ALLENTOWN, Pa. — The New Jersey City University baseball team fell on Saturday afternoon, March 26, dropping back down to .500 overall. The squad was on the other end of an offensive explosion as NJCU was defeated by the Muhlenberg College Mules, 19-5. In the defeat, Jersey City had four different sluggers record two hits, including two Gothic Knight long-balls from senior center fielder Ricky Voss (Eatontown, N.J./Monmouth Regional) and freshman first baseman Matt Kaliske (Forked River, N.J./Lacey Township). The power-hitting duo now have five home runs between them.

Senior right-hander John Pudder (Manalapan, N.J./Manalapan) took the bump for NJCU (7-7), but Pudder was touched up early, allowing three Mule (11-4) runs in the bottom of the first. Looking to a cut into the deficit, junior left fielder Bryan Fernandez (Sayreville, N.J./Sayreville War Memorial) put a charge into the ball, scorching a lazer to left field to put himself into scoring position with one out thanks to a double. But the Green and Gold would have to wait, as Fernandez was stranded on second following a groundout and strikeout. The Muhlenberg bats did not let up, tacking on eight more runs in the bottom of the second and extending the lead 11. This pushed Pudder out of the game, but junior right-hander Ronnie Wallraff (Hillside, N.J./Hillside) was able to get the final two outs without allowing any more damage.

In the top of the third, Voss extended his on-base streak to 16 games (dating back to last season) after the lefty lined a ball in the right-center gap, pushing him all the way to third base with two outs. Again, the Gothic Knights were unable to bring home the baserunner, keeping the Mule lead at 11 runs. 

Following a 1-2-3 inning in the bottom of the third by Wallraff, NJCU took the bats in the top-half looking for a spark and it came from their freshman on a historic tear for the squad. Kaliske blasted a moonshot to left field, his second homerun on the season  which put the Gothic Knights on the board. The first baseman finished his afternoon going 2-for-3, jumping his average to .455 which only trails Voss for the team lead (.458). The rally kept going for Jersey City, as Fernandez reached via an error and advanced to third following a base-hit by sophomore second baseman Ali Pompey (Belle Meade, N.J./Trenton Catholic). The rally came to a close, unfortunately, as the squad stranded both runners and ended the inning with just the Kaliske RBI. 

The Mules scored another in the bottom-half of the fourth to take a 12-1 lead. The Green and Gold did not roll over though, as junior leadoff hitter right fielder Josh Hernandez (Lake Worth, Fla./Park Vista Community) started the inning by doubling to right field. On the next pitch, Voss blasted his team-leading third home run of the season. The blast moved Voss into the NJCU lead in RBI (20) and hits (22). After Muhlenberg pushed two runners in the seventh, head coach Jerry Smith turned to his bench for their opportunities and sophomore David Duran (Kearny, N.J./Kearny) made the most of his as Duran lined a ball to the opposite field, bringing in  Pompey and Kaliske. This cut Mules lead to 18-5 with just two innings to play. The Mules tacked on one more run before the end of the game, finishing with the 19-5 victory. 

Up Next:
The squad will look to erase this game quickly, as NJCU returns to the field again tomorrow, Sunday, March 27, to take on McDaniel College in Westminster, Md. First pitch is scheduled for 1:00 p.m.