ASTON, Penn. (April 25, 2024) – The Rutgers University-Camden softball team exploded for five runs in the second inning here Thursday and went on to defeat Neumann University, 8-4, earning a split of the non-conference doubleheader.
 
Neumann won the opening game, 4-0, on the strength of four unearned runs.
 
The split leaves Rutgers-Camden with a 15-23 record, while Neumann is 14-24.
 
The Scarlet Raptors close out the regular season on Saturday with a 1 p.m. doubleheader at Rutgers-Newark in contests that will determine the six-team field for the New Jersey Athletic Conference playoffs. Rutgers-Camden enters the doubleheader with a 5-11 conference record, tied for sixth place with Montclair State University, but both teams also are only one game ahead of New Jersey City University and two games ahead of Rutgers-Newark and William Paterson University.
   
The Knights scored three unearned runs in the fourth inning and another unearned run in the fifth as they won a pitching duel between a pair of juniors, Rutgers-Camden's Lindsey Rodzon and Neumann's Olivia Ammon.
 
Neumann broke open a scoreless game with three hits and two errors in the fourth inning, then used one hit and one error to plate another unearned run in the fifth.
 
Rodzon (2-13) allowed nine hits and one walk in her complete-game effort, while striking out one. Ammon tossed a five-hit shutout, striking out one, to raise her record to 6-7.
 
Olivia Ammon and her sophomore sister and catcher Emily Ammon both had two hits for Neumann.
   
The Scarlet Raptors plated five runs on only two hits in the top of the second inning to take the lead for good. Sophomore shortstop Gianna Bauer opened the frame getting hit with a pitch. Junior catcher Kendall Lafferty reached on an error on her sacrifice bunt and sophomore first baseman Bella Lynch loaded the bases with a walk. Sophomore second baseman Mia Owens drove home the first run while reaching on a fielder's choice that didn't retire anyone, and freshman designated player Alana Gannon followed with a two-run double. Senior center fielder Alexa McNee drove home one run with a ground out and junior left fielder Emily Dubiago capped the rally with an RBI single up the middle.
 
After Neumann closed the gap to 5-2 with a pair of third-inning runs, Rutgers-Camden notched an unearned run in the fourth on an error, a single by Dubiago and a fielder's choice bunt by sophomore right fielder Ava Maloof, driving home the run.
 
The Knights scored two more runs in the fifth inning to make it a 6-4 game, but Rutgers-Camden bounced back with a pair of runs in the top of the sixth on four hits. The big hit was a two-run single by Lafferty.
 
Freshman Anna Milillo (5-2) hurled a seven-hitter for the win, allowing five walks and four earned runs.
 
Rutgers-Camden finished with 14 hits, the most by the Scarlet Raptors since 16-hit outputs in their first two games of the season.
 
Dubiago led the attack by going 3-for-5 with one RBI, while McNee and Lafferty both had two hits. Lafferty and Gannon both had two RBIs, while Bauer scored two runs.
 
Sophomore left fielder Cioni Simmons went 3-for-4 for Neumann.