TOWSON, Md. – The Towson University softball team continues its season by participating in the Michelle Smith Pediatric Cancer Spring Invitational hosted by the University of South Florida.
 
The three-day tournament will be played in Clearwater. The Tigers will play Providence at 2:15 p.m. and North Dakota State at 4:45 p.m. on Friday. Towson battles Wichita State (2 p.m.) and LIU-Brooklyn (4:15 p.m.) on Saturday and Princeton (10 a.m.) on Sunday.
 
Towson split a doubleheader against George Washington this past Wednesday. In a 6-1 win over the Colonials, senior Nicole Stockinger's third career grand slam highlighted a two home run performance for her. Stockinger became the fourth player in Towson history with at least 30 career home runs. She leads Towson with five home runs.
 
Meanwhile, junior Julia Smith-Harrington lowered her season earned run average to 0.44 with another complete game performance in the win over George Washington. She is 5-0 on the season and has allowed two earned runs in 32 innings pitched. In addition, Smith-Harrington is Towson's top hitter with a .424 batting average after her first career three-hit effort in the second game against George Washington.
 
Overall, Towson enters this weekend having won four of its last five games. Senior Kendall Arcia (.327 batting average) leads Towson with 16 runs batted in. Sophomore Riley Thies is hitting .323 after enjoying her first career three-hit game in the opener against George Washington. Nicole Kidwiler is hitting at a .320 clip. Kidwiler leads Towson with seven stolen bases.

Here's a look at the teams Towson will compete against this weekend.
 
Providence (10-7 overall): Members of the Big East Conference, the Friars claimed a 3-1 win over Colgate on Wednesday. Emma Lee leads Providence with 17 hits and a .340 batting average. Also hitting over .300 for the Friars are Jackie Martin (.318) and Megan McCune (.313). Overall, Providence is hitting .235 as a team and has hit five home runs. Providence's top pitcher has been Daniela Alvarez, who is 6-2 with a 1.35 earned run average in nine appearances. She has five complete games and one shutout.
 
North Dakota State (12-11): Members of the Summit League, the Bison defeated Butler, 3-2 Wednesday. Cara Beatty homered and executed a perfect suicide squeeze bunt to lead NDSU to victory. NDSU pitcher Paige Vargas struck out the final two batters to finish the complete game win. Vargas (5-4) matched her career-high with seven strikeouts, allowed five hits and walked two. Katie Shoultz leads the Bison with a .407 batting average. Stephanie Soria has hit at a .314 clip. The Bison's team batting average is .270. KK Leddy leads NDSU with seven wins and a 3.10 earned run average in 15 appearances.
 
Wichita State (17-5): Members of the American Athletic Conference, the Shockers have won eight of their last nine games. They swept a three-game series against Nebraska last weekend. Caitlin Bingham and Erin McDonald combined to no-hit the Huskers. Kaylee Huecker has a five-game hitting streak, coming up with at least two hits in three of those five contests. Wylie Glover (.400) and Laurie Derrico (.338) lead the Shockers offense, which averages 5.9 runs per game. Madison Perrigan and Derrico are tied for the team lead with four home runs each.
 
Long Island University (13-8): Members of the Northeast Conference, the Blackbirds have been led by freshman hurler Elena Valenzuela, who was Pitcher of the Week and co-Rookie of the Week for the third consecutive time. She has a 1.52 earned run average, seven wins and four complete games. Amanda Domingo is LIU's top hitter (.345). Schae Dickson and Kiana Cisneros have 19 hits each, which lead the Blackbirds. LIU has a .239 team batting average. The Blackbirds won three out of five games last weekend at the FIU Tournament.
 
Princeton (1-8): Members of the Ivy League, Princeton participated in the NCAA Tournament in 2017. The Tigers only win this season was an 8-0 triumph over Wright State in its season opener. The Tigers have lost eight straight. Five of those losses were to Power Five schools Wisconsin, Arizona State and Texas. Both Arizona State and Texas are nationally ranked. Kaylee Grant is Princeton's top hitter with a .263 batting average. The Tigers are hitting .184 as a team. Allie Reynolds has the only win for Princeton. Ali Blanchard has an 8.75 earned run average to lead the Tigers.
 
Up Next: Towson returns home to host Coppin State in a doubleheader on Tuesday, March 19 at 1 p.m.