Box Score

CAMDEN, N.J. – If the top-seeded Rutgers University-Camden Scarlet Raptors are going to make a run to the New Jersey Athletic Conference Baseball Championship title, they will have to do it the hard way.

Rutgers-Camden allowed a pair of unearned runs in the first inning, fell into a six-run hole in the third and never recovered as it dropped a second-round tourney game against third-seeded Montclair State University, 9-6, Thursday at Campbell's Field.

Rutgers-Camden falls to 28-10-1, snapping its eight-game winning streak. More importantly, the Scarlet Raptors fall into the NJAC tournament losers' bracket, where they will play an 8:30 a.m. game Saturday morning against the loser of Friday's Kean University/Rowan University winners' bracket game.

Montclair State, which stays alive after dropping its opening-day tournament game against Kean Tuesday, improves to 21-16. The Red Hawks will play Saturday at 11:30 a.m. against the survivor of Friday's losers' bracket game between William Paterson University and The College of New Jersey.
 All of the weekend playoff games will be held at Rowan University.

Montclair State took a quick lead in the first inning against Raptor senior starter Tommy Potts (Bordentown, NJ/Bordentown Regional), sparked on a pair of throwing errors to first base by Potts on the first two batters, senior third baseman Connor Abreu (Piscataway, NJ/Piscataway) and freshman rightfielder Ryan Long (Washington Township, NJ/Washington Township). The throwing error on Long's sacrifice bunt scored Abreu from second base and advanced Long into scoring position. After he was sacrificed to third, he scored on a sacrifice fly by junior first baseman Christopher Reynolds (Randolph, NJ/Randolph).

The Red Hawks added four more runs in the top of the third on five hits, including a bases-clearing triple by senior shortstop Cody Pace (Milltown, NJ/Spotswood).

Rutgers-Camden got one run back in the bottom of the third on a hit batsman, two singles and a run-scoring wild pitch, but throughout most of the remainder of the game, the Raptors either failed to get shutdown innings after they scored, or simply matched runs each inning with the Red Hawks.

Both teams scored single runs in the fourth and sixth innings, making it an 8-3 Montclair State lead. Rutgers-Camden cut the gap to 8-5 with a two-run seventh on a two-run double by junior first baseman Connor Hall (Delran, NJ/Delran), but allowed another run in the top of the eighth on a sacrifice fly by senior leftfielder P.J. Jennings (Morris Plains, NJ/Morristown). Only a spectacular catch by Raptor centerfielder Bobby Romano (Vineland, NJ/Vineland) prevented Jennings' sacrifice fly from being an extra-base hit.

Trailing, 9-5, entering the bottom of the ninth inning against NJAC Fireman of the Year John Silvestri (Livingston, NJ/Seton Hall Prep), the Scarlet Raptors loaded the bases when sophomore third baseman Brett Tenuto (Audubon, NJ/Gloucester Catholic) was hit by a pitch and they received back-to-back singles from sophomore shortstop Joe Sigismondi (Blackwood, NJ/Highland Regional) and freshman designated hitter Joe Brooks (Blackwood, NJ/Gloucester Catholic). Senior rightfielder Adrian Gonzalez (Pennsauken, NJ/Pennsauken) plated a run with a ground out and, one out later, freshman leftfielder Doug Carter (Union, NJ/Union) was hit by a pitch to reload the bags. Freshman catcher Jon Theckston (Gloucester, NJ/Gloucester Catholic) nearly tied the game with a line drive just foul down the right field line before finally striking out to end a long at bat and the marathon 3:21 contest.

Pace led the Red Hawks' 12-hit attack with a 3-for-4 game. Pace and Reynolds both collected three RBIs.

Rutgers-Camden collected 11 hits, including three apiece by Carter and Brooks. Hall and Sigismondi each added two hits, with Hall plating two runs.

Potts suffered his first loss of the season, falling to 7-1. He worked five innings, allowing nine hits and seven runs, five of them earned. He walked two and struck out one.

Sophomore lefty Jonathan Torregroza (Bound Brook, NJ/Immaculata) collected the win to raise his record to 5-2. He worked 5.1 innings, allowing seven hits, two walks and three earned runs. He struck out three.
 
NJAC tournament bracket