NEWARK, NJ—Visiting FGCU outlasted NJIT with a 7-5 extra inning victory Friday evening in ASUN Conference baseball action at Riverfront Stadium.
NJIT, leading 5-4 heading into the ninth, FGCU (5-8 ASUN, 29-16) drew a leadoff walk and scored the game-tying run on an RBI single through the left field by CF Gage Morey, forcing extra innings.
The Eagles would go ahead, 7-5, in the 10
th inning, as 3B Richie Garcia drove in the go-ahead run with a single through the right side before 1B Eli Lovell provided an insurance run on a sacrifice fly to center field for the Eagles.
FGCU starting pitcher RHP Kutter Crawford was credited with a no-decision in the contest, pitching the first seven innings, surrounding nine hits, four runs, three walks while striking out five Highlanders. The Eagles third pitcher, RHP Kenton Hering (5-3) picked up the win, pitching 2.2 innings and holding the Highlanders scoreless.
Lovell led the Eagles, finishing 2-for-3 with three RBI, including his 12
th double of the season while Garcia (2-for-6) and Morey (1-for-3), each knocked in a pair of runs for the visitors. 1B Nick Rivera went 3-for-5 with two runs scored.
NJIT used three pitchers – starting LHP pitcher
Brian Sondergard (4.1 innings, 6 hits, 3 runs, 5 walks, 3 strikeouts) took the no-decision followed by RHP
Tommy Derer, who went 3.2 innings allowing three hits and one run. NJIT's RHP
Bryan Haberstroh (1-2) was stuck with the loss, pitching the final 2.0 innings, letting up four hits and three runs.
Sophomore 2B
Tom Brady, who missed six games, returned back to the lineup Friday, going 3-for-5 while SS
Justin Etts and LF
Jesse Uttendorfer each went 2-for-5. Etts, Brady and C
Cody Kramer each drove in a run for NJIT.
The Highlanders struck first in the bottom of the fourth on a single to shortstop by Uttendorfer, which scored CF
Michael Anastasia on a throwing error by FGCU for the first run of the game. Brady knocked in the Highlanders second run with an RBI single to center field, scoring Uttendorfer for a 2-0 lead.
FGCU got on the board in the top of the fifth on a laser shot by Garcia, which hit off Sondergard's glove, scoring Rivera, who reached first on a single through the left side. The Eagles tied the game at 2-2 on a bases loaded walk by Lovell and Morey put the visitors ahead, 3-2, with a sacrifice fly to center field.
NJIT answered with two runs of its own in the home half of the frame as Etts put the Highlanders ahead, 4-3, on an RBI single to left field, scoring RF
Matthew Cocciadiferro.
FGCU knotted the game at 4-4 in the top of the seventh with a single to left field by Lovell, scoring DH Alex Brait, who tripled to right field after Highlander right fielder attempted to make a diving catch.
With the bases loaded and one out in the bottom of the eighth inning, Hering relieved FGCU RHP Sterling Koener and issued a bases-loaded walk that allowed NJIT to reclaim the lead, 5-4. However, FGCU went on to tie the game in the aforementioned top of the ninth before turning in the go-ahead run and held on to a 7-5 win.
The two teams will return to action at Riverfront Stadium on Saturday at 1pm and conclude the three-game series on Sunday at 11am.
