ARLINGTON, TX – The Rider Softball pitching staff of
Jessie Niegocki (Marana, AZ/Mountain View) and
Jadeyn Merrill (Lamesa, TX/Lamesa) limited Kansas City to just one hit, but the Broncs fell to the Roos, 5-0, Sunday morning to wrap up play at the Boerner Invitational. Kansas City pitcher Katie Noble limited the Broncs to just three walks, in a no-hit effort. With the loss, the Broncs fall to 3-7, while the Roos are now 5-13.
A walk and three errors in the bottom of the first allowed the Roos to strike first and take a 1-0 lead after one. The Roos got their first, and only, hit of the game in the bottom of the fourth, a leadoff home run from Nichols to push the lead to 2-0. Noble faced the minimum through four, erasing the only baserunner, Burroughs, who'd walked, with a second-inning-ending double play.
Burroughs walked again in the fifth, but Noble got a pair of groundouts to end the inning. Two walks, a hit-by-pitch and an error plated a run in the bottom of the fourth for Kansas City and signaled the end of the day for Niegocki in the circle. Merrill entered with the bases loaded and issued a run-scoring walk and hit-by-pitch to run the Roos' lead to 5-0, before getting an inning-ending groundout.
Julia Harsche (Staten Island, NY/St. Joseph-by-the-Sea) led off the seventh with a walk, before Noble got the next three outs on a sacrifice bunt and a pair of popouts to complete the no-hitter.
Quotes & Notes
"We did not come to the field ready to play today. We weren't aggressive and stayed flat the entire game."
– Rider Head Coach Davon Ortega
- Niegocki was charged for all five runs, but just one earned, on one hit, five walks and a hit-by-pitch. She struck out two.
- Merrill didn't allow a hit in 1.2 innings of relief, but walked two and hit a batter.
Broncs by the Numbers
- Burroughs reached safely twice on a pair of walks.
- Harsche also walked in her only plate appearance.
- The Broncs reached second base twice in the fifth and seventh innings.
Up Next
The Broncs return to action Friday, when they take part in the Marshall Thundering Herd March Madness. The Broncs will play Cleveland State (10 a.m.) and Winthrop (1 p.m.) on Friday, Marshall (1 p.m.) and Winthrop (3 p.m.) on Saturday and Marshall (11:30 a.m.) on Sunday.
