HOLLY SPRINGS, NC - The NJIT baseball team split a doubleheader with Purdue on Friday for its first victory over a Power Five opponent since it defeated Penn State in 2020. The Boilermakers came from behind to win 6-5, but the Highlanders bounced back for a 5-1 victory in game two.
Following the doubleheader split, NJIT is now 3-2 on the season, while Purdue's record stands at 4-2.
Game One
Purdue opened the scoring in the second inning when it took advantage of two NJIT errors for a pair of unearned runs.
Luke Longo tied the game at 2 in the fourth inning with his second home run of the season and put the Highlanders in front the following inning with a three-run shot, giving NJIT a 5-2 advanage.
Purdue answered with a pair of runs in the home half of the fifth and tied the game in the sixth.
Neither team was able to break the tie until the bottom of the ninth when the Boilermakers scored the game-winning run via a sacrifice fly.
Longo and
Jared Donnelly each had two hits to pace the NJIT offense.
Ryan Fischer allowed just two earned runs in five innings, while
Liam Reiner allowed a pair in 3.1 innings out of the bullpen.
Game Two
Aidan Kidd, the reigning America East Conference Pitcher of the Week, followed up last weekend's nine-strikeout performance with another nine punch outs and he may not have been NJIT's best pitcher in the 5-1 win.
Kidd was relieved after five innings by Holden de Jong, who was almost perfect in four innings of relief to earn his first-career save. de Jong allowed just one base runner via a hit by pitch and the Highlanders retired that runner on the bases so the rookie faced the minimum 12 hitters in his four innings. Six of the 12 outs de Jong recorded were by strikeouts.
Offensively, the Highlanders were paced by two-time First Team All-America East centerfielder
Albert Choi, who finished the game with a new career-high in hits with five.
Choi led the game off with a single and scored on a safety squeeze bunt from Donnelly to put the Highlanders in front 1-0. NJIT added a pair of runs in the third inning on a RBI single from Choi and another run on a failed pickoff by Purdue.
Ty Sallie and Choi hit back-to-back triples in the seventh inning to add an insurance run, putting the Highlanders ahead 4-1.
Ray Ortiz capped off the offense with his first home run of the season, a solo shot in the ninth that made the final score 5-1.
In addition to Choi's five-hit game, Ortiz, Sallie and
Austin Francis each finished with multi-hit games. Ortiz had three hits, while Francis' two hits were the first two of the rookie's career.
Up Next
The Highlanders and Boilermakers are planning to play game three in the series on Saturday, but inclement weather may force another doubleheader on Sunday. Stay tuned to the @NJTechBaseball twitter account and NJITHighlanders.com for updates on Saturday.
