JERSEY CITY, N.J. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) |The New Jersey City University baseball team (12-10, 2-5 NJAC) dug themselves a deep hole against William Paterson University (16-9, 3-4 NJAC), and despite eight runs in the final four innings, couldn't quite finish off the comeback in a 15-11 New Jersey Athletic Conference loss on April 11 at the Thomas M. Gerrity Athletic Complex.
The top three hitters for the Knights all had big games, with junior right fielder Juan Pena (Perth Amboy, NJ/Perth Amboy) leading the way out of the leadoff spot, going 3-for-4 with a home run, three runs scored, three RBI, and two more steals, bringing his season total to 25.
Senior shortstop Nick LoGatto (Helmetta, NJ/Spotswood) and senior third baseman Tom Pulcine (Hazlet, NJ/Raritan) also reached base twice from the two and three spots in the lineup, with a pair of RBI and two hits (2-for-5) for LoGatto and a two hits and a run scored for Pulcine.
Senior designated hitter Mike Albunia (Jersey City, NJ/Hudson Catholic) and freshman catcher Anthony Palmisano (Colonia, NJ/Colonia) both scored a run and tallied an RBI, while senior center fielder Jesse Kraft (Nutley, NJ/Saint Mary-Rutherford) scored twice and knocked one in from the cleanup spot.
The Pioneers jumped on the Knights early, holding a 12-0 advantage as early as the top of the third inning, as some big sticks from Paterson and a couple of key errors from the Gothic Knights created the quick double-digit advantage for Paterson.
The Pioneers had five hitters with multi-hit days, with their backstop, sophomore Steve Yelin (River Edge, N.J.) having a particularly strong day at the dish, going 4-for-4 with two runs and an RBI. Sophomore Carson Weis (River Vale, N.J.) and sophomore Steven DiGirolamo (Dumont, N.J.) each collected three hits for the day, Weis scoring three times and knocking in one, while DiGirolamo crossing home once and bringing in a pair of his teammates on the day.
Junior second baseman Matt Ferrara (Paramus, N.J.) went 2-for-6 with three RBIs and two runs. Sophomore Frankie Deane (Dumont, N.J.) and junior Carlos Perez (Hawthorne, N.J.) each knocked in two runs.
William Paterson scored five unearned runs in the top of the first inning after a two-out dropped fly in left. Perez had a two-run double after the error. WP scored seven runs in seven hits in third, highlighted by two-run doubles from both DiGirolamo and Deane.
The Knights did well to make things interesting, slowly chipping away at the WP lead in the third (two runs) and fifth (one run) innings, but their big move came in the sixth, as WP starter—and eventual game winner—freshman left-handed pitcher Jake Klag (Hillsdale, N.J.) crossed the 100-pitch threshold and ran into trouble on his third time through the order.
An error got things going to start the inning, and NJCU made WP pay, with Pulcine immediately stealing a pair of bases before Kraft, senior second baseman Matt Corsi, and Albunia collected three straight hits to chase Klag a batter later. A two-out double from LoGatto got the Knights to within four, at 13-9, but the rally ended there, with six runs in the frame for the Knights.
The Pioneers added an insurance in both the top of the seventh and the top of the ninth, leaving their advantage at six heading into the final frame.
Once again, the Knights showed their perseverance, however, with a Pena leadoff single setting the tone for their last ups. One batter later, Pulcine had his second hit of the game, and a trio of Paterson errors kept the game alive, even bringing the tying run to on-deck circle before freshman lefty Matt Lawler (Linwood, N.J.) induced a game-ending popup to save his first game of the season for Paterson, a 15-11 victory for the Pioneers.
UP NEXT:
NJCU plays its fourth of six games in a five-day span when it travels to face William Paterson in the second half of an NJAC home-and-home series on Friday, April 12 at 3:30 p.m. in Wayne, N.J. Live stats are available at https://www.wpupioneers.com/sidearmstats/baseball/summary and video at https://www.wpupioneers.com/showcase.
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