MELBOURNE, Fla. (March 16, 2026) -- After multiple weather delays, the Salve Regina softball team opened play three hours later than scheduled at the Space Coast Spring Games in Florida on Monday, March 16, splitting momentum across two games but ultimately dropping both contests. The Seahawks fell to Rutgers–Newark, 10–5, before later losing to Central College in a run-shortened game.

Rutgers–Newark 10, Salve Regina 5
Salve Regina rallied from an early deficit but could not hold off a late surge by Rutgers–Newark in a 10–5 loss in Melbourne, Florida. The Scarlet Raiders built a 5–0 lead through four innings, capitalizing on early run production from Soncia Hughes and a sacrifice fly by Keelin O'Brien.

The Seahawks broke through in the fifth inning with a five-run rally to tie the game. Lillian Bridges (Wesley Chapel, Fla.) drove in the first run with an RBI single before Skyla Oliveira (Smithfield, R.I.) and Emily Cronin (Coventry, R.I.) followed with run-scoring hits. Victoria Geisser (Scituate, R.I.) delivered the biggest blow of the inning with a two-run single to even the score at 5–5.

Rutgers–Newark responded immediately in the bottom of the sixth. RBI singles by Kayla Cardozo and O'Brien restored the lead before Josephine Morales cleared the bases with a two-run triple. A sacrifice fly from Laura Abreu capped the five-run frame, sealing the 10–5 victory.

Salve Regina finished with eight hits, including two from Madeleine Oswald (Whippany, N.J.), while Geisser drove in two runs. Caroline Peterson (Halifax, Mass.) took the loss in the circle after allowing 10 runs (nine earned) across six innings with 10 strikeouts.

Central College 13, Salve Regina 1
Later in the day, Central College pulled away early and handed Salve Regina a 13–1 defeat. Central scored three runs in each of the first two innings and added two more in the third to take control of the contest. The Dutch closed the game with a five-run sixth inning to secure the run-rule victory.

Salve Regina's lone run came in the third inning, but the offense was limited to a small number of opportunities as Central's pitching staff controlled the game from the circle. Abby Merck (Lorton, Va.) led off the third with an opposite-field double and came home to score after a Dutch throwing error.

The pair of losses dropped the Seahawks to 0–4 early in the 2026 season as they continued their slate at the Space Coast Spring Games.