NEWBURGH, N.Y. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | In a game that saw six lead changes or ties, Mount Saint Mary took advantage of a bases-loaded situation in the bottom of the eighth, and leadoff hitter Matt Cahill put the hosts in front with a sacrifice fly before Sean Betterly nailed down his fourth save of the season as the Blue Knights edged the New Jersey City University baseball team in a non-conference tilt on April 15 at the MSMC Baseball Field.
 
In a make-up of a March 24 postponement, NJCU (11-13) couldn't build off a 10-0 non-conference win over FDU-Florham a day earlier, collecting only seven hits in the loss. MSMC evened its record at 10-10 despite just six hits.
 
In defeat for NJCU, sophomore designated hitter/left fielder Eric Giordano (Metuchen, NJ/JFK-Iselin) walked twice and had a two-out single in the ninth to keep the Gothic Knights alive and in doing so, stretched his two-year consecutive games on-base streak to 38 straight. It's now fifth longest in recorded New Jersey Athletic Conference history and second in NJCU's annals.
 
Sophomore right fielder Joe Coutinho (Colonia, NJ/Colonia) was 2-for-4 with a second inning RBI double that gave NJCU an initial 1-0 lead and he later added a run. Freshman center fielder Dmitri Rueger (Teaneck, NJ/Teaneck) batted 2-for-5.
 
Cahill, the left fielder, had half of MSMC's hits and reached base four times, batting 3-for-3 with a walk, run scored and the game-winning RBI. Third baseman Louis Rivera walked three times for MSMC while center fielder Johnny Vaccaro scored twice.
 

C.J. Szczesny, the third MSMC pitcher used, got the win (1-1) in relief, allowing one unearned run and two hits with two walks in 2.0 innings over 33 pitches before Betterly struck out one in the ninth, allowing just a two-out single to Giordano over 16 pitches. Joey Pugliese started for MSMC and went the first four innings, against a run and three hits.
 
Sophomore right-hander Joe Stone (Metuchen, NJ/JFK-Iselin) started for NJCU, taking a no-decision after 3.2 innings of work (2 earned runs, 3 hits, 2 strikeouts, 3 walks). Senior righty Tom Colaiacovo, Jr. (Helmetta, NJ/Southern Regional) threw an effective 2.1 innings of relief, allowing just one hit and a walk before being replaced by junior righty Jhon Garcia (Leonia, NJ/Liceo Carlos Soublette; Caracas, Venezuela) to start the seventh.
 
Garcia suffered his first loss (0-1), giving up single runs in the seventh and eighth frames. He faced seven batters an inning and a third, allowing one earned run and two hits with a strikeout.
 
After NJCU tied the game at 4-4 in the top of the eighth when Coutinho led off with a single, and scored courtesy of two errors sandwiched around a sacrifice bunt, MSMC got some help in the bottom of the inning. Vaccaro reached on a leadoff error at third and advanced to second before moving to third on a sacrifice. Senior Michael Martucci (Bayonne, NJ/Saint Peter's Prep) moved from third to the mound in relief but walked the next two batters on nine pitches. He got in front of Cahill with two strikes before MSMC's leading hitter did his job with a sacrifice fly to send home Vaccaro tagging with the go-ahead run. Freshman righty Anthony Keri (Middlesex, NJ/Middlesex) came in to register a fielder's choice to get out of the inning.
 
With NJCU up 1-0 after three and a half innings, MSMC scored three times in the fourth with just one hit, loading the bases with no outs on a walk, single and hit by pitch. A groundout to the mound by shortstop Rocco Pepe tied it before a passed ball and wild pitch allowed the Blue Knights to score twice again.
 
NJCU managed to tie it in the fifth. After a leadoff error and a walk, the Knights had runners in scoring position with one out. A sacrifice fly by junior catcher Andrew Niech (Avenel, NJ/Colonia) made it 3-2 before sophomore shortstop Zach Buchholz (Colonia, NJ/JFK-Iselin) alertly followed on a throwing error. MSMC momentarily regained a 4-3 advantage in the seventh when Cahill led off with a double down the right field line, scoring on a one-out single by catcher Kristopher Fragomeni, before NJCU evened the game at 4-4 in the eighth.
 
OF NOTE:

• Michael Martucci was held without a hit. He still has 177 hits in 134 games tied with Rob Gonzalez (177 hits, 2009-11) for second place in school history. He is 19 hits behind the record-holder Rob Sumner (196 hits, 2005-08). Martucci walked in the seventh inning to extend his own reached base streak to 21 consecutive games. He has scored 101 career runs (fifth in school history). Martucci moved ahead of Nick Cucinello for second place in school history in games started (134, 1990-93) and is two shy of the program record (136, Rob Sumner, 2005-08). His 134 total games played equals Cucinello for second place. Sumner played 138.
• Alex Weinstein was held without a hit. He has 136 in 133 games, 14th in school history.
• Niech had one hit, upping his career hits total to 132 in 99 games for 18th place. The program all-time leader in doubles (33) has 41 hits this year (42 in 2013, 49 in 2014).
• Eric Giordano has now hit safely in 21 of 24 games this season and 50 of 61 career games (77 hits). His 38-game on-base streak is the second longest in NJCU history. The NJCU and conference mark is 50 games by Jose Fulgencio from March 10, 2007 to March 16, 2008, which is also the third longest known streak in Division III history.

WHAT'S NEXT?
Tomorrow NJCU hosts Montclair State University at 3:30 p.m. in the opening game of a two-day NJAC home-and-home series with the Red Hawks (10-14, 4-6 NJAC) at the Thomas M. Gerrity Athletic Complex.