WAYNE, N.J. – Despite being the road team on the scoreboard at a game played at Jeff Albies Field in Wayne, N.J., the bats for William Paterson clearly felt right at home as they generated runs in six different innings on 14 hits to down Rutgers-Newark, 8-4, April 12.
Thanks to a hit, fielding error and groundout, WP (16-8, 4-3 NJAC) needed just two pitches to create a 1-0 lead. Freshman center fielder Steven DiGirolamo (Dumont, N.J./Dumont) struck a crisp single to left field that was mishandled off a bounce by junior left fielder Ryan Zucker, allowing DiGirolamo to reach third as the ball caromed into the left field corner. One pitch later freshman left fielder Francis Deane (Dumont, N.J./Dumont) drove in his classmate with a groundout to third.
The Scarlet Raiders (9-16, 1-6 NJAC) put up a three spot in the bottom half of the first though, creating a lead they'd carry until the fifth. Zucker led off with a walk and was doubled home by senior catcher Justin Marks. A wild pitch pushed Marks to third and senior third baseman Brian Boulineau drew a free pass to put runners at the corners. WP senior starter Adam Miller (West Orange, N.J./West Orange) attempted to pickoff Boulineau off at first but the throw went wide, scoring Marks and putting Boulineau at second. Senior right fielder Adam Tricarico followed to put Rutgers-Newark up 3-1 with an RBI double to right center.
The Pioneers got one back in the top of the fourth, cutting the deficit to 3-2. Sophomore second baseman Matt Ferrara (Paramus, N.J./Paramus) roped his second single in two at-bats through the left side but was later thrown out on a fielder's choice ground ball off the bat of freshman third baseman Christopher Liriano(Bergenfield, N.J./Bergenfield). A frozen rope up the middle from freshman shortstop Greg Cuevas (West New York, N.J./St. Mary (Rutherford)) moved Liriano into scoring position before freshman first baseman Carson Weis (Rivervale, N.J./Pascack Valley Regional) found space in right with an RBI single, scoring Liriano.
A fielding error by junior shortstop Dominic Magliaro allowed freshman right fielder Dan Carter (Bloomfield, N.J./Bloomfield) to reach to lead off the fifth. Two wild pitches brought him to third base, and with two outs, Liriano delivered an RBI single through the left side to plate Carter and tie it up, 3-3.
The see-saw battle persisted in the bottom of the fifth when Tricarico singled through the right side to score Marks who led off the inning with a hit by pitch, making it 4-3 Scarlet Raiders.
Ferrara continued to wear out the left side of the field, ripping his third single between shortstop and third base to drive in Carter in the top of the seventh, knotting the game at four. Liriano worked the count full before grinding out a walk, moving sophomore pinch hitter Carlos Perez (Hawthorne, N.J./Hawthorne) to third base after he reached on a single through the left side earlier in the inning. Cuevas lifted a medium-deep fly ball to right field for a sacrifice fly, scoring Perez and giving WP the 5-4 advantage and the lead for good.
WP tacked on another crooked number in the eighth, widening the lead to 7-4 thanks Perez's bases loaded, two-RBI single in between shortstop and third base, scoring senior catcher Jorge Solodkin (Short Hills, N.J./Millburn) and Deane after they reached on a hit by pitch and infield single respectively.
Ferrara was in the mix yet again, leading off the ninth with a deep double to straight away left. Cuevas pushed him to third with a groundout to first before Ferrara got a quick break on a pitch in the dirt and scored from third, making it 8-4.
Ferrara set a career high for times reached safely in a game, going 4-for-4 with a double, walk, RBI and a run. Perez came on a designated hitter in the seventh for the junior Shane Adams (Cape May, N.J./Cape May Tech) and went 2-for-2 with a team-high two RBI and a run scored. Weis also had a multi-hit game, going 2-for-5 with an RBI.
Tricarico was the leading performer for Rutgers-Newark, going 2-for-4 with a double and two RBI.
Quietly putting up an outstanding effort in relief was junior southpaw Doug Olcese (Long Valley, N.J./West Morris Central), who didn't allow a hit in 3.1 innings of scoreless work, fanning one while allowing just a walk and a hit by pitch to earn his fourth win in relief. The lefty dropped his earned run average to an anemic 0.68 following his second win in as many appearances. Miller recovered from a three-run first inning to work 5.2 frames, allowing four earned runs on five hits and two walks while punching out eight batters.
Senior righty Mike Zibrin (1-5) was in line for the win for Rutgers-Newark but a two-run seventh bounced him from the game as he took the loss. Zibrin worked 6.1 frames, allowing five runs, three earned, on eight hits, two walks and two hit batters while fanning three. Juniors Yanni Vayas and Timothy Kales combined to pitch the remaining 2.2 innings, permitting three more earned runs in relief.
These teams will square off again tomorrow, Friday, April 13 with the first pitch set for 3:30 p.m.
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