Camden, NJ:  Sophomore first baseman Janet Brown (Point Pleasant, NJ) hit a tie-breaking opposite-field home run in the bottom of the sixth inning to lift the Ramapo College softball team to a 2-1 victory in the nightcap and complete a New Jersey Athletic Conference sweep over Rutgers University-Camden here Saturday.

Ramapo won the opener, 8-0, on a one-hitter by senior pitcher Deanna Giordano (Clifton, NJ/Clifton). The game was called after six innings due to the eight-run rule. The doubleheader was the first NJAC action for both teams this season. Ramapo, which has won seven straight games, improves to 13-1 overall and 2-0 in the NJAC. Rutgers-Camden falls to 7-9 overall and 0-2 in the conference.

Both teams return to NJAC action with 3 p.m. road doubleheaders on Tuesday. Rutgers-Camden plays at #19-ranked The College of New Jersey, while Ramapo visits William Paterson University.

In the opening game, Giordano was in control as she allowed only an infield single to Rutgers-Camden junior centerfielder Lauren Hatzelhoffer (Brick, NJ) leading off the bottom of the first inning. Only two other Raptors reached base all game long, with sophomore leftfielder Christina Tamburrino (Williamstown, NJ) being hit by a pitch in the second inning and junior rightfielder Vicki D'Anduono (Lanoka Harbor, NJ) reaching to lead off the fifth when her deep fly ball was dropped in left-center.

Giordano (6-1) didn't walk a batter and struck out six. Ramapo, meanwhile, scored the only run it needed in the first inning when junior leftfielder Tiffany Fischer (Woodcliff Lake, NJ) singled to right, raced to third on a single by junior rightfielder Danielle Rothenberger (Livingston, NJ) and scored on a fielder's choice by sophomore centerfielder Ashley Schirripa (Staten Island, NY).

The Roadrunners sent nine batters to the plate in a five-run second inning, highlighted by two-run singles from Fischer and Rothenberger. Ramapo added single runs in the fifth and sixth, with an RBI single by freshman pinch-hitter Casa Maloney (Pompton Plains, NJ) scoring the eighth and final run.

For the game, Fischer went 4-for-4 with three runs and two RBIs. Rothenberger went 2-for-3 with two RBIs.
Raptor junior starter Amanda Cassella (Atco, NJ) took the loss, working three innings and allowing three walks, six hits and six earned runs. She struck out four.

In the nightcap, batting as the home team, Ramapo scored the tie-breaking run in the bottom of the sixth on a home run to left field by Brown. Her shot broke up a tight pitchers' duel between Cassella and Ramapo senior Lyndsay Buehler (River Vale, NJ). The Roadrunners scored first on a leadoff home run by sophomore second baseman Amanda Kent (Sparta, NJ) in the first inning. The Raptors tied the game in the third when senior second baseman Brooke Keenan (Mount Laurel, NJ) hit a leadoff single and stole second. She scored on a two-out single to center by junior catcher Erika Drayton (Blackwood, NJ).

Buehler (6-0) hurled a five-hitter, allowing only three walks and the one earned run. She struck out seven.
Cassella (6-5) allowed six hits in her six-inning complete game. She walked two, allowed two earned runs and struck out five. Sophomore designated player Lisa Orlando (Bloomfield, NJ) went 2-for-2 as the only multi-hit player for Ramapo. Keenan and Drayton each went 2-for-3 for Rutgers-Camden.