LITTLE FALLS, NJ - The NJIT baseball team came into Tuesday's game against Monmouth winless in 11 prior games against the Hawks, but that changed thanks to
Nick Vega's two late home runs that gave the Highlanders the 5-4 win at Yogi Berra Stadium.
Vega, a sophomore who entered the game with one career home run, tied the game 2-2 with a blast in the seventh inning and then put the Highlanders in front for good with a two-run home run in the eighth inning.
Croix Jenkins earned his first save of the season and fourth of his career as the senior was able to get three fly balls in the top of the ninth to preserve NJIT's ninth one-run victory this season.
Andrew Eppinger started on the mound for the first time in his career and the senior put together the best performance of his career, tossing four innings and allowing just one run while striking out two.
Monmouth scored the run off of Eppinger in the second, but the Highlanders answered immediately as
Cole Fleming scored
Ray Ortiz with a single.
The Hawks once again went ahead with a run in the fifth to make it 2-1 and NJIT's
Jake Fullerton entered from the bullpen and threw two scoreless innings to keep the score there and set up Vega's late-inning heroics.
Vega started off his seventh inning at bat with an 0-2 count and battled to make the count full while fouling off several pitches. He put the 11th pitch of the at bat over the left-center field wall to tie the game.
Monmouth went back in front, with two runs in the eighth, setting up the three-run bottom of the eighth for NJIT.
Ray Ortiz's ninth home run of the season made it a one-run game and
Dillon Can followed it up with a double to put the tying run in scoring position. Vega took matters into his own hands and gave the Highlanders the lead for good with his second longball of the game.
Can joined Vega in the two-hit club on Tuesday for the Highlanders, who rested several veterans ahead of a big weekend series against Binghamton.
The Highlanders and Bearcats open their three-game series at 6pm on Thursday at Yogi Berra Stadium, where the Highlanders are 11-4 this season. The game will be streamed on ESPN+.
