BOX SCORE
LITTLE FALLS, NJ…New Jersey City University and Montclair State University were back and forth for nine innings before the Red Hawks scored seven straight runs to overcome a 5-2 Gothic Knight lead, and after NJCU scored twice in the ninth inning and had the tying runs on base, it took a game-ending strikeout to close it as MSU outlasted NJCU, 9-7, in a wild New Jersey Athletic Conference game at Yogi Berra Stadium on Thursday.
NJCU lost by three or fewer runs for the eighth time this season as the Knight fell to 12-17-1 and 2-7 in the league, dropping its sixth straight league game. Montclair (15-11, 6-3 NJAC) moved within a half game of second place in the league standings. MSU has won eight straight in the series since 2004. NJCU was playing its first game in a week.
Montclair freshman right hander Scott Shan (Toms River, NJ/Toms River East)came on and struck out the final batter with the tying runs on base in the ninth to pick up his first career save.
Senior first baseman
JOSE COLON (Brooklyn, NJ/LaSalle Academy (NY)) led the Knights, going 3-for-5 with three RBIs, a double and run scored while senior catcher
KRISTOPHER BRUS (Parlin, NJ/Sayreville War Memorial) contributed a 3-for-5 performance with a run and RBI to bring his average to .559 (19-34) in nine NJAC games this season; the .559 rate leads the NJAC.
Freshman right fielder
JOE STEINBERGER (San Diego, CA/San Diego) slammed his team-leading fourth homerun of the season, a two-run shot, over the left field wall for a 5-2 lead, in the fifth inning. He was 1-for-4 with two RBIs and a run.
Rookie second baseman
ROB GONZALEZ (Brick, NJ/Brick Memorial) extended his hitting streak to 11 games and upped his NJAC average to .500 in nine games (20-40), going 2-for-4 with a run and RBI. Sophomore third baseman
MICHAEL FIORENTINO (Point Pleasant Beach, NJ/Point Pleasant) was 2-for-5 with a run.
MSU was led by junior right fielder Scott Evangelist (Northfield, NJ/Holy Spirit), who was 2-for-4 with two RBIs and his fifth homer of the year. Senior first baseman Jason Lopez (West New York, NJ/Memorial) was 2-for-4 with two RBIs. Junior centerfielder Michael Boggi (Towaco, NJ/Montville) finished with two runs and an RBI, going 2-for-4.
Also for the Hawks, freshman third baseman Zachary Brown (Green Village, NJ/Morristown) was 2-for-3 and freshman leftfielder Mickey McGraw (Morristown, NJ/Morristown) was 2-for-2 with two runs.
