April 29, 2006 - Rider 3 Saint Peter's 1 / Rider 8 Saint Peter's 0
April 29, 2006
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
College Softball
Rider University 3, Saint Peter’s College 1
Rider University 8, Saint Peter’s College 0 (6 innings)
LAWRENCEVILLE—The eight step program. After a doubleheader split with Marist on April 10th left the Broncs at 2-6 in the Metro Atlantic Athletic conference, eight games remained on the conference schedule. A quick look into the historical records of the league strongly suggested that 10 wins would be necessary to have a chance at the playoffs. Eight wins in eight remaining league games. Eight small steps. Rider continued the mission on Saturday, winning its third and fourth league games in a row, sweeping Saint Peter’s in a MAAC doubleheader.
For Rider (19-22, 6-6 MAAC), senior Heather Beintema (La Mesa, Calif./Grossmont) won both games, recording 10 strikeouts on the day. Beintema threw a complete game two-hitter in game one and went five innings, allowing just one hit in the second game. Beintema now has 62 career wins at Rider.
“The way we played at the beginning of the MAAC schedule, we weren’t getting the job done,” said Beintema. “We are being forced to take it one pitch, one inning at a time and can’t look at the big picture. We just have to stay focused on what we still have to do.”
With the score tied at one in the third inning of game one, freshman Katy Mills (Seattle, Wash./Mount Rainier) scored on a wild pitch to give the Broncs a 2-1 lead. Rider added an insurance run in the fourth on a home run by senior Jill Carrabus (Bellport, N.Y./Bellport). Carrabus had three hits and four RBI’s in the doubleheader.
“We are on a mission and I would not want to face our team right now,” said Carrabus. “I have fear for any team that may get in our way of our mission.”
In the second game, the Broncs opened a 4-0 lead after three innings, keyed by RBI singles from junior Nichole Mears (Simi Valley, Calif./Royal) and Carrabus. Mears had five hits and two RBI’s on the day.
“It’s come down to focusing on one pitch at a time and getting one run at a time,” Mears said. “We know that the players on the team are behind each other and we need to bring that same effort into the doubleheader against Siena on Sunday.”
The Broncs put Saint Peter’s (19-20-1, 1-7 MAAC) away with a three-run sixth inning, with senior Kristen Kenavan (Staten Island, N.Y./Tottenville) hitting a two-run single to end the game. Kenavan had two hits in the second game.
“We are on a mission,” said head coach Tricia Carroll. “We started the season over, starting with the Iona doubleheader. We are playing with more energy; we know the team we have, step five and six are tomorrow and we can’t look past anyone. We need to focus on each pitch, each batter, each play, each inning. We will come into tomorrow and do the same thing, win every single pitch and work as a collective unit with all of us together.”
“There was some concern today because Saint Peter’s is very capable,” Carroll added. "They have had a tough year and we played very good defense to not allow them to get any momentum. We have to come back tomorrow with the same focus. We have a great group of kids, they all work hard all the time. The lack of success in the beginning of the MAAC schedule had nothing to do with their work ethic. It’s just something we had to work through and I told the team that I want all of us to have done everything we could to compete and hopefully make the playoffs. That was our goal to finish the season.”
Also for Rider, senior Jen Cullen (Lake Hopatcong, N.J./Immaculata) had three hits and made a diving play at the centerfield fence to end the third inning with a Saint Peter’s runner on base.
“We put ourselves in the situation and we just have to play our way out of the situation and leave everything on the field,” said Cullen. “We are playing hard and we know what we still have to do,” Cullen added.
With the mission not so impossible, Rider hosts Siena College in a MAAC doubleheader on Sunday.
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