LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – Jessie Niegocki (Marana, AZ/Mountain View) and Laneya Wright (Tucson, AZ/Marana) each went 3-for-4 and Brianna Koonce (Warminster, PA/William Tennent) added two hits and two RBI's, including the walk-off RBI single in the seventh as the Rider University softball team defeated Saint Peter's, 7-6, in Game 2 to salvage a doubleheader sweep with the Peacocks Tuesday afternoon at Herb & Joan Young Field. With the split, the Broncs move to 14-26 (4-8 MAAC), while the Peacocks are now 25-16 (4-8 MAAC).
 
In Game 1, the Peacocks jumped out in front on a three-run home run from Tai Turner in the first and a solo shot from Jess Forte in the second. Following a two-out walk, Fallyn Stoeckel (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) replaced Niegocki in the circle and the Peacocks plated a fifth run with the help of a hit-by-pitch, a wild pitch and an error, extending their lead to 5-0. A two-out double, followed by a single in the fourth pushed the Peacocks' lead to 6-0.

The Broncs cut the deficit in half with three runs in the bottom of the fifth. Kristyn Gardner's (Perryville, MD/Perryville) single scored Koonce, with Niegocki also scoring on a throwing error on the play. Jadeyn Merrill (Lamesa, TX/Lamesa) then drove in Gianna Epps (Pottstown, PA/Pottstown) with a groundout. But Saint Peter's countered with a five-run top of the sixth to abbreviate the game to six innings. The Peacocks did their damage on four hits and two errors on sacrifice bunts.

Rider struck first in the second inning of Game 2, as Wright reached on a bunt single, moving Niegocki to second base. Two throwing errors on the play allowed both runners to move up an additional two bases, with Niegocki scoring the game's first run. A Koonce groundout plated Wright to make it 2-0 Broncs after two. Saint Peter's responded with a four-run top of the third to take a 4-2 lead. Following a leadoff walk, the Peacocks did all of their damage with two outs on four singles and another walk. The Broncs got a run back in the bottom of the inning, as Niegocki singled, stole second and scored on a Merrill single to make it 4-3. The Peacocks added a solo home run from Anja Solveig Kane in the top of the fourth to push their lead back to 5-3. A Turner double and a Maiah Skakal pitching wedge to shallow left pushed the Peacocks' lead to 6-3 in the top of the fifth.

But the Broncs rallied to earn the walk-off win in the bottom of the seventh. Forte, the Peacocks' shortstop, could only get the tip of her glove on Niegocki's leadoff single up the middle, before a pair of errors, one fielding and one throwing by Forte led to the Broncs' first run of the frame. Olivia Burroughs (Escondido, CA/San Pasqual) followed with an RBI single to score Gardner, cutting the deficit to one, before Wright doubled to left to score Maddie Luedtke (Gibbstown, NJ/Gloucester County Institute of Technology) with the tying run. Koonce then followed with a single back up the middle to score Burroughs with the winning run.
 
Quotes & Notes
"Today was a tough day for us as a team. We collectively started and stayed flat all day. It was good to see that we have some fight left in us to come back and take the second game." - Rider Head Coach Davon Ortega

- Niegocki took both decisions on the day, going 1-1. After being tagged for five runs, four earned, on three hits, a walk and a hit-by-pitch in 1.2 innings of Game 1, she bounced back with 3.2 innings of one-run relief, scattering five hits in Game 2.  
- Stoeckel pitched 4.1 innings of relief in Game 1, allowing six runs, three earned, on seven hits, three walks and a hit-by-pitch. She struck out six.
- Kathryn Schmierer (Racine, WI/Racine Lutheran) started Game 2 in the circle and allowed four earned runs on five hits and a walk.
- Merrill pitched two thirds of an inning in relief in Game 2 and exited after allowing one earned run on two hits and a walk.  
- The Game 1 loss snapped a string of 14-straight losses coming by two runs or less. Still, 17 of Rider's last 21 losses have come by two runs or less.  

Broncs by the Numbers
- Wright, Merrill and Niegocki all contributed four hits on the day.
- Wright doubled, walked, scored a run and drove in one.
- Merrill had a team-best three RBI's.
- Niegocki was 3-for-3 in stolen-base attempts and scored twice.
- Koonce went 3-for-6, walked once, drove in two and scored once.
- Burroughs went 2-for-6 with a walk, two runs scored and an RBI.
- Gardner also added a pair of hits, a run scored and an RBI.
- Epps was hit by a pitch and scored twice.
- Luedtke also scored a run.

Up Next
The Broncs return to action tomorrow, when they travel to Drexel for a 2 p.m. doubleheader in Philadelphia.