Following their first postseason win since 2015, No. 3 Siena Softball is set for a duel with No. 2 Monmouth in the winner's bracket of the 2019 #MAACSoftball Championship, Friday morning. The Saints will look to take down the Hawks using the success of three postseason award-winners and their first-ever opening-round victory in the tournament.

The 2019 MAAC Softball Championship features #1 Marist, #2 Monmouth, #3 Siena, #4 Iona, #5 Niagara and #6 Fairfield competing in the 34th edition of the event, held this year at Gartland Athletic Field on the campus of 2019 co-regular season champion Marist. The double-elimination tournament will run from Wednesday, May 8 to Saturday, May 11, with games 5-11 being streamed on the ESPN family of networks beginning on Thursday.

Tickets can be purchased in advance online or at the field, and are priced per-session, as well as pre-day. On-site social media updates will be provided throughout the day from the @Siena_Softball twitter account. Join the conversation by using the hashtags #MarchOn, #SienaSaints, and #MAACSoftball.

On-Deck Circle

• Entering the 2019 MAAC Championship as a top-3 seed for the third consecutive season, Siena defeated No. 6 Fairfield, 1-0, in opening round action on Wednesday. The Saints used a combined shutout effort by junior right-handers Brooke Hughes & Maddie McMahon to allow just four hits in the affair, with an RBI single from junior Amanda Dodson making the difference.
• The Saints are making their 11th MAAC Tournament appearance in program history and will now head into game two with a win under their belt for the first time ever. The Green and Gold are seeking their first two-win output since 2015, with the last two MAAC Tournament trips prompting early exits. In total, Siena holds a 5-20 all-time mark in the MAAC Tournament, with two wins in 2015 standing as the most in a single appearance.
• Following the win, Siena now has its most wins in a season since 2016 (25) and is now 2-4 all-time against Fairfield in the MAAC Championship, the first opponent in which it has held multiple postseason wins against. The Saints are now 1-2 this season when playing on Wednesday, snapping an eight-game losing skid on hump day dating back to April 20, 2016.
• The Saints took home ample hardware at the 2019 Postseason Awards Banquet, with senior Madysen Cossack headlining the show. The co-captain became just the fourth player in conference history to win multiple MAAC Player of the Year awards in a career, while earning her third straight First Team All-MAAC accolades. McMahon and sophomore outfielder Isabelle DeChiaro were placed on the All-MAAC Second Team, while a program record nine Siena players were named to the All-Academic Squad.
• After being picked to place fifth in the 2019 MAAC Preseason Coaches Poll, Siena notched its third straight top-3 finish and reeled in double-digit MAAC victories for the seventh straight season. The Saints recorded four or more sweeps of conference opponents for the eighth year in a row and enter the week having split with four of the five other tournament competitors.
• Cossack concluded the regular season as one of the top hitters in the country, downing multiple program records in her final campaign as a Saint thus far. The first baseman entered postseason play ranked sixth nationally in batting average (.457), 10th in on-base percentage (.553), 43rd in slugging percentage (.767) and 49th in walks (30). A two-time MAAC Player of the Week honoree, Cossack led the conference in Batting average and slugging percentage, while ranking second in on-base percentage, hits (59), RBI (44) and walks (30) and third in home runs (9) and total bases (99). Additionally, the Agoura Hills, California product has reached base in all 45 contests in 2019, and holds a program record 56-game on-base streak dating back to the end of the 2018 season.
• In the circle, McMahon and Hughes have each used their third season to produce career best campaigns. A two-time MAAC Pitcher of the Week honoree, McMahon became just the sixth arm in program history to eclipse the 300-strikeout mark on May 6, bringing her to fifth all-time in K's and seventh in single-season history (106) thus far. McMahon's 13 wins this year are good third-most in a single year, while she now ranks tied for fourth all-time in victories (31) and third in shutouts (7). Taking her place as the game one starter, Hughes has produced collegiate-best numbers in wins (7), games started (20), complete games (7), shutouts (2), innings pitched (115.1) and strikeouts (65) this season.
• Freshman Sabrina Vargas is set for her first collegiate postseason tournament after posting a breakout weekend to help her squad earn the No. 3 seed. The Oxnard, CA native led the Saints with a .545 batting average (6-11) with six hits, two RBI, two doubles, two runs and four stolen bases in four games, slugging .727 in the process. Vargas is now tied with junior Lauren Sabihon for the team lead in bags swiped (7), and also leads the MAAC in sacrifice hits per-game (0.19), while ranking second in the conference and 12th nationally in hit-by-pitch per-game (.36, 15 total).
• Siena has outscored conference opponents 74-42 this season, posting four shutouts and holding MAAC teams to three runs or less on 17 occasions, including the last 16 MAAC games dating back to April 13.
• The Saints are looking to halt a four-game losing streak against the Hawks, having been swept by the defending MAAC Champions in each of the previous two regular season series'. 2019 MAAC Pitcher of the Year Alyssa Irons pitched Monmouth to a pair of wins in Loudonville on April 29, helping her team to outlast the Saints in eight innings, 1-0, before securing the sweep, 2-1, in game two. The Hawks hold a 2-0 advantage against the Saints in postseason play, takin opening round victories in 2014 & 2015.
• Siena is now 1-2 when the tournament has been held in Poughkeepsie, NY on the campus of Marist College before. Entering as the #1 seed and the co-regular season champions, the Saints fell to #4 Niagara and #2 Fairfield in 2013, being outscored 9-3 in those contests.

Scouting The Opponent: Monmouth

• Looking to become the first team to earn consecutive MAAC Championships since Iona three-peated from 2010-12, Monmouth enters its first game of the week having won six of its final seven regular season contests, including the sweep over Siena. At 33-16, the Hawks finished tied with fellow regular season champion Marist for the most overall victors by a MAAC team since 2016.
• Selected as the favorite in the 2019 MAAC Preseason Coaches Poll, Monmouth saw six different players take home postseason honors Wednesday evening. Highlighted by Irons' selection as the top pitcher in the league, freshman outfielder Lindsey Baron joined her sophomore pitcher counterpart in earning First-Team All-MAAC honors, while taking home MAAC Co-Rookie of the Year. Additionally, catcher Erika Coreth, and infielder Kayla Rosado were placed on the First Team, while infielder Amber Wozniak was designated as a Second Team selection, and Baron earned unanimous All-Rookie Team honors.
• Monmouth currently leads the MAAC in slugging percentage (.406), triples (14), sacrifice flies (15), ERA (2.28), opposing batting average (.226) and least runs, walks and home runs allowed. Individually, Baron is tops in runs (48), doubles (21), home runs (11) and total bases (116), while Irons leads in strikeouts (215), wins (27) and opposing batting average (.181).