BALTIMORE, MD - The NJIT baseball team evened this weekend's three-game America East series with a 4-1 victory over host UMBC on Saturday afternoon at Alumni Field. 

The Highlanders scored a run in each of the first two innings and added runs in the seventh and ninth to avenge Friday's 2-0 loss to the Retrievers.

Luke Longo led the game off with a double and scored on a UMBC error later in the first inning. Longo made it 2-0 an inning later when he hit another double, this time scoring Jared Donnelly.

Dante Bozzuti started his first game of the season and made the most of it as his seventh inning sacrifice fly scored Andrew Elcock, who led the inning off with a triple. The Highlanders final run of the game came on a successful safety squeeze as Donnelly bunted the ball into play to score Ty Sallie from third base.

Aidan Kidd started on the mound for NJIT and earned the win, pitching six innings and allowing one earned run, while striking out six. Kidd was relieved by Grant Vurpillat, who pitched three scoreless inings to earn the save.

Vurpillat wiggled out of a bases loaded, nobody out jam in the seventh inning with a pop out and a double play. The veteran was able to get another double play to end the game with the bases loaded.

Longo and Elcock each had a pair of hits to pace the NJIT offense. 

NJIT and UMBC will conclude the three-game series on Sunday with the rubber match. First pitch is slated for 1pm at Alumni Field.