CLERMONT, Fla. (March 17, 2017) – The Rutgers University-Newark of softball team split a pair of games Friday. The contests completed the team's 2017 Spring Break trip.
 
R-N (5-5) opened the day with a tight 5-4 loss to Plymouth State University (1-0), but bounced back with a 5-0 shutout win over Carthage College (2-2). In the victory, junior Kelly Yusko tossed a complete-game shutout.
 
"It was great to get the season started, but this week was definitely a test for our team," said Head Coach Kristen Hunt. "We have to continue getting better and understanding our roles, but I think our girls are excited for what lies ahead."
 
Plymouth St. 5, Rutgers-Newark 4
R-N's comeback fell just short in Friday's opener, falling to Plymouth State by a score of 5-4. PSU scored two in the first and three in the third to open a 5-1 lead, but the Scarlet Raiders rallied with a single run in the third and two in the seventh for the final margin.
 
A walk to rookie Brielle Mattiello came back to bite PSU as she scored on a wild pitch to get Newark on the board in the third, and in the fourth, a homer for Yusko – her third of the season – made it a 5-2 contest.
 
In the seventh, the Scarlet Raiders scored two runs on two hits and two errors, nearly coming all the way back. Mattiello doubled and scored, junior Morgan Walizer had a hit and a run scored, but it was not enough as the Raiders dropped the one-run decision.
 
Walizer allowed five runs on 13 hits, striking out two and walking one. She dropped to 2-3 on the season.
 
R-N totaled four hits and three walks in the game, getting single knocks from Walizer, Yusko (HR), Kalesse and Mattiello. Mattiello added two runs and two walks to her line as well.
 
Rutgers-Newark 5, Carthage 0
The Scarlet Raiders snapped a four-game skid in the trip's finale, shutting out Carthage.
 
After leaving two aboard in the first inning, Rutgers-Newark broke through with five runs on three hits in the second. Freshman Brittany Kalesse (HBP), freshman Sarah Stiehler (BB) and junior Elizabeth Marflak (BB) all reached with one out, and Walizer doubled home the first two runs of the game. Later in the inning, junior Sam Held and Yusko picked up RBI hits, and junior Kayla Gallo drove in one with a sac fly.
 
Yusko started in the circle for the Scarlet Raiders, cruising through the first three innings and allowing just two hits over that span. In the fourth, she ran into some trouble as the first two Carthage batters reached, but the third-year standout battled through to keep her team in front 4-0. Yusko again stranded two in the fifth, but she allowed just two total base runners over the final two innings to earn the win (3-2). She struck out two and did not walk a batter.
 
Rutgers-Newark totaled eight hits and six walks in the contest, while Carthage totaled nine hits.
 
Held went 3-for-4 with an RBI to lead the Rutgers-Newark offense. Schweitzer went 2-for-4 with a run, and Walizer, Yusko and Mattiello had one hit apiece. Kalesse drew three walks as well for the Raiders.
 
What's next? The Scarlet Raider softball team will head back to New Jersey Saturday and their next game is to be determined. The team's doubleheader with Drew University slated for Tuesday is postponed because of snow. Updates to the schedule will be posted at www.rutgersnewarkathletics.com as they are finalized.