New Jersey City University Athletics

| Box Score 2 BOX SCORE: GAME 1 | GAME 2
ARCHIVED GAME BROADCASTS: GAME 1 | GAME 2

NEWARK, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Rutgers-Newark starting pitching combined for 16 strikeouts in 17 innings and despite scoring in only three innings during the two nine-inning contests, the offense was enough as the Scarlet Raiders swept the 2012 New Jersey Athletic Conference opening doubleheader from New Jersey City University, 4-0 and 4-2, in games played on Sunday and Bears and Eagles Riverfront Stadium.
 
Rutgers-Newark (11-7, 2-0 NJAC) extended its winning streak to six straight while defeating NJCU (8-11, 0-2 NJAC) for the fourth straight meeting. NJCU dropped its fourth straight game. The Gothic Knights have lost five times by two runs or less this year and seven times by four or fewer.

In the opening game, junior right-hander Kyle Van Vliet (Glen Rock, NJ/Glen Rock), a past NJAC Pitcher of the Week, solidified his candidacy for a second award in a complete-game, 123-pitch shutout, with nine strikeouts and no walks while improving to 5-1 overall. He scattered five singles and faced just three batters over the minimum while notching his fourth complete game.
 
In the nightcap, senior righty Connor Medler (Edison, NJ/JP Stevens), also an NJAC Pitcher of the Week pick in 2012, earned his third win (3-3) while striking out seven without issuing a walk in a 94-pitch, eight-inning effort. He allowed one earned run (two total) and seven hits before senior righty Nick Evans (Montvale, NJ/Pascack Hills) claimed his fifth save of the year in a nine-pitch, 1-2-3 ninth inning.
 
The losses spoiled two fine performances from Gothic Knight senior righty NELSON MALDONADO (Newark, NJ/St. Mary's (Jersey City)) and junior righty WENDELL RODRIGUEZ (Ponce, Puerto Rico/County Prep).
 
Maldonado (1-2) allowed only two earned runs (three total) and six hits in 7.0 innings, with three strikeouts and one walk over 111 pitches.
 
Maldonado moved into third place in school history in career strikeouts with 129, passing Hall-of-Famer Alberto Cajide who pitched in the 1974 and 1975 seasons before signing with the Cleveland Indians. Maldonado also moved into sixth place in school history in career starts (25) and 10^th in appearances (37).
 
Rodriguez (2-3) tossed his second complete game of the season over 99 pitches in 8.0 innings. He allowed four runs—all in the first inning of game two—before holding R-N off the board the rest of the contest, allowing seven hits with two strikeouts and no walks. In a pitchers' duel between Maldonado and Van Vliet, the Raiders broke through in a scoreless game with two runs in the bottom of the seventh before adding a pair of eighth-inning insurance runs in a game in which NJCU committed three errors.
 
Junior third baseman BRIAN BUSTILLO (Jersey City, NJ/Hudson Catholic) was the lone Gothic Knight with multiple hits, batting 2-for-3.
 
Sophomore right fielder Jimmy Napolitano (Livingston, NJ/Livingston) was 2-for-3 with a run, RBI and double and freshman second baseman Andrew Nasti (Weehawken, NJ/Weehawken) was 2-for-4 with a run driven in. Senior third baseman Tim Miller (Mendham, NJ/Mendham) scored twice. R-N stranded seven runners in the game.
 
Van Vliet retired the side in order in the first, second, fourth, fifth, eighth and ninth innings and used double plays to end threats in the third and sixth frames. NJCU's best scoring chance came in the third when reigning NJAC Rookie Hitter of the Week MATTHEW WAGNER (Colonia, NJ/Colonia) and Bustillo singled with no outs before a double play ended the inning.
 
Maldonado retired R-N in order in the first, second, fourth and sixth innings. But in the seventh, Miller reached on a leadoff error and scored on an RBI double to left center by Napolitano and that was all the offense R-N needed. Napolitano later scored a second run on an RBI single by Nasti before the Raiders stranded two on base.
 
In the eighth, Miller singled and eventually scored on a wild pitch. A pair of walks loaded the bases before rookie righty KEVIN DEMAURO (Kearny, NJ/Kearny), in relief, allowed his first earned run in the first 10.1 innings of his collegiate career on a fielder's choice when the Knights couldn't turn a potential inning-ending double play. Van Vliet retired the Knights in order in the ninth, striking out two. In game two of the twinbill that was rained out on March 31, the Raiders continued their late game scoring from game one with four first-inning runs in game two and that was more than enough for Medler, who limited NJCU to single runs in the second and fifth innings.
 
After the four-run first inning, Rodriguez faced no more than four batters in any of the final seven innings he pitched and retired the final 10 batters of the game in order.
 
Senior center fielder Chris Ballester (Freehold, NJ/Freehold Township) led off for R-N and was the biggest offensive weapon, collecting hits in his first three at bats before finishing 3-for-4 with two doubles and one run. He was the lone player with multiple hits. Napolitano and sophomore designated hitter Owen Harshaney (Dunellen, NJ/Dunellen) were each 1-for-4 with a run and RBI and freshman shortstop Matt Goldberg (Freehold, NJ/Freehold Township) added one RBI.
 
Freshman first baseman ALEX WEINSTEIN (Colonia, NJ/JFK-Iselin) posted a 2-for-4 effort with his second homerun of the season, one run and one RBI and junior ORLANDO BOLANO (Hoboken, NJ/Hoboken), the starting catcher in both ends of the doubleheader—playing the position for the first time at NJCU—was 2-for-4 with one run.
 
R-N had eight batters come to the plate in the opening inning as Ballester doubled on the first pitch he saw in the game and scored on sac fly by Miller. An RBI double to left center by Napolitano scored sophomore first baseman  Vin Troisi (Hackensack, NJ/Hackensack), who had singled and Napolitano came around for a 3-0 lead when Harshaney, playing in his first game of the season, tripled to right center in his first at bat of the year. An infield single by Goldberg produced the fourth run.
 
Weinstein, the only NJCU player to homer this year, slammed a 2-1 pitch over the left field fence to lead off the second inning and NJCU cut the four-run deficit in half in the fifth inning when Bolano singled with one out, advanced to second on a throwing error and scored all the way from second on the error.
 
NJCU's best chance to get back in the game came in the top of the seventh as Weinstein and sophomore designated hitter ROB ROMAN (Hoboken, NJ/Saint Joseph of the Palisades) singled and Bolano dropped down a bunt and reached on the single to load the bases with no outs. But Weinstein was thrown out at home on a force play and Wagner grounded into a double play to end the threat. NJCU had just one base runner the rest of the game.
 
NJCU is back in action on Tuesday, April 3 at 4 p.m. when it heads to Wilkes-Barre, PA for a non-conference game at King's College (Pa.). The Monarchs have an identical 8-11 record.