NJIT senior Mark Leiter, Jr. struck out 20 Chicago State batters in a nine-inning 5-3 win for the Highlanders Friday night. Leiter's 20 strikeouts were the most nationally in a 2013 NCAA Division I game and the most in NJIT program history.
The 6-foot-1 right-hander struck out at least two in every inning but the first, when he struck out one. He struck out the side in the second, eighth, and ninth innings and got his last eight outs via strikeout, with one walk in the eighth inning and another in the ninth mixed in.
His final line Friday was: 9 innings, 4 hits, 3 runs (2 earned), 20 strikeouts and 2 walks.
Leiter's previous career-high for strikeouts was 14 (the NJIT school Division I record until Friday night), also at home against Chicago State in a seven-inning win on May 19, 2011.
The previous national season high for strikeouts in a 2013 Division I game was 18 by Pat Young of Villanova, also against Chicago State on March 15. Leiter's strikeout high this year was nine in eight innings against New York Institute of Technology on April 13.
Leiter was named Louisville Slugger National Player of the Week Lou Pavlovich of Collegiate Baseball Newspaper .
