STATESBORO, Ga. – Rutgers softball closed out its trip to Georgia getting a 3-2 win over ETSU on Sunday morning in extra innings and finished out its appearance at the Bash in the Boro with a 3-2 overall record.
 

STANDOUT STATS

• Senior Anyssa Iliopoulos was instrumental in Rutgers' ninth inning heroics. First, the Scarlet Knight outfielder hit up the middle in the top of the inning allowing pinch runner Kiersten Withstandley to advance to third and steal home when the Bucs failed to protect home plate. Then on defense, Iliopoulos caught the fly for the second out and fired home to Katie Wingert to tag out the potential tying run.
• Pinch runners – Withstandley, Cambria Keefer and Mya Mancini – were responsible for all three Scarlet Knight runs.
• Ashley Hitchcock picked up the win tossing the final four innings to improve to 2-1 on the year and joined starter Jaden Vickers to combine for 13 strikeouts in the game.

THE RUNDOWN

• ETSU struck first with Lili Bowen going deep to center in the bottom of the second.
• The Scarlet Knights bounced back to tie the game in the bottom of the fifth. Ashley Hitchcock kicked off the inning with a base hit to center with classmate Mya Mancini taking over on the bases. Mancini advanced to second off the sac bunt from Kiana Workman and reached third on a wild pitch. Fellow freshman Taylor Fawcett was able to sneak in the Scarlet Knight run off a chopper to the mound.
• Rutgers took the lead in the top of the sixth starting with back-to-back singles. Katie Wingert found the gap in left center and Gabrielle Callaway went up the middle and were replaced on base by Cambria Keefer and Jane Owens respectively. A Payton Lincavage grounder to third allowed Keefer to score.
• The Bucs, however, tied the game back up in the bottom of the sixth capitalizing on three-straight singles to add the run.
• Hitchcock came to the mound with no outs and struck out a pair of ETSU batters and followed retiring the side in the bottom of the seventh.
• Withstandley took second base in the top of the ninth allowing leadoff Anyssa Illiopoulos to hit up the middle on the first pitch sending Withstandley to third. As the Bucs looked to keep Illiopoulos from advancing, Withstandley took advantage scoring to give RU the 3-2 edge.
• The bottom of the inning had a sac bunt by ETSU's Renae Spears put Lauren Lee into scoring position at third. Andrea Sarhatt flew out to right field with Iliopoulos firing home for the double play and the game.

KNIGHT NOTES

• Ashley Hitchcock and Aleah Marra ended the Bash in the Boro hitting .400 going 6-for-15 in RU's five games. Mara added two RBI and two runs. Payton Lincavage and Anyssa Illioupoulos also added in a pair of runs during the weekend.
• The pitching staff has registered double digit strikeouts in three of RU's first five games.  

UP NEXT

The Rutgers softball team returns to action next week at the ACC Big Ten Challenge in Durham, North Carolina. The Scarlet Knights will face Syracuse and host Duke.

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