ALBANY, N.Y. -- The NJIT baseball team falls on the road to UAlbany, 7-5, on Friday night.

The Great Danes struck quickly in the bottom of the first inning, using three hits and three walks to plate four runs and take an early 4-0 advantage.

The Highlanders chipped away in the second inning when Austin Francis and Jack Stead opened the frame with singles before a sacrifice bunt from Dillon Can moved both into scoring position. Brody Levin lifted a sacrifice fly to bring home Francis and put the Highlanders on the board.

The Highlanders added another run in the third when Ty Sallie reached and advanced into scoring position before Cole Campbell delivered an RBI single to cut the deficit to 4-2.

The Highlanders evened the game in the fourth inning with another multi-hit rally. Dillon Can singled and Sheehan O'Connor followed with a bunt base hit before Sallie worked a walk to load the bases. Rowin O'Connor drove in a run on a fielder's choice, and Campbell came through again with an RBI single to tie the contest at 4-4.

The Great Danes responded in the bottom of the fifth, regaining the lead with a two-run single to go in front, 6-4.

The Highlanders trimmed the margin to one in the seventh when Lorenzo Camilleri launched a solo home run, making it a 6-5 game.

The Great Danes added a run in the eighth inning to extend the lead to 7-5.

At the plate, Sallie led the Highlanders with a 3-for-3 performance and reached base five times, while Campbell drove in two runs. Francis and Stead each added multi-hit efforts, and Camilleri's seventh-inning home run highlighted the Highlanders' 13-hit performance.

On the mound, Josh Willitts took the loss after allowing six runs over four innings. Tade Riordan provided strong relief, tossing 3.1 innings and allowing just one unearned run while striking out four.

Next Up
The Highlanders look to bounce back for game two of the series at UAlbany on Saturday, the 25th with first pitch scheduled for 1:00 p.m.