New Jersey City University Athletics

Box Score BOX SCORE
GAME PROGRAM/NOTES

JERSEY CITY, NJ (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | New Jersey City University led 1-0 after three innings before #19/21 ranked Ramapo College scored five runs in the three middle innings and went on to defeat the Gothic Knights, 6-2, in game one of a New Jersey Athletic Conference home-and-home series on April 25 at the Thomas M. Gerrity Athletic Complex.
 
Ramapo (24-8-1, 8-6-1), ranked 19^th nationally by D3baseball.com and 21^st by the American Baseball Coaches Association (ABCA) Top 25 Poll, had a 10-5 advantage in hits over the Gothic Knights (16-19, 4-11 NJAC). NJCU was eliminated from NJAC Tournament contention with the loss. Ramapo won despite committing six errors in the game.
 
RCNJ senior right-hander Travis Zilg (Green Brook, NJ/Watchung Hills) overcame a shaky first two innings, including two of his own errors, to earn his fourth win of the season (4-1), allowing two runs (one earned) and five singles in 8.0 innings of work. He struck out five and walked two over 122 pitches. Sophomore righty Kyle Doerr (Bound Brook, NJ/Bound Brook) tossed the ninth inning, striking out one (one walk).
 
Senior third baseman Christian Spurr (Warren, NJ/Watchung Hills) was one of three Ramapo players with multiple hits, batting 2-for-5 with two RBIs. Freshman shortstop Joe Venturino (Barnegat Light, NJ/Monsignor Farrell) was 2-for-3 with one run and sophomore designated hitter Chris Werr (Pequannock, NJ/Pequannock) batted 2-for-5 with a run scored.
 
Sophomore first baseman ALEX WEINSTEIN (Colonia, NJ/JFK-Iselin) was the lone Gothic Knight with multiple hits, going 2-for-4. Sophomore third baseman MICHAEL MARTUCCI (Bayonne, NJ/Saint Peter's Prep) was 1-for-4 with a run and walk.
 
Rookie righty JOMAR CASIANO (Jersey City, NJ/Ferris), after starting the season 3-0, lost his third straight decision (3-3). In 5.0 innings, he allowed four earned runs (five total) and eight hits with two K's and two walks over 82 pitches.
 
Rookie righty NICK DEMARCO (South Plainfield, NJ/South Plainfield) continued his outstanding season in relief, stranding the   ases loaded in the sixth inning after inheriting the bases full and no outs. On the season, only nine of 30 inherited runners have scored against DeMarco who has become NJCU's lockdown reliever. He retired all three batters he faced over 13 pitches.
 
Senior left-hander PEDRO GARCIA (North Bergen, NJ/Saint Joseph of the Palisades) threw the final three innings, allowing one run on two hits with two strikeouts and one walk against 35 pitches.
 
When Garcia entered the game in the seventh inning, he made his 20th appearance of the season—becoming the second pitcher in school history to throw 20 games in one campaign.
 
Also for RCNJ, junior first baseman Brandon Berger (Belvidere, NJ/Belvidere) was 1-for-3 with one run, one RBI and a walk and sophomore left fielder Kevin Kelly (Columbia, NJ/North Warren) had a double and RBI. Senior right fielder Dave Jacob (Vernon, NJ/Vernon), the NJAC's leading hitter at .409 entering the day, was hitless in five at bats.
 
NJCU struck first in the bottom of the opening inning. Martucci singled and rookie catcher ANDREW NIECH (Avenel, NJ/Colonia) reached with one out on a catcher's interference. Senior left fielder ANDREW RIVERA, who had his 134^th career hit on the day, reached on a fielder's choice when Zilg elected to try to get Martucci, the lead runner at third. Martucci beat the throw to the bag, and when the throw sailed wide of third, he scampered home on the error. Zilg struck out Weinstein and sophomore right fielder MATTHEW WAGNER (Colonia, NJ/Colonia) consecutively with runners in scoring position to end the inning.
 
After a throwing error, the second of the game by Zilg in the second inning put two runners on base, the Knights ran themselves out of the inning when sophomore shortstop NICHOLAS D'ERRICO (Kearny, NJ/Kearny) was caught stealing in a rundown between second and third on a delayed steal.
 
In the top of the third, a two-out hit batter (Venturino) and a hit-and-run single gave RCNJ runners on the corners before Jacob grounded into a force at second.
 
But RCNJ tied it in the top of the fourth. Werr singled to left with one out, moved to second on a sacrifice and scored on a game-tying RBI single by Berger. In the bottom of the fourth, NJCU had one man on after the fourth Ramapo error before lining into a double play to end the inning.
 
The fifth inning was the decisive inning for Ramapo, as the Roadrunners scored three times. In the fifth, senior second baseman Anthony Vinci (Trumbull, CT) lined a first-pitch single to left and Venturino dropped down a bunt, intending for a sacrifice, before beating the throw to first.  Junior center fielder John Capuano (Ramsey, NJ/Ramsey) attempted another sacrifice and when Casiano's throw was wide of first base, Vinci scored the go-ahead run. A two-run bloop single to center by Spurr, proved to be Ramapo's biggest hit of the day, making the lead 4-1.
 
In the sixth, Berger walked to leadoff and an RBI double down the left field line by Kelly upped the lead to 5-1. A hit batter put two runners on base with no outs before a bloop single to left by Venturino loaded the bases. DeMarco entered in relief and kept the Knights in the game, getting a pop out to left, a shallow fly to right and another fly ball to left to end the inning and strand the bases full.
 
In the bottom of the sixth, Niech reached on an error and with two outs, Weinstein collected an infield single—NJCU's first hit since the second inning—before leaving two men on.
 
In the eighth, Ramapo added a sixth run on a successful squeeze bunt by reserve shortstop Kevin Case (Brick, NJ/St. Rose). In the bottom of the inning, Niech walked with one out before Rivera and Weinstein had back-to-back singles up the middle to load the bases. Wagner grounded to short to knock in Niech with the second run before reaching on an error before senior second baseman ROB ROMAN (Hoboken, NJ/Saint Joseph of the Palisades) grounded into a double play—the second he hit into in the game—to end the inning with the bases loaded.
 
In the ninth Spurr had a one-out single and Werr slipped a ground-rule double into the left center gap. Ramapo twice tried a squeeze play. Freshman catcher Ryan Rinsky (North Caldwell, NJ/West Essex) bunted a ball in the air to the right of mound; Garcia made a brilliant defensive play, laying out to make a diving infield catch and with Spurr nearly standing at home plate on the squeeze bid, Garcia threw to third for the double play. In the bottom of the ninth, NJCU put two runners on with one out but couldn't plate another run.
 
NJCU and Ramapo will play game two of the home-and-home on Friday, April 26 at 3:30 p.m. in Mahwah, NJ.