Sophomore pitcher Jordan Goedel is a rare two-way force for the softball team, excelling at both hitting at the plate and pitching in the circle. But Lafayette College is not the first Patriot League school where she mastered this role.
The Arizona native played her freshman season at Holy Cross before arriving at College Hill ahead of this year. Just like at Holy Cross, Goedel was recruited by Leopards head coach Kelliner Croushore, who served as an assistant coach for the Crusaders in 2024.
“She came over here, then I reached out to her, and I just had a really good connection with her,” Goedel said. “That meant a lot to have a coach who I knew.”
Goedel delivered her first signature moment on Feb. 28 against North Dakota State University, launching a three-run walk-off home run to steal a 7-6 win. Just one day later, in a rematch against the Bison, Goedel once again belted off a third-inning home run and also took the mound to pitch a complete-game win.
“I wasn’t thinking, ‘Let’s hit a walk off,’ it was more ‘Let me help my team keep this alive,’” Goedel said. “It’s a game like trying to be calm about it and stay level with it.”
Goedel began playing softball when she was 5 years old, but she said she didn’t see her “skills shine” until high school. Once coaches started to reach out, she was drawn to Holy Cross for its academics and ultimately decided to make the trek from the Southwest to the Northeast.
“I really wanted to get out of Arizona because I was tired of the heat,” she said. “I also wanted to go to a school that was academically competitive because I didn’t want to sacrifice that just to play softball.”
Goedel compiled a 3.48 ERA over 24 appearances for the Crusaders, while also posting a .192 batting average.
Instead of treating hitting and pitching as separate jobs, she said each role keeps her “locked in mentally” throughout the game. While most pitchers abstain from hitting entirely, Goedel has poured extra hours into refining both sides of her game.
“I use pitching and hitting to balance each other out,” Goedel said. “If I have a tough inning pitching, my next thought is how I can help the team when I get up to hit, and vice versa.”
Goedel said the transition to Lafayette was tough academically, as the mechanical engineering major had to overload courses throughout her first two semesters.
“I think coming from another high academic school prepared me,” she said. “I already went through it once in a similar academically rigorous program.”
Senior infielder Dani Rosner, another inter-Patriot League transfer — coming from Colgate University after the 2024 season — said Goedel reached out to her about the struggles of transferring early on.
“We connected over just differences between Holy Cross and Colgate, and we bonded over that a lot,” Rosner said.
“My teammates have been so welcoming and made it feel like a second home,” Goedel said. “Having other transfers on the team helped. It gives you a sense of community.”
Rosner said that Goedel’s versatility has already made a clear impact on the Leopards this season.
“As both a pitcher and a hitter, she brings so much to the table,” Rosner said. “You can’t tell that she’s a pitcher when she’s hitting, and you can’t tell that she’s a hitter when she’s pitching. She’s just super confident in her abilities.”