DECATUR, Ga. – It was two wins to close out the final nonconference weekend at the Bob Heck Memorial Tournament for the softball Scarlet Knights.

Dezaria Johnson picked up her first RU victory in a 3-1 win over Colgate and then, after a two-hour rain delay, Ella Harrison produced her fourth consecutive complete-game shutout and recorded her sixth game in double-figure strikeouts as the Scarlet Knights downed host Georgia State, 8-0, in five innings. 

Rutgers 3, Colgate 1

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Freshman Dezaria Johnson picked up her first Scarlet Knight victory tossing all seven innings for the complete-game win. She allowed one run on eight hits while striking out two.
• Jillian Anderson posted a run and RBI, while LA Matthews with 2-for-3 with an RBI.
• Redshirt freshman Hailey Stripling and junior Siera Hoekstra also scored runs in the win.

THE RUNDOWN

• Rutgers took a 2-0 lead in the third inning. With two outs, Jillian Anderson went to first after getting hit at the plate. Hailey Stripling followed with a grounder to third, but the catch at first was dropped allowing  Anderson to score. RU added another run at the next at-bat as a LA Matthews single to right plated Anderson.
• Colgate got onto the scoreboard in the fifth leading off the inning with a solo home run from Mia Cascio.
• RU, however, got the run back at the bottom of the inning on a sac fly from Anderson. Siera Hoekstra singled to center, advanced to second on a wild pitch and took third on a grounder to the pitcher from her sister, Kelsey, before scoring on Anderson's line out.

Rutgers 8, Georgia State 0

STATISTICALLY SPEAKING

• Ella Harrison made it 33-straight innings without allowing an earned run with her fourth-consecutive shutout. The rookie right-hander struck out 10 Panthers marking her sixth game in double-figure strikeouts. She allow only two hits and one walk to improve to 8-7 on the season.
• Rutgers had seven hits from six different Scarlet Knights led by junior designated player Kelsey Hoekstra going 2-for-2 with two RBIs on a double and run scored.
• Freshman Kelsey Riggan blasted her first career home run for two runs.
• Senior Jillian Anderson also came across home plate twice.
• Redshirt freshman Hailey Stripling and redshirt sophomore Bailey Briggs both collected RBI base hits.
• Other Scarlet Knights scoring were freshmen Siera Hoekstra and Addie Osborne.

THE RUNDOWN

• Rutgers jumped out to an early lead with a 1-0 lead after the top half. Leadoff Jillian Anderson came aboard by being hit by a pitch and later scored on a LA Matthews sac fly.
• The Scarlet Knights exploded for seven runs on seven hits and an error in the second. Kelsie Riggan started off the barrage with a two-run shot over the right field fence for her first RU home run. The bases were loaded for Hailey Stripling to deliver an RBI single to shallow left. With all the bases still occupied by the Scarlet Knights, Bailey Briggs collected an RBI single to right to score Addie Osborne and Anderson came across on a miscue by the Panthers extending RU's lead to 6-0. Rutgers went thru the batting order as Kelsey Hoekstra came to the plate to get the ball past the GSU first baseman and down the line to add two more.

UP NEXT

 Rutgers softball is home at the Rutgers Softball Complex for the first time in 2025. RU will host Wagner in nonconference action on Tuesday, March 11 at 3 p.m. before welcoming Maryland on March 14-16 for the Big Ten opener.

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