Iowa Takes Series Opener From Softball

May 02 | Softball

Box Score Box Score

IOWA CITY, Iowa – Rutgers and Iowa softball were deadlocked at 3-3 heading into the bottom of the seventh, but it was the Hawkeyes plating the game-winning run on a miscue with one out to walk off with the 4-3 victory in the opening game of the weekend series.

Iowa 4, Rutgers 3

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

Graduate student LA Matthews belted her eighth home run of the season with her two-run shot moving her to within two RBIs of the Rutgers season top 10. She now has 41 RBIs on the year.
Senior Georgia Ingle was 2-for-3 with an RBI double.
Senior Laurelai DePew started in the circle, tossing 1.1 innings and giving up three runs on three hits. Freshman Kelsey Hoekstra dropped to 6-11 on the year, capturing four strikeouts and allowing one hit.

T6 | It's a bounce out of the house ‼️

LA with her 8️⃣th HR of the year and now ✌️ RBIs away from the season top 🔟 in the record book#GoRU ⚔️ pic.twitter.com/mpUhpecSBw
— Rutgers Softball (@RUSoftball) May 2, 2025

THE RUNDOWN

The Scarlet Knights got onto the scoreboard in the top of the second. Baileigh Burtis led off with a single thru the right side and advanced to second on a sac bunt by Riley Hwang. Georgia Ingle brought the freshman home with a stand-up double to left center.
The Hawkeyes, however, countered in the bottom of the inning with Devin Simon delivering a three-run home run to center.
RU tied up the ballgame in the sixth on LA Matthew's eighth home run of the season. Bailey Briggs reached on a fielder's choice and Matthews followed, taking a 1-1 count deep to right center where the ball bounced on the top of the wall and over to knot the score at 3-3.
The Scarlet Knights escaped a bases-loaded bottom of the sixth but could not extend the game to extra innings after a bases-loaded seventh. The Hawkeyes were all aboard after a trio of walks and one out as an infield miscue off the bat of Simon allowed Iowa to push across the game-winning run.