BLOOMINGTON, Ind. – Rutgers softball came back to score three runs in the fourth and extend its lead to 4-2 in the top of the fifth, but the host Indiana Hoosiers punched back to take game one of the weekend series, 6-4.

The Scarlet Knights dropped to 23-16 overall and 1-6 in Big Ten action. The Hoosiers upped their mark to 20-10 overall and 3-4 in league play having bounced back and forth between the win and loss columns over the last nine contests.
 

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Sophomore Kyleigh Sand was 2-for-4 with her team-leading 40th run of the year.
• Junior Taylor Fawcett and freshman Maddie Lawson hit 1-for-3 with both scoring a run.
• Ashley Hitchcock threw 4.1 innings giving up four hits and four earned runs in the loss falling to 9-12 on the season. She caught a trio of Hoosiers at the plate on strikes.

THE RUNDOWN

• The Hoosiers claimed a 2-0 advantage at the end of three innings of play. A passed ball scored Aaliyah Andrews in the second and Taylor Minnick led off the third with a solo home run to right.
• Indiana errors allowed Rutgers to get onto the scoreboard and eventually take the lead in the fourth. The Hoosiers tried to catch Gabrielle Callaway taking second, but the misfire from the catcher allowed the Scarlet Knights to put runners in scoring position. A miscue at third followed on Taylor Fawcett's at-bat allowing Callaway to score and Maddie Lawson to advance to third. Lawson went on to knot the score at 2-2 as she tagged up on a foul fly by Leilani Chavez. RU then claimed the lead as Kobie Hura smacked in an RBI double to center field to bring home Fawcett.
• Rutgers extended its lead to 4-2 the following inning. A choppy grounder to first caused the Hoosiers to dive to the base to get out Gabrielle Callaway, but in the meantime, Kyleigh Sand used her speed to race home from second base for the run.
• The hosts took back the lead in the fifth. The Hoosiers put on pair off walks allowing an RBI single by Brittany Ford and two-RBI double Grayson Radcliffe for a 5-4 edge.
  Indiana added an insurance run in the sixth off a base hit to right from Brianna Copeland.

UP NEXT

Rutgers and Indiana meet again on Saturday. The Scarlet Knights and Hoosiers square off on BTN with Connor Onion and Elise Menaker on the call at 7:30 p.m.

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