LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – Fallyn Stoeckel (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) went 2-for-2 and Kendall Reda-Fehsal (Succasunna, NJ/Roxbury) drove in two as the Rider University softball team defeated Mount St. Mary's, 6-2, Wednesday afternoon for a three-game sweep. With the sweep, the Broncs have won seven-straight games to improve to 20-24 (12-6 MAAC), while the Mountaineers fall to 10-28 (3-14 MAAC).

The Mountaineers opened the scoring in the top of the first with the first two batters reaching on a walk and a fielder's choice on a squeeze bunt attempt after the Broncs attempted to cut down the runner from third, but she retreated to first. Tori Bowles then ripped a two-run double to center, scoring both runners. Rider would respond in the bottom of the inning with three runs. Jessie Niegocki (Marana, AZ/Mountain View) led off with a walk and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. She then scored on Kristyn Gardner's (Perryville, MD/Perryville) two-out bloop single behind short. Following an error on the next at bat, Reda-Fehsal split the left-center field gap for a two-run double, giving Rider the 3-2 lead.

Rider added three more unearned runs in the bottom of the fourth. The first run scored as the Mountaineers attempted to complete a 3-6 double play with runners on first and second. The first baseman stepped on the bag and threw on target to second base for a tag play. But the tag came late and the ball slipped out of the shortstop's glove, allowing Kiersten Buchanan (Holly Springs, NC/Holly Springs) to score from third. A nasty hop on an Abby Cruz (Corona, CA/Santiago) grounder to third allowed another Rider run to score, before Niegocki capped the scoring with an RBI single through the left side.  

Broncs starting pitcher Kathryn Schmierer (Racine, WI/Racine Lutheran) did the rest, holding The Mount off the scoreboard for the final six innings for her fifth win of the year.

Notes
- Schmierer went the distance in the win, allowing two earned runs on five hits, three walks and a hit-by-pitch over 7.0 innings. She struck out three.
- Rider has a seven-game winning streak for the third-straight season. The last time the Broncs won more than seven in a row was an eight-game winning streak from April 27 through May 2, 2006, when they won eight in a row.
- With six-straight league wins, the Broncs (12-6, .667) have vastly improved their league standing, moving into third place, 1.5 games back of first-place Marist (13-4, .765) and 1.0 game back of second-place Niagara (13-5, .722).

Broncs by the Numbers
- Stoeckel went 2-for-2 with a pair of singles, a walk and a sacrifice bunt.
- Reda-Fehsal doubled and drove in two.
- Niegocki singled, walked, drove in one run and scored another.
- Gardner had a hit, a run scored and an RBI.
- Buchanan walked and scored twice.
- Olivia Burroughs (Escondido, CA/San Pasqual) walked and scored a run.
- Cruz had a pinch-hit RBI single.
- Re-entering to run for Cruz, Olivia Smith (Freehold, NJ/Freehold Township) scored a run.

Up Next
The Broncs return to action Friday, when they travel to Niagara for a three-game MAAC series. Originally scheduled for Saturday and Sunday, the series has been shifted due to poor weather in the forecast. First pitch of the Friday doubleheader is scheduled for 2 p.m., before Saturday's first pitch time is currently slated for noon.