NEW ROCHELLE, NY – Anna-Marie Groskritz (Granby, CT/Granby Memorial) pitched 7.2 innings without allowing an earned run, but the sixth-seeded Rider University softball team dropped a heartbreaker, 1-0, in eight innings to top-seeded Marist in the MAAC Championships winners bracket final on Saturday at Iona's Donald E. Walsh Field. With the loss, the Broncs (25-33) move on to an elimination game Saturday at approximately 4 p.m. against the winner between No. 2 Fairfield and No. 4 Siena. Marist (46-7-1) moves on to the championship round tomorrow.

Groskritz deftly pitched around traffic in the first three innings, as the Red Foxes put two on via infield singles in the first, a walk in the second and two singles in the third. On the latest occasion, the Red Foxes got their first base hit out of the infield. But Fallyn Stoeckel (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) came up throwing from right field to catch Peyton Pusey trying to score from second on the play and keep the game scoreless.

Shelby Dyer (Clarksboro, NJ/Kingsway Regional) produced the Broncs only hit on the game with a single inside the bag at third to lead off the fourth. Kendall Reda-Fehsal (Succasunna, NJ/Roxbury) drew a two-out walk to put runners on first and second, but Kiersten Buchanan (Holly Springs, NC/Holly Springs) lined out to second to end the threat.

Groskritz would retire the next 10 batters she faced, before the Red Foxes' Sienna Kunze hit a line drive to left that got over the charging left fielder's head for a double. But Groskritz settled and got a pop out and a flyout for the first two outs. After a bloop single over Groskritz's head and in front of the middle infielders put runners on the corners, Groskritz escaped the jam by striking out Marist pinch hitter Anna Sidlowski to send the game to extra innings.

Miah McDonald doubled just inside the foul line to the left field corner with one out in the bottom of the eighth, before Groskritz got Haley Ahr to fly out for the second out. Groskritz looked to have gotten out of the inning with a pop up on the infield, but it was dropped, allowing the winning run to score.

Notes
- Groskritz took the tough luck loss, allowing one unearned run on seven hits, just three of which left the infield. She struck out two.
- Groskritz has now gone 21.2 innings in the 2025 MAAC Championships without allowing an earned run.   

Broncs by the Numbers
- Dyer had the Broncs' lone hit on the game, a single in the fourth. She also drew a walk.
- Stoeckel and Olivia Burroughs (Escondido, CA/San Pasqual) also drew one walk each.   

Up Next
The Broncs move on to face the winner of Saturday's second game between No. 2 Fairfield and No. 4 Siena at approximately 4 p.m. (25 minutes following the conclusion of the Fairfield/Siena game).