LAWRENCEVILLE, NJ – The Rider University softball team claimed the rubber game of the series Sunday, defeating Manhattan, 11-3, in five innings. The Broncs move to 8-12 on the season and 3-3 in MAAC play, while the Jaspers are now 5-15 on the year, and 1-2 in league games.
Keegan St. Cyr (Hopkinton, NH/Hopkinton) drew a one-out walk in the bottom of the first.
Maddie Luedtke (Gibbstown, NJ/Gloucester County Institute of Technology) then ripped a single down the third-base line. Two-batters later,
Emma Morgan (Mechanicsburg, PA/Cumberland Valley) doubled to the gap in right-center, scoring the pair and staking Rider to the early 2-0 lead.
The Jaspers with a run in the second and another in the third to tie the game.
Aspen Wheeler (Lampasas, TX/Lampasas) came through with a leadoff walk in the bottom of the third. St. Cyr followed with a double to put runners on second and third with no outs. Luedtke then delivered an RBI single to left to give Rider back the lead, and St. Cyr came in to score on a sacrifice fly later in the inning.
The Broncs added on more runs in the fourth.
Fallyn Stoeckel (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) led of the inning with a triple, then scored on a hard-hit infield single from
Kiersten Buchanan (Holly Springs, NC/Holly Springs). After Wheeler and St. Cyr singled to load the bases, Buchanan scored on a sacrifice fly, extending the lead to 6-2. The Jaspers would get one back in the top of the fifth.
Morgan led off the bottom of the fifth by drawing a walk. Kendal Reda-Fehsal (Succasunna, NJ/Roxbury) then singled through the right side and Stoeckel walked to load the bases with no outs. Morgan came in with two outs on a sacrifice fly to make it 7-3. Wheeler then hit an infield single to score a run. St. Cyr followed with a two-run double to push the lead to 10-3. Luedtke delivered the walk-off hit flaring a ball into shallow left field that deflected off the outstretched glove of the Jaspers shortstop to give Rider the 11-3 win.
Quotes & Notes
"We came out with a different mindset. We talked about coming out with an attacking mindset, and stayed with it for the full five. As a team we said, you have to go out and take it instead of letting them hang around, so it was important for us today to create some momentum. "
– Head Coach Davon Ortega
"We knew we had to come out and win it for Fallyn's birthday. We needed to come in with a fight and take it to them. I was ready to attack and get the job done. I wanted to end it, and get the game done in five."
– Senior Outfielder Maddie Luedtke
- Stoeckel got the start in the circle, throwing all five innings, allowing three runs, two earned, on nine hits.
Broncs By The Numbers
- St. Cyr and Luedtke led the Broncs, each going 3-for-3 at the plate in the game.
- Wheeler added a pair of hits in the contest.
- Morgan, Reda-Fehsal, Stoeckel, and Buchanan each finished with a hit.
- St. Cyr scored a team-high three runs with Wheeler and Stoeckel each scoring twice.
- Luedtke and Morgan both delivered three RBIs.
Up Next
The Broncs remain home, hosting Seton Hall for a double-header Tuesday at 2 p.m.
