CONWAY, S.C. – Highlighted by freshman Emily Gant's pitching gem and senior Emily Morrow's strong performance at the plate, the defending Patriot League champion Boston University softball team opened the Kickin' Chicken Classic with an 8-0 run-rule win over Rider and tightly-contested 4-3 loss to defending Horizon League champion Illinois-Chicago on Friday afternoon at St. John's Stadium.

After allowing an unearned run in the bottom of the seventh in relief against the Flames (1-1), Gant (1-1) limited the Broncs (0-2) in her first career start to just one hit with the help of three strikeouts against one walk. Morrow batted a combined 5-of-6 to lead the Terriers (1-1) with three RBIs, while freshman Aliyah Huerta-Leipner, senior Madi Killebrew and sophomore Marina Sylvestri all collected three hits apiece.

GAME ONE: IUC 4, BU 3

THE FINAL TWO INNINGS

• Facing a 3-2 deficit, the Flames led off the bottom of the sixth with back-to-back singles against sophomore Ali DuBois, prompting a pitching change.
• IUC then recorded consecutive sacrifice bunts to tie the game, 3-3, entering the seventh.
• Morrow was hit by a pitch with one out, but the Terriers hit into a 1-6-3 double play to end the threat.
• BU committed a costly error in the bottom half, as All-Region honoree Kayla Wedl stole second and then scored with two outs on Kayla Pociejewski's walk-off single to left.

THE SETUP

• Gant put BU on the scoreboard in the top of the second by doubling to left and then scoring on freshman Bella Gargicevich-Almeida's misplayed sacrifice bunt.
• After striking out three times against DuBois through the first two innings, the Flames collected two hits and took advantage of two walks along with an error to pull ahead, 2-1.
• The Terriers retook the lead in the top of the fifth, 3-2, with two runs off three hits and an error.
• With the bases loaded, Morrow delivered a one-out RBI single to right, and senior Alex Heinen followed with an RBI walk.
• Pitching a complete game, the Flames' Allie Trudeau (1-0) prevented further damage by getting a force out at home and ground out to second.
• Sylvestri collected BU's seventh hit in the sixth but was stranded at first before IUC made its comeback.

GAME TWO: BU 8, RIder 0 (5 inn.)

HOW IT HAPPENED

• BU quickly struck first against the Broncs with a run off two hits and error, as Killebrew's single led to Heinen scoring from second.
• In the second, senior Alexa Ponce, Gargicevich-Almeida and sophomore Jen Horita led off with singles to set up Huerta-Leipner's two-RBI single to left.
• Morrow plated Huerta-Leipner with an RBI single to center and added another RBI single in the bottom of the fourth to extend the lead to 5-0.
• Heinen added two more runs with a single to center, and with the bases loaded, Ponce had an RBI grounder to put the eight-run rule into effect.
• The Broncs avoided a no-hitter with a one-out single to right, but Gant bounced back by inducing a strikeout and 6-3 double play for the shutout victory.

DOUBLEHEADER NOTES

• Gant became the first Terrier to record a shutout in her first start since junior Kali Magane blanked North Florida in 2017 with four strikeouts against three hits allowed.
• DuBois allowed one earned run and two unearned in five innings against IUC with four strikeouts, three walks and eight hits allowed.
• Heinen posted three RBIs to increase her career total to 120 and pull within one of No. 4 Rachel Hebert ('10) in the BU record book.
• The Terriers faced Rider for the first time since being eliminated by the Broncs in the 1997 NCAA play-in round.

NEXT UP: COASTAL CAROLINA AND #8 TENNESSEE

• The Terriers will next meet the host Chanticleers on Saturday (Feb. 9) at 2 p.m. and then the No. 8 Volunteers at 6:30 p.m.
• BU last met Tennessee in Las Cruces, New Mexico, in 2004, coincidentally the location of last year's upset win over then-No. 1 Oklahoma.