NASHUA, NH-The Saint Joseph's College softball team gave top-seeded Rivier University all it could handle Thursday night, pushing the Raiders to 10 innings before falling 5-4 in the opening round of GNAC Championship pod play at Raider Diamond in Nashua, New Hampshire.

The Monks (17-23) came out swinging, jumping to a 3-0 lead by the third inning. Charlotte Cloutier (Lewiston, ME) sparked the offense with a two-run double in the second, plating Sylvia Foley (Scarborough, ME) and Clara Christiansen (Franklin, ME). Madison Pelletier (New Gloucester, ME) added to the lead in the third with an RBI double that brought home Sadie Tirrell (Naples, ME).

Tirrell led the way at the plate, going 3-for-5 with a double and scoring twice. Pelletier matched her with a 3-for-5 night of her own, collecting a double and an RBI. Through the first three innings, Saint Joseph's outhit Rivier and showed strong discipline at the plate.

After Rivier responded with four runs in the fourth, the Monks didn't flinch. Chantelle Bouchard (Biddeford, ME) came through with a game-tying RBI single in the fifth, scoring Tirrell to make it 4-4.

Pitcher Rylee Page (Somersworth, NH) was solid in the circle, allowing just one earned run over 6.1 innings. The Monks' defense held firm and turned several key plays to keep the game knotted into extras.

In the end, Rivier pushed across the winning run in the bottom of the 10th. The Monks will face Albertus Magnus College on Friday at 7 p.m at Rivier.