Rutgers softball concludes West Coast trip with three more wins
The Rutgers softball team kept busy during spring break, taking on a packed schedule across California. The Scarlet Knights (18-11, 0-0) started off their stay in the Golden State with two wins in the Bulldog Classic before taking on UCLA, Cal Baptist and San Diego.
Rutgers squared off with the Bruins (17-6, 3-0) on Tuesday night, falling just short in the final frame. The Knights held a 3-1 lead over No. 15 UCLA in the early innings thanks to a three-run homer from senior outfielder Kayla Bock.
The Bruins responded in the bottom of the third, tying the game and then taking the lead in the fourth. UCLA added on another run in the sixth before Rutgers could get back on the board.
The Knights rallied in the top of the seventh inning, scoring three runs to tie the game up. The Bruins responded with a walk-off single to end the game with a 7-6 victory.
Rutgers left its loss to UCLA in the rearview, though, having a very successful day on Wednesday and beating the Lancers (14-15, 1-1) by a score of 5-0.
Fifth-year pitcher Mattie Boyd tossed six shutout innings for the Knights and struck out seven batters.
Along with Boyd’s strong performance in the circle, Rutgers brought together its offense to put five runs on the board.
Graduate student catcher Katie Wingert etched her name into the Knights’ record books against Cal Baptist, becoming the program’s all-time walks leader with 95.
Rutgers closed out its week with a three-game series against the Toreros (8-23, 0-0), starting on Thursday night.
The Knights and San Diego stayed deadlocked for most of the matchup. Neither team was able to gain much of a lead over their opponent, leading to extra innings.
The Toreros grabbed the 3-2 win in the eighth inning, with the winning run coming home on a bases-loaded walk.
Rutgers bounced back on Friday, taking a massive 13-2 win in game two. The Knights recorded an impressive 14 hits to the opposition’s two.
Rutgers quickly found a 5-0 lead in the opening three innings before San Diego could get on the board.
Following two Torreros runs in the bottom of the third, they were kept scoreless the rest of the way. The Knights scored another eight runs before the game finished.
The contest ended at 13-2 in favor of Rutgers after only six innings.
The Knights finished off their road trip with another victory against San Diego on Saturday, grabbing a series win.
Senior pitcher and outfielder Morgan Smith earned the win for Rutgers, pitching a near-complete game at 6.1 innings.
The Knights got on the board early courtesy of graduate student infielder Payton Lincavage, who brought in the first two runs for her team with a sacrifice fly and a single.
Rutgers put up a three-run seventh inning and locked in the win with a save from Boyd.
The Knights ended their weekend with the 5-3 victory.
Rutgers will return to action on Tuesday when it takes on Virginia before opening up Big Ten play with a weekend series against Ohio State.
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