DAYTON – University of Dayton softball coach Cara LaPlaca has announced that Grace Gressly, a catcher from Lebanon, Ohio, and Kelsey Gumm, a pitcher from Spokane, Wash., have joined her program.  Gressly is transferring from Wright State, where she was a freshman.   Gumm is coming from Seton Hall, where she was a sophomore.

"To be able to add two players of this caliber each with collegiate experience and several combined years of remaining eligibility is such a victory for the future of Flyer softball, LaPlaca said.  "These two additions possess elite talent and are also high-character and high-academic individuals.  Gressly is expected to make an immediate impact with her explosive bat and versatility on the field.  Gumm will provide an experienced, competitive presence in the circle and balance our current staff with her effective arsenal of pitches.   We look forward to welcoming Grace and Kelsey very soon."

Gressly started all 18 games for WSU before the season was canceled.  She batted .383, with a .596 slugging percentage and .456 on-base percentage.  She had four doubles, two home runs and 13 RBI.  She homered in her first college at-bat (oddly enough, against the Flyers), and finished the abbreviated season by going 8-for-10 at the Arizona State Invitational against Oregon State, Arizona State, Nebraska, New Mexico State and Ohio State.

Even as a freshman, she was appointed to WSU's Student-Athlete advisory Committee.

She was a three-year varsity starter at Lebanon High School, and was a member of the Warriors' Ohio Division I state runner-up in 2017.  She was Second Team All-Ohio as a senior in 2019.  She batted .500 (40-80) with 12 doubles, four home runs and 35 RBI in 2019.  Lebanon reached at least the regional finals in each of her seasons, and Gressly was all-area all three seasons.  Her career batting average was .467.

She will have four seasons to play for the Flyers, due to the NCAA ruling on spring sport student-athlete eligibility during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Gumm was primarily a reliever as a freshman in 2019, and was transitioning to a starting role during the abbreviated 2020 season.  

In 2019, she made 15 appearances with three starts.  In 33.2 innings pitched, the right-hander went 1-4 with a 2.91 ERA.  She also had a team-high three saves, and struck out 21 batters against 10 walks. 

This season, Gumm had already thrown 50 innings.  She appeared in 16 games with eight starts, the most in her career.  She also posted the best record (4-3), WHIP (1.58), and strikeout-to-walk ratio 28/13) on the Seton Hall pitching staff.

She was Seton Hall's Sophomore Scholar-Athlete of the Year this spring, and was named a Pirate Academic All-Star as the student-athlete with the highest GPA on her team.  

In high school, Gumm was a four-year player at Central Valley High in Spokane Valley, Wash. She led Central Valley to a third-place finish in in the Washington 4A state tournament, the school's best-ever state finish.  She had a 24-3 record, 1.08 ERA, and 208 strikeouts in 110 innings and was named Greater Spokane League MVP as a senior.  Gumm was a two-time Honorable Mention All-State selection and three-time Greater Spokane League 1st Team honoree.  

In the summer, she competed with the NW Bullets club organization and also helped the North Idaho Xtreme earn a third place finish at the 2016 PGF Platinum Nationals in 2016.

Dayton was picked to finish fourth in the Atlantic 10 preseason coaches' poll prior to the season's abrupt end.  When the 2020 season ended, the Flyers' RPI of 114 (out of 298) was the highest in the A-10.  UD has qualified for the last seven A-10 post-season tournaments.