GLASSBORO, N.J. (April 13, 2019) – It was a doubleheader marathon that featured everything, from career milestones to blowouts and nail-biters, from superb pitching to hits, runs and big innings galore,
 
After a marathon day of 57 hits and 41 runs, the Rutgers-Camden baseball team emerged with a New Jersey Athletic Conference sweep over Montclair State University. The Scarlet Raptors captured the opener, 14-1, and survived a 14-12 heart-stopper in the nightcap in the twinbill played at Rowan University.
 
Along the way, senior Steven Bloyed hurled an outstanding 12-strikeout four-hit performance to win the opener and a pair of Scarlet Raptors collected milestone hits in the nightcap. Senior first baseman Chris Jones became only the second player in program history to reach 200 career hits with a single to center field in the seventh inning. One frame later, junior shortstop Nolan Gerold also singled to center, becoming the 35th player in Rutgers-Camden history to reach 100 hits.
 
The sweep leaves the Scarlet Raptors with a 13-14 record overall and a 5-5 mark in the NJAC. Montclair State falls to 10-18 and 1-10, extending its losing streak to 10 games.
 
Rutgers-Camden plays a non-conference makeup game Sunday at 12:30 p.m. when the Scarlet Raptors travel to Pennsylvania to face York College.
   
Bloyed was superb in the opener, scattering four singles and hurling shutout ball until the Red Hawks scored one run in the eighth inning. He didn't walk a batter and struck out 12 as he evened his record at 2-2 and lowered his stellar ERA to 2.25. It was his second complete game of the season.
 
Bloyed, who usually is the team's tough-luck pitcher who gets little run support, found himself with a wealth of runs this time around. After the Raptors staked him to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, they exploded for a 10-run third inning, their biggest frame since a 10-run fourth inning in a 17-6 win over Kean University on April 26, 2018.
 
The three-run first inning included a two-run home run by Jones, his third round-tripper of the season. In the third, the Scarlet Raptors sent 16 men to the plate, combining seven hits, two Red Hawk errors and four walks off a trio of Montclair State pitchers. The frame opened with walks to junior designated hitter Matt Yanick and to Jones before Gerold reached on an error to load the bases. Junior second baseman John Guccione walked to force in a run, knocking out Red Hawk starter Tyler Diefenbach (2-4). The carnage expanded against a pair of relievers, with sophomore left fielder Billy Eisler greeting Brandon Istvan with a two-run double, sophomore right fielder Rob Scanlan plating a run when he reached on an error, freshman center fielder Brett Yurgin collecting a RBI single and sophomore catcher R.J. Concepcion ripping a two-run triple. A ground out by junior third baseman Matthew Stoots plated Concepcion before Yanick and Jones reset the inning with singles to knock out Istvan. After a wild pitch by reliever Sean Lewandoski and a pop out, Guccione singled home two runs and Eisler singled for his second hit of the inning. Scanlan drew a walk before the Raptors were retired, leaving the bases loaded.
 
Rutgers-Camden added its final run in the sixth on a RBI single by Gerold.
 
For the game, Jones went 3-for-4 with three runs and two RBIs. Yurgin was 2-for-4 with two runs and one RBI in the leadoff spot, while Concepcion was 2-for-3 with one run and two RBIs, Yanick went 2-for-2 with two walks and three runs scored, Guccione was 2-for-3 with one run and three RBIs and Eisler was 2-for-4 with one run and two RBIs.
   
The second game had more twists than a Hollywood thriller and nearly turned into a horror movie for the Scarlet Raptors before they escaped with the victory.
 

Montclair State took a 3-0 lead through 3-1/2 innings, scoring a run in the first and tacking on two more in the top of the fourth before the Rutgers-Camden offense re-awakened after its tiring first game performance. Gerold doubled home a run in the fourth and Concepcion hit a fifth-inning sacrifice fly to cut the gap to 3-2 before the action came fast and furious.
 
A four-run sixth inning gave Rutgers-Camden a 6-3 lead, with Guccione collecting a bases-loaded walk to tie the game, Scanlan ripping a two-run single and Stoots adding a RBI single. Rutgers-Camden added five more runs in the seventh to take an 11-3 lead on its way to another apparent romp. Jones sparked the frame with his milestone 200th hit, a single that leaves him only eight hits shy of tying the program's career record set by Brian Murphy (2001-04). Yurgin had a two-run single and Concepcion added a two-run double in the inning, with the final run scoring on an error.
 
The top of the eighth transformed a comfortable game into a nightmare as the Scarlet Raptors watched Montclair State turn five walks, an error and five hits into seven runs, cutting the gap to 11-10. The Red Hawks loaded the bases with two outs before the third Raptor pitcher of the inning, senior Vince Sturtevant, entered the contest to induce a foul out to Stoots at third base. The biggest plays of the inning came on an RBI single by second baseman Joe Norton that ended up clearing the bases with an outfield error and a two-run double by designated hitter Andrew Ollwerther that cut the margin to 11-10.
 
Suddenly finding themselves in a tight game, the Scarlet Raptors responded with a three-run bottom of the eighth, sparked by a one-out single from Gerold for his milestone 100th hit. He became the second Scarlet Raptor this season to reach the 100-hit plateau, as Stoots accomplished the feat on April 8 against Rutgers-Newark. Freshman second baseman Jared Weaver had a RBI single that plated a pair of runs due to an outfield error. Concepcion capped the inning with a sacrifice fly.
 
The insurance runs became vital when Montclair State struck for a pair of runs in the top of the ninth on four hits before Sturtevant ended the game with a 4-6-3 double play to nail down his first save of the year. Raptor freshman starter Colin Carr (3-0) picked up the win, working seven innings and allowing 10 hits and three earned runs. He didn't walk a batter and struck out two.
 
Montclair State finished with 19 hits, including three apiece by Norton, Ollwerther and center fielder Brady Labbe.
 
Rutgers-Camden had 17 hits, led by Gerold (3-for-4, two runs, one RBI) and Yurgin (3-for-6, one run, two RBIs). Concepcion finished with four RBIs, while Stoots, Jones, Eisler and Scanlan each added two hits. Scanlan had two RBIs and two runs scored. Eisler and Jones both scored three runs.