CAMDEN, N.J. (April 7, 2026) – Junior lefty Sammie Friel reminded everyone what a dominant pitcher she can be.
 
Friel hurled a three-hit shutout to help the Rutgers University-Camden softball team split a New Jersey Athletic Conference doubleheader against nationally-ranked Stockton University here Tuesday.
 
After the 15th-ranked Ospreys posted a 9-2 win in the opening game, Friel shut down Stockton for a 1-0 win in the nightcap.
 
The split leaves the Scarlet Raptors at 7-11 overall and 2-6 in the NJAC. Stockton, which rose from #19 nationally in last week's National Fastpitch Coaches Association Division III poll to #15 in the new rankings released Tuesday, fell to 21-3 overall and 7-1 in the conference.
 
The Scarlet Raptors play a non-conference doubleheader at DeSales University on Thursday, beginning at 4 p.m., and travel to Rutgers-Newark for a 1 p.m. conference doubleheader on Saturday. They return home on Tuesday at 3 p.m. to face nationally-ranked Rowan University.
   
The Scarlet Raptors grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning on an error and a pair of singles, with junior shortstop Ava Iepson driving home the run. Stockton, however, stormed back in the third inning with four runs, featuring a leadoff home run by freshman shortstop Emily Clauss and a three-run homer by junior third baseman Alexa Panagopoylos.
 
The Ospreys added three unearned runs in the fourth inning and tacked on single runs in the fifth and sixth innings.
 
Rutgers-Camden scored its other run in the third inning on a double by junior third baseman Alana Gannon and an RBI single by freshman first baseman Kaede Walsh.
 
Panagopoylos finished the game going 2-for-3 with one run and four RBIs to lead a 12-hit Stockton attack.
 
Sophomore Casey Sokol (7-1) worked four innings of shutout relief to earn the win for the Lions, while Raptor freshman starter Natalie D'Angelo took the first loss of her career to fall to 2-1.
 
Iepson and Gannon had two hits apiece for Rutgers-Camden.
   
Friel was outstanding in the nightcap as she out-dueled Stockton junior Lexi Liquori. Friel allowed only three hits, one walk and three hit batters while hurling her first shutout of the season and sixth of her career. She worked out of jams in the first two innings, stranding five runners, and allowed only two baserunners the rest of the way to raise her record to 4-5.
 
Liquori (7-1) also was tough, hurling a four-hitter with three walks and one hit batsman. She struck out one in her first loss of the season.
 
The only run of the game came in the fifth inning when sophomore designated player Zoie Mantzell hit a leadoff single and Iepson walked. Freshman Sade Whittingham ran for Mantzell and both runners advanced on a sacrifice by junior center fielder Kali Baker. One out later, Friel's batterymate, junior catcher Madi Carr, singled into short right field to score Whittingham. Although the trailing runner, Iepson, was thrown out at the plate to end the inning, Friel made the one run stand up. She retired the side in order in the seventh inning on a grounder to first base and a swinging strikeout, before ending the game in style with a comebacker to the circle that she fielded and threw to first base for the final out.