JERSEY CITY, N.J. (NJCUGothicKnights.com) | Penn State University Abington led 7-0 after four innings before the New Jersey City University baseball team stormed back for six runs in the fourth and got the tying and go-ahead runs in the seventh—the winning run an RBI single by freshman third baseman Anthony Carfora (Toms River, N.J./Toms River South)—as NJCU rallied for an 8-7 non-conference win on April 19 at the Thomas M. Gerrity Athletic Complex.
 
NJCU won its 14th game (14-15) and its first since April 6, snapping a frustrating nine-game losing streak. Abington, which outhit NJCU 17-11, fell to 16-18 and saw its five-game winning streak go by the wayside.
 
Carfora, who was just 1-for-10 in his career and came into the game as a substitute after a first-inning error at third, did not have an RBI in his first 15 career games. But he collected two in the win—one of three Gothic Knights with two RBIs—including a fourth inning sacrifice fly.  
 
Senior catcher Andrew Niech (Avenel, N.J./Colonia) continued swinging a hot bat, going 3-for-4 with two runs and his 193rd, 194th and 195th career hits—five shy of becoming NJCU's all-time leader in just 141 games. Niech also collected his 46th career double.
 
Freshman left-hander Anthony Zicaro (Linden, N.J./Linden), the third of four pitchers used by NJCU, collected his first career victory (1-2). In 4.0 shutout innings, he allowed just five hits, striking out two (one walk) over 49 pitches.
 
Freshman right-hander Ray Liguori (Beachwood, N.J./Toms River South) picked up his second career save, facing four batters in the ninth inning. After a leadoff single and a sacrifice, he fanned the next batter looking then got a game-ending groundout to short to preserve the one-run win.
 
In addition to Carfora, junior left fielder Nick Ruscingno (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) walked twice, had two RBIs and was 1-for-3 while junior designated hitter CJ Pulcine (Hazlet, N.J./Raritan), who played despite being banged up, had a game-tying RBI single in the seventh and finished with two RBIs. Sophomore center fielder Dmitri Rueger (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) finished 2-for-4 (one run).

For the Nittany Lions, junior second baseman Max German (Newtown, Pa.) reached base in five consecutive at bats before making the final out of the game; he batted 4-for-6 with two RBIs and one run. Senior third baseman/pitcher Ted Smallwood (Athens, N.Y.) was 4-for-5 with two RBIs and one run.
 
Junior left fielder Brandon Mau (Philadelphia, Pa.) had just one RBI on the year coming in but batted 3-for-5 with two RBIs and one run. Sophomore designated hitter Matt Meyers (Cheltenham, Pa.) doubled twice, going 2-for-4 with two runs.
 
Junior lefty Greg Mugnier (Abington, Pa.), who entered the game as the third reliever with no outs in the seventh after Niech doubled, suffered the loss (2-3) despite giving up just one run and two hits in 1.0 innings (one strikeout).

 
Key Moments
In the first, PSA scored three runs on four hits. After German reached on a leadoff error, he scored on a Meyers double down the right field line. PSA, which did a good job of opposite-field hitting all game, had a Mau RBI single through the right side and Smallwood later singled through the right side for a 3-0 lead.
 
Sophomore righty Anthony Keri (Middlesex, N.J./Middlesex) was called on in relief. With the bases loaded and one out, he got a hard-hit one-hopper back to the mound. He backhanded the ball with his glove, knocked it down, and scooped the ball with his glove underhanded to the plate for a nifty force. The play was a Sportscenter Top 10 nominee. He got a fly ball to end the inning and stranded the bases loaded.
 
PSA increased its lead with two more in the third and two in the fourth. In the third, PSA had two singles with one out and German doubled to left center to drive home two runs. In the fourth, Meyers led off with a double and Mau followed with a two-run double before Smallwood singled up the middle for a 7-0 lead. The Lions would not score again.
 
NJCU scored six runs on just three hits in the bottom of the fourth, aided by three walks and two hit batters when 11 men came to the plate. Ruscingno walked, Niech was hit by a pitch, sophomore first baseman Dan Berardi (Bridgewater, N.J./Middlesex) singled and with the bases loaded, junior right fielder Joe Coutinho (Colonia, N.J./Colonia) walked to force in the first run. Pulcine pushed across the second run with a groundout and Carfora's first RBI—a sac fly—brought in Berardi with the third run.   
 

Junior Taylor Born (South Plainfield, N.J./South Plainfield), who was twice hit by a pitch in the game to extend his career program record to 26, singled, and Rueger was hit by a pitch to again load the bases with two outs. Junior shortstop Zach Buchholz (Colonia, N.J./John F. Kennedy Memorial-Iselin) waited out a six-pitch walk to again force in a run before Ruscingno drove a two-run single through the left side for the fifth and sixth run of the inning and cut the deficit to 7-6.
 
In the sixth, it appeared NJCU tied it when Born was hit by a pitch with one out, advanced to third on back-to-back singles by Rueger and Buchholz, and scored when Ruscingno hit a sure sacrifice fly to left. But Born was called out at third for leaving early, negating the tying run.
 
But in the decisive seventh, NJCU persevered. Niech doubled to lead off and with two outs advanced to third on a wild pitch. Pulcine hit a shot up the third base line that caromed off of third base and he reached first before the throw as Niech came home with the tying run. Freshman Sean Erhardt (South Plainfield, N.J./South Plainfield) pinch ran for Pulcine, stole second, and when Carfora slipped a 0-2 pitch through the left side of the infield, Erhardt zipped around third and scored the winning run.
 
OF NOTE:

• Andrew Niech has 195 hits in 141 career games. Still third in school history, he is two hits shy of second place Rob Sumner (2005-08) with 196 hits and five shy of passing new all-time leader Michael Martucci (2012-15) who set the record last year with 199 hits. Niech has scored 105 runs with 96 RBIs.
• Junior left fielder Nick Ruscingno (Teaneck, N.J./Teaneck) is now tied for 38th in school history with 101 hits in 91 games. He matched Jim Roselli (1986-89) and Alfredo Monagas (1979-82) on the all-time list.
• With his 20th appearance in his 27th game, Anthony Keri became just the fifth pitcher in NJCU history to make 20 appearances in a season. The current NCAA leader has 24 appearances. The NJCU single-season record is 22 by Steve Hallam in 2009 and equaled by Pedro Garcia in 2013 and by Mark Petrucelli in 2014.

#NextKnightTime:
After a day off, NJCU begins a two-day New Jersey Athletic Conference home-and-home series with Montclair State University on Thursday, April 21 when it visits Montclair State University (3:30 p.m.) in Montclair, N.J.