On the morning of May 10, the sun poked through the clouds above Marist’s north end dormitories, shining light on two best friends—Marist graduate student infielder Haley Ahr and graduate student pitcher Ava Metzger—as they looked to capture Marist softball’s sixth MAAC Championship.
They prepared to end their softball careers the same way they started them: together.
Ahr vividly remembers the first time she met Metzger. When Ahr was eight years old, she played 10U softball in Howell, New Jersey. Metzger, also playing on a 10U team at the same age, crossed paths with Ahr when their teams faced each other. The two bonded over being the youngest kids on the field.
Ahr was a “tiny little blonde, shy… a feisty little one,” joked Metzger.
For Ahr, Metzger was an outgoing girl, who made her feel comfortable in a setting of playing with older kids.
The two didn’t play on the same travel team until they were 10. At this stage in their careers, it was a “daddy ball” league. They were playing for fun. Then, they played on the same travel ball team when they were 14.
High School
Ahr and Metzger went to high schools in the same conference. Ahr attended Saint John Vianney High School in Holmdel, New Jersey, while Metzger attended Colts Neck High School in Colts Neck, New Jersey.
Ahr’s high school was in the midst of a dynasty her freshman and sophomore year. St. John Vianney won the Monmouth County championship and state championship her freshman year. She posted a .367 AVG, 15 extra-base hits, 23 runs and 29 RBIs while being selected to third-team all-state. She also pitched 29 innings with a perfect 5-0 record.
Her sophomore year, her team captured the Monmouth County championship again and won the Shore Conference Tournament as well. She had a .421 AVG, 14 extra-base hits and 28 RBIs.
Metzger did not see the same success. As neither played their junior season due to COVID-19, the script flipped for both of them during their senior season in 2021.
Metzger posted a 19-1 record with a 0.50 ERA and 276 strikeouts in 139 innings pitched en route to winning New Jersey’s Gatorade Player of the Year. She led Colts Neck to its first ever divisional championship, state sectional championship, group state championship and Monmouth County championship.
Ahr saw great individual success. She batted .608, slugged 1.059, recorded 12 extra-base hits and 18 RBIs in just 51 at-bats. She also pitched 28 innings and notched 14 strikeouts with a 3.25 ERA. However, St. John Vianney was in a turnover year, and for the first time in years, they struggled.
“We were in the newspaper every week because every team who hasn’t beaten us in years was beating us my senior year,” said Ahr.
As Metzger dominated her senior season, her favorite moment playing against Ahr was leading her high school to their first ever win over St. John Vianney.
Before beginning their college careers, they played their last year of summer ball together for Coach Ken Fry. For both Ahr and Metzger, their last year of travel ball was painful. Metzger had been dealing with severe elbow pain and Ahr had ankle issues. One of Ahr’s favorite moments from that season was when Fry announced that Metzger had won New Jersey’s Gatorade Player of the Year.
College Careers
After their final season of travel ball together, Ahr and Metzger split ways for their four years of undergrad, but remained in the same conference. Metzger committed to Manhattan University in November of 2019. Ahr committed to Marist in 2021.
Ahr’s ankle injury cost her the 2022 season. Ausanio had not been able to see Ahr play prior to her arrival on campus due to the pandemic, and she was one of six incoming freshmen and wanted to prove herself.
She got off to a good start in the fall, but every time she ran, her toes went numb and she repeatedly rolled her ankle because it was too unstable. Ausanio encouraged her to get surgery, influencing her decision to take a medical redshirt her freshman year.
Metzger also battled injuries during her freshman year. For her, it was her elbow that would later be identified as a partial ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) tear.
She played the majority of her freshman season, posting a 3.96 ERA, until she allowed 14 earned runs in her final two outings because her elbow pain grew to a severely limiting point. She could not feel her pinky, index or ring finger; her elbow was swollen and she couldn’t even grip the ball.
Suffering simultaneous season-long injuries brought the two closer together; they knew that they were each other’s support system.
Metzger missed the entire 2023 season recovering from her UCL surgery, while Ahr was cleared to play the 2023 season and was impactful immediately. She put up a .379 AVG, .980 OPS, 49 RBIs, 67 hits and 16 stolen bases, winning MAAC Rookie of the Year and leading Marist to its first MAAC Championship since 2016.
