Baltimore, Md. – The NJIT baseball team could not hold onto a late lead on Saturday afternoon, dropping the series finale to UMBC, 5-3. Austin Francis put the Highlanders ahead with a grand slam in the top of the seventh, but the Retrievers were able to rally and win on a walk-off solo home run in the bottom of the ninth.

How it Happened
Francis drove in all five runs on the day for NJIT, bringing home the first run of the day on a perfectly executed squeeze but to score Ray Ortiz from third. UMBC would tie the game in the bottom of the first on a sacrifice fly, but good pitching from both sides kept the score level at 1-1 until the sixth. The Retrievers posted a two-spot in the sixth to pull ahead, but Francis' grand slam with two outs in the seventh gave NJIT a 5-3 advantage. However, the Highlander bullpen was unable to hold the lead, allowing a pair in the eighth and the walk-off home run in the ninth.

Francis' home run was his third of the season, and his five RBI are his most in a game in his career. Ortiz continued to get on base at a high clip, working two more walks and finished the series batting .750 over the three games. Mason Wolf and Andrew Eppinger each notched multi-hit efforts to cap off strong weekends.

Up Next
NJIT travels to Bryant next Friday to open a three-game series against the Bulldogs.