LEESBURG, Fla. -- Rutgers softball is back and opened the 2025 campaign at the Spring Games with a 6-2 victory over Horizon League Champion Cleveland State while freshman Ella Harrison made her circle debut with 10 strikeouts in an 8-1 set back to MTSU.

Rutgers 6, Cleveland State 2

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• The Scarlet Knights put away three runs in the top of the first and never looked back.
• Redshirt freshman Hailey Stripling made her Scarlet Knight debut scoring three of RU's six runs.
• Senior Jillian Anderson was 2-for-2 with an RBI double.
• Graduate student LA Matthews added a pair of RBIs.
• Inside the circle, freshman Kelsey Hoekstra went six innings, allowing two earned runs on eight hits. Senior Laurelai DePew finished out the game with a pair of strikeouts in the bottom of the seventh

THE RUNDOWN

• Rutgers plated three in its first at-bat of the season. Hailey Stripling led off with a walk and rounded the bases two batters later on a hard hit to short from LA Matthews. Matthews later scored on a passed ball while Bailey Briggs delivered a single setting up Baileigh Burtis to score for the 3-0 edge.
• The Vikings responded with a pair of runs in their first at-bat to cut into the RU lead. With runners in scoring position, Kylie Gorsuch used a sac fly to get onto the scoreboard while Delaney Ellis singled to center field with two outs for the RBIs.
• Jillian Anderson added some cushion in the third cracking a double to left field for Stripling's second run of the game. Stripling reached on an error and stole second to take advantage of Anderson's extra-base hit.
• The Scarlet Knights got out of a jam in the bottom of the fifth as Cleveland State had Vikings in scoring position with two outs. Pitcher Kelsey Hoesktra came up with a big stop inside the circle to retire the side.
• RU took advantage of fielding miscues in the sixth to push its lead out to 6-2. Addie Osborne led off with a single to first while Hailey Stripling reached on a dropped ball at first on a sac bunt. Anderson followed, also attempting to advance runners on a bunt, but the throw from the third base line missed its target, pushing Osborne across. Matthews followed with a sac fly to left giving Stripling her third run of the game. 
• Laurelai DePew closed out the game catching the final two Vikings swinging.

MTSU 8, Rutgers 1

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Ella Harrison notched double-figure strikeouts in the start. Sending down 10 Blue Raiders on strikes, Harrison became the first Scarlet Knight freshman pitcher since Jaden Vickers in 2020 to debut with double-figure Ks. 
• The game was tied 1-1 when MTSU put up six in the top of the fourth to take the lead.
• RU generated hits from seven different Scarlet Knights with pinch hitter Kelsie Riggan scoring RU's lone run in the third.
• Senior Georgia Ingle finished the final two innings with one run on one hit and a pair of strikeouts.

 

THE RUNDOWN

• While Ella Harrion's first appearance on the rubber resulted in a trio of Blue Raiders going down swinging, it was MTSU's Ansley Blevins who put her squad on the scoreboard first with an RBI double to right.
• Rutgers knotted the score at 1-1 in the third. Hailey Stripling singled up the middle as pinch runner Kelsie Riggans scored from second base.
• MTSU came up big in the sixth, capturing six runs on seven hits, including an Ava Brooks two-run home run and a two-RBI triple to right center for Macie Harter. Harter would later score on a wild pitch and A Harvey added an RBI single to left.
• Harter led off the sixth with a double and plated the final run of the game off a Blevins sac fly to left. 

UP NEXT

Rutgers is back in action at the Spring Games in Leesburg, Florida against Louisville at 1:00 p.m. and the first of two meetings this weekend against CUSA Champion Liberty, ranked 24th by D1Softball, at 3:30 p.m. Games will be streamed on Fast Pitch Network TV with live stats available at statbroadcast.com.

Follow Rutgers softball on Facebook, X and Instagram.