Box Score

OLD WESTBURY, NY—Visiting NJIT combined another strong pitching performance with a five-run seventh inning at the plate and the Highlanders defeated New York Institute of Technology Sunday afternoon, 6-2, to sweep the three-game weekend baseball series on NYIT's Angelo Lorenzo Memorial Field.
 
The visitors began the weekend with a doubleheader sweep on Saturday (9-5 and 3-0). In Saturday's seven-inning nightcap, NJIT (9-11) got a complete-game, four-hit shutout from redshirt senior DJ Roche, who struck out a career-best 13 in blanking the Bears (1-22). On Sunday, freshman RHP Alex Daniele fanned 12 Bears in six innings on the way to raising his personal record to 2-1.
 
Both Roche and Daniele rank among the national leaders in strikeouts per nine innings by NCAA Division I pitchers. Roche has 46 strikeouts in 33.2 innings (12.3/9 IP) and Daniele's season-high 12 Ks (he had two previous games with 10 strikeouts) at NYIT upped his season total to 47 in 37 innings pitched (11.4/9 IP). Roche came into the weekend ranked 13th nationally in the category and Daniele was 24th.
 
On Sunday, Daniele pitched the first six innings and allowed a run on four hits and three walks to go with his 12 strikeouts. He was relieved, in order, by left-handers Tyler Kapp and Austin McAuliffe. Kapp, a redshirt junior who worked two innings, allowed one run on two hits. McAuliffe, a redshirt senior, faced three batters in the bottom of the ninth inning and got them all out, including a game-ending strikeout to cap the day.
 
NYIT, which lost its eighth straight, used four pitchers and the second, JP Lipovac, took the loss, dropping to 0-4 after being tagged with 5 runs (1 earned) on 4 hits and a walk, while getting two outs in the top of the seventh inning. LHP Michael Auriemmo pitched 1.1 innings, followed by an inning from RHP James Moussa and the junior duo did not allow a hit vs. the Highlanders, although Auriemmo threw a wild pitch that allowed an inherited runner to score in the seventh inning. He struck out two.
 
The starter for the Bears, freshman left-hander David Plotkin, allowed just one run in six innings, despite allowing sixs hit and four walks and hitting a batter and committing a balk.
 
Each team scored once through the first six innings, with NJIT's run coming in the top of the second inning on a balk and NYIT tying the score in the bottom of the fifth. The Highlanders broke through with five runs in the top of the seventh and NYIT reached Kapp for a run in the bottom of the frame, but it was nowhere near enough to catch the Highlanders, who are 7-6 in 2014 away games after the weekend sweep on Long Island against a program they have played at least twice every season since beginning Division competition in 2007.
 
Roche, who was NJIT's designated hitter in the two games he didn't pitch this weekend and who batted for himself in his pitching start on Saturday, stayed hot with a 3-for-4 day on Sunday that included a double, a run scored and an RBI. Roche was 7-for-11 (.636) in the three games combined, with a double in each game, plus a triple on Saturday. Two freshmen from Pennsylvania, C Cody Kramer (Northampton/Northampton Area HS) and SS Bryan Haberstroh (Columbia/Lancaster Catholic HS), each chipped in two hits, including a double for Kramer.
 
Four different Highlanders got one RBI each. They were: 3B Mike Rampone (1-for-4, walk); CF Ed Charlton (1-for-3, walk, sacrifice fly); Roche, and Kramer.
 
NYIT managed six hits and three came from the leadoff batter, sophomore CF Joe Daru, who had a run scored and an RBI when he homered with two out and no one on base in the bottom of the seventh inning. The home run was the only extra-base hit for NYIT, but Daru also caused headaches for the visitors with three stolen bases. Sophomore DH Joshua Canabal had two hits (2-for-4) and the Bears got one hit from SS Anthony Martelli.
 
The opening inning was scoreless despite the fact that Daru began his team's half of the frame with a single. Daniele struck out the next to batters, but Daru also stole two bases to reach third before Daniele walked a pair to fill the bases. Daniele then struck out Martelli looking to end the inning, leaving the bases loaded.
 
Daniele struck out two more in a 1-2-3 second inning and he notched another in the third before Canabal's two-out single.and then another punch-out to end the frame.
 
The NJIT freshman struck out three more Bears in a 1-2-3 fourth inning and added his 11th strikeout for the first out of the fifth frame. But a walk and another Daru single spelled more trouble. NYIT's Daru then stole his third base of the day, putting two men in scoring position with one out and the Highlanders clinging to a 1-0 lead. RF Thomas Joannou tied the score with a sacrifice fly out to CF and Daru moved up to third base on the play. But he was stuck there when Daniele got a ground out back to the mound to end the inning.
 
NJIT, which had scored its only run to that point the bases-loaded balk with two out in the top of the second inning, had been kept off the board in the top of the fifth when a two-out rally stalled. Charlton doubled and Roche followed him with a single to left field, But Frank Sanacore's throw to the plate was in time to cut down Charlton and keep the score at 1-0 before the Bears tied in the bottom half.
 
Plotkin was replaced on the mound by Lipovac to begin the seventh inning and LF Teddy Bickert (0-for-4) opened with a walk. RF Matt Weckerle (1-for-5) reached base on an error by Lipovac and Bickert moved up to third base on the play. Rampone singled to drive in the first run in the rally and Charlton's sacrifice fly pushed the score to 3-1, NJIT. Roche singled to drive in Rampone and after another out, Haberstroh singled to plate another run and the fifth run came in on Auriemmo's  wild pitch .
 
Kapp, on for Daniele in the bottom of the seventh inning, allowed the two-out solo home run to Daru, but that was all the scoring for either team. Kapp allowed a leadoff single in the eighth inning, but emerged unscathed on a fly out and infield double play. And McAuliffe induced a fly out and ground out before ending the game with his strikeout.
 
The Highlanders are next slated to visit Rider for a 3:30 pm game on Wednesday in Lawrenceville, NJ, outside of Trenton. NJIT won 2-of-3 when the teams played in late March. They split a doubleheader in Newark on March 22 and the Highlanders won a 10-inning contest the next day at Rider. The Broncs, who were regular season champs of the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference in 2013, are 3-2 since the series vs. NJIT, going 3-1 to open MAAC play and losing 4-3 to Seton Hall, ranked 24th nationally by Collegiate Baseball at the time.