PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers softball returned to the win column in Sunday's series finale with Purdue with a 9-0 run-rule victory over the Boilermakers. The Scarlet Knights exploded for five runs in the first and added four more in the fourth taking the victory in five innings.
The win improved RU to 27-12 and 4-2 in the Big Ten while the Boilermakers dropped to 17-19 overall and 2-6 in league play.
Rutgers 9, Purdue 0 - 5 innings
- Jaden Vickers tossed her first complete-game shutout of the season and tied her season eight with eight strikeouts.
- Altogether Rutgers hit five doubles with three of the five extra-base hits scoring runs.
- Katie Wingert was 2-for-2 with a double and home run totaling three RBIs.
- Maddie Lawson was also 2-for-2 with a double. She posted two runs scored and a pair of RBIs.
- Kayla Bock had a double that drove in a pair of runs, while Ryann Orange also delivered an RBI extra-base hit.
- Rutgers held a 5-0 lead at the end of one inning of play with all five runs coming with two outs. Katie Wingert drove a 3-1 count down the left field line for two runs and her sixth home run of the season. The hits kept coming with a single by Calista Collins and a double by Maddie Lawson leading to back-to-back RBI doubles by Kayla Bock and Ryann Orange.
- The Scarlet Knights got out of a bases-loaded jam in the third. With the Boilermakers occupying all three bases with no outs, Jaden Vickers sent down a pair on strikeout and Rutgers got out of the top half on a pop-up to first caught by Lauren Punk.
- RU added another four in the fourth. Wingert drove in Kyleigh Sand for her team-leading 42nd run of the year while Maddie Lawson knocked in a pair of runs with a base hit thru the left side scoring pinch hitter Leilani Chavez and pinch runner Lily Orozco. Lawson added the final score of the day scoring on a wild pitch.
- It was the ninth run-rule win of the season for Rutgers and the fifth time in five innings.
- The contest was also RU's sixth shutout of the year.
- Jaden Vickers tied her season-high with eight strikeouts. She also fanned eight in a 5-1 win at UC Davis back on Feb. 11 during opening weekend.
- Katie Wingert swung for her 29th career home run. She is one home run away from moving into a tie for third all-time at Rutgers alongside Becca Hall (2016-18). It was also the sixth home run for Wingert this season. She needs three more to move into the single-season top 10 list.
- Wingert also had her team-leading 13th double of the season, which moved her into a seven-way tie for seventh on the single-season leaders list. She needs one more double to move into a tie for fifth with Brittney Lindley (2011) and Jess Hughes (2019).
- Maddie Lawson tied her career and season highs in hits (2) and runs (2) and along with a season-high in RBIs (2). It was her third game this season and fifth of her career with two hits, the fourth game of the season and eighth of her career with two runs and the second game of the season with a pair of runs batted in.
- Rutgers has logged three or more doubles in six of its last seven games.
- Katie Wingert led the offense hitting .625 (5-for-8) with two doubles and a home run. The redshirt senior totaled her three RBIs in the series finale.
- Calista Collins batted .400 (2-for-5) with an RBI and a run scored.
- Morgan Smith collected three hits and two doubles and hit .333 on the weekend.
- Jaden Vickers led the pitching corps with 6.1 innings of work in her two appearances striking out nine while allowing no runs and giving up only three hits.
Rutgers is back in action for a mid-week doubleheader clash with Maryland on Wednesday, April 5. Game one is slated for a 1 p.m. start with the second game approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of game one. Admission to the Rutgers Softball Complex is free.
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