head Coach Nikki Gentile and her staff.

The 2021 ART U schedule will consist of 24 Pacific West Conference games against its two local rivals, Dominican and Holy Names, from the conference's Northern California segment. Exchanging home/road doubleheaders on Fridays and Saturdays, Academy of Art opens at Dominican on Mar. 5 then makes its official return to Mission Blue Field on Mar. 6. The month continues with four versus HNU (Mar. 19-20) then sees the second series with Dominican (Mar. 26-27). April brings the Hawks on Apr. 9-10, the Penguins on Apr. 16-17, and the season concludes against Holy Names (Apr. 30-May 1) one final time. To view the 2021 schedule, click here!

Back from last year's senior class, graduate student outfielder Gabi Hirsch and senior pitcher Hannah Rose Balke bring the most experience on the team with program career records in their sights as well. Hirsch, a career .312 hitter, comes in 10 stolen bases back of ART U leader Haily MacDonald (64) while Balke, one of just three Knights to start more than 60 games, finds herself two wins (37) and two shutouts (8) behind both categories' leader Sierrah.Garcia.

Four juniors also return in catchers Lauryn Henderson and Alyssa Brundage, pitcher Cecilia Lopez, and, fresh off the spring soccer season, utility Alyssa Rasmussen. Henderson, who currently boasts the fourth-highest career slugging percentage (.557) at ART U, led the team with 12 runs batted in and four doubles in 21 games last year. Looking to provide a boost on both sides of the softball will be two transfers in graduate student infielder Chelsea Sligh from Concordia (Ore.) and junior utility Neenah Pangilinan from Oregon Institute of Technology.

Outfielder Bethany Mitchell, catcher/infielder Cassandra Mittman, and pitcher Haley Arnold-Jolley each enter their respective second sophomore campaigns following the shortened 2020 year. That final day last season was the best of Mittman's career as she went 6-for-8 with seven RBIs in the doubleheader versus Hawaii Pacific on Mar. 11, 2020.

In addition to returning infielder Haley Randall, Academy of Art's freshman class features outfielders Maddie Sticka and Cailee Grayhorse-Pupecki, infielder Cassidy Kachnik, and pitcher/infielder Katie Humphreys. Both Sticka and Kachnik both previously contributed to state championships with their respective club teams while Grayhorse-Pupecki and Humphreys helped their respective high school teams achieve some of their best years in recent history.

This Friday, the Urban Knights pick up their gloves, softballs, and bats and return to the game they love at long last.