EWING, N.J. (April 2, 2017) – The Rutgers University-Newark softball team suffered a pair of defeats at the hands of The College of New Jersey Saturday in Ewing in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) opener for both schools.
 
Rutgers fell 3-1 in the opener and 11-4 in the nightcap, dropping to 9-9 overall and 0-2 in the league play. The Scarlet Raiders return to action April 4 against New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) rival William Paterson University on Alumni Field in Newark. It will be the home opener for the Scarlet Raiders. TCNJ moves to 2-0 in the NJAC and 10-6 overall.
 
TCNJ 3, Rutgers-Newark 1
The Lions came out on top in the opener behind a complete-game from hurler Sam Platt. The hosts scored two in the bottom half of the first and added an insurance score in the fifth, while Rutgers pushed across its tally in the top of the second inning to make it a 2-1 game.
 
Junior Kelly Yusko led off the second inning with her team-leading sixth home run of the season, clearing the fence in left field to slice the TCNJ lead in half.
 
Yusko went 2-for-3 with a run scored and an RBI to pace the offense, with junior Kayla Gallo and sophomore Samantha Hoffman each picking up one hit.
 
Yusko tossed the first four innings for the Scarlet Raiders, giving up two runs on four hits, and junior Morgan Walizer went the final two. Walizer allowed one unearned score and did not allow a single hit.
 
TCNJ 11, Rutgers-Newark 4
The Lions took the early lead in the nightcap (3-0), but the Scarlet Raiders quickly came back to tie at three apiece.
 
Freshman Samantha Hoffman drove in two with an RBI single, bringing home freshman Brittany Kalesse and junior Kayla Gallo to make it 3-2 after two. A Walizer ground out served as the equalizer - allowing freshman Sarah Stiehler to score after she was hit by a pitch earlier in the inning - but TCNJ responded with four in its half of the fourth to take a 7-3 edge.
 
Rutgers-Newark battled within three (7-4) thanks to a run in the sixth. Freshman Brittany Kalesse led off the inning with a single up the middle, eventually scoring on a Stiehler double to left field, but four more in the bottom half sealed the win for TCNJ.
 
Yusko went 4.2 frames for the Raiders, scattering eight hits and allowing seven runs. Walizer went 1.1 for Newark, giving up four runs on four hits.
 
Newark totaled eight hits in the second game, getting two from Kalesse who also scored twice. Yusko, Gallo, junior Morgan Schweitzer, Stiehler, Hoffman and junior Elizabeth Marflak all had hits for Rutgers-Newark, while Hoffman led the Raider run producers with two RBI.
 
Kristen Barrera, Sara Bielamowicz and Sam Platt combined on a four-hitter for TCNJ and Platt pocketed the win to move to 5-4.