Ahr turned it up a notch in the following season. She finished with a .422 AVG, 1.140 OPS, 70 hits, nine home runs, 51 RBIs and received the 2024 MAAC Defensive Player of the Year.
Metzger struggled in her return to the tune of a 5.08 ERA in 2024. She completed eight games in 14 starts in her freshman season, but the furthest she went in a game in 2024 was 4.1 innings.
Her injury gave her another year of eligibility, and entered the transfer portal as a graduate student before her last season at Manhattan.
“[Ausanio] texted me one day and said “‘Guess who entered the transfer portal?’” said Ahr.
When Ahr learned that it was Metzger, she immediately asked Ausanio if he reached out to her. Ahr’s pitch to Metzger to become a Red Fox was simple: “We Win.”
Metzger decided to become a Red Fox ahead of the 2025 season, but she tore her ACL in the first game of the season, causing her to miss the entire year. For Ahr, she put up a record breaking year.
She led the NCAA with a .508 batting average, a 1.319 OPS, 90 hits, 11 home runs, 59 RBIs and helped Marist become the winningest single-season team in MAAC history, leading Marist to another MAAC Championship.
As Metzger watched Ahr’s success, she couldn’t help but be happy for her, but was at an an all-time low. She lost her love for the game. Softball was her escape, and not being able to contribute was a challenge for her. Still, Metzger looked forward to a new chapter and used her extra year of eligibility to play as a Red Fox.
Ahr entered the 2026 season timidly. Five of her teammates whom she entered college with had graduated, plus two more graduate students that were here for her first four years.
Having Metzger next to her changed all of that. The “tomfoolery” they pulled, attempting to get Metzger at-bats in practice, being told grandma jokes and Metzger’s funny personality took the weight off Ahr’s shoulders.
It didn’t take long for Ahr to realize that this group was special. She enjoyed coming to practice more than she thought she would, and after the fall season, she expected to be competing for a MAAC championship.
Metzger needed more time. After her upset performance against No.22 South Carolina, and going through a difficult out of conference schedule, Metzger saw the pieces line up.
Marist finished the regular season with a 34-19 record. Ahr batted .370 with a .946 OPS, notched 68 hits, four home runs and 45 RBIs—she broke Marist’s program record in hits, doubles and RBIs.
Metzger had the best season of her career: a 2.51 ERA, 1.23 WHIP, 12-3 record, seven complete games, three shutouts and a .239 opponent batting average. She had a 2.15 ERA against ranked opponents in the 2026 regular season.
2026 MAAC Championship Game
Every aspect of their careers led them to a mother’s day MAAC championship game. Metzger, receiving the start, began warming up in the muddy bullpen. “Shit’s horrible,” she murmured.
She’d start on the lip of the grass, take three steps forward, put her left foot in the divot behind the rubber. As her right foot was placed on the rubber, she’d begin her windup and throw.
Right before first pitch, Ahr looked excited and said “One more.”
The last time Metzger pitched against Iona, she had her worst performance of the season, allowing seven earned runs in 1.2 innings pitched. This time, she got through the first four innings without conceding a run.
Metzger continued her hot pitching in the fifth. Iona’s senior infielder Hailey Guerrero hit an infield single to start the inning. Metzger struck out back-to-back batters and got senior outfielder Hannah Werth to fly out to left field.
“Yeah, great job,” shouted Metzger’s father, Larry.
Hurricane Chris’ “Halle Berry” blasted through the speakers as Ahr stepped into the box in the bottom of the fifth.
Two batters before, senior outfielder Peyton Pusey hit a home run to extend the Red Fox lead to 3-0, and tied Ahr for most hits in program history.
In a 1-0 count, Ahr took a pitch on the outside corner and drilled it to right center field for her fourth home run of the year, taking back her lead on the Marist all-time hits list and giving her team a 4-0 lead.
Metzger worked another quick inning in the top of the sixth. She took the circle in the top of the seventh with an opportunity to win the championship. With two outs, and after three straight foul balls, Guerrero grounded out to Wiltsie for the game’s final out.
Ahr threw her glove and ran over to Metzger—they jumped up and down screaming cheers of joy and swarmed their teammates. Ahr won her third MAAC Championship, Metzger her first, and the two friends earned MAAC All-Championship honors.
“We grew up playing with each other, it’s poetic to finish it together on such a high note,” said Metzger.
Edited by August Lieberman and Max Rosen
Photo from Marist Athletics
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