ASTON, Penn. (April 23, 2019) – With several big New Jersey Athletic Conference games remaining in the hopes of reaching the NJAC playoffs, the Rutgers University-Camden baseball team needed a big win against Stockton University at the Maplezone Sports Institute here Tuesday afternoon.
 
The Raptors got that win behind numerous big performances as they kept their hopes for post-season play alive with a 7-5 victory over the Ospreys.
 
Rutgers-Camden crushed four home runs, collected four-hit games from sophomore right fielder Billy Eisler and freshman center fielder Brett Yurgin, and received a tremendous relief outing by sophomore Mike Paciocco as it defeated Stockton for the second time in six days. Paciocco was the winning pitcher in both games for his first two collegiate wins.
 
The victory lifts Rutgers-Camden to 16-18 overall and 7-7 in the NJAC heading into the final four games of the season. The Raptors face NJAC-leading The College of New Jersey Thursday (at Rowan College at Gloucester County) and Friday (in Ewing) before closing the regular season with a doubleheader against Ramapo College Saturday. That twinbill will be played at Rowan University.
 
Stockton falls to 13-15 overall and 3-11 in the NJAC.
 
The Scarlet Raptors started off with a bang in the bottom of the first inning, with singles by Yurgin and junior catcher Tyler Travis setting the stage for a three-run home run by sophomore left fielder R.J. Concepcion. Stockton, however, countered with a pair of unearned runs off Raptor freshman starter Colin Carr in the second inning and went ahead with two more runs in the third. The Ospreys had three hits in both innings.
 
Paciocco entered the game in the fourth inning and blanked the Osprey offense until the eighth inning. Over the course of 4-2/3 innings, he allowed five hits, three walks and one earned run, while striking out five. His key performance allowed the Scarlet Raptor offense to take over the game.
 
Junior shortstop Nolan Gerold tied the contest with a leadoff home run in the fourth inning. One out later, Eisler doubled down the left field line. He advanced to third on a single by Yurgin. Travis plated him with a squeeze bunt, putting the Scarlet Raptors ahead to stay, 5-4.
 
In the fifth inning, senior first baseman Chris Jones launched a leadoff home run to center field. Jones, who set the program's all-time hit record on Monday with his 209th hit, went 2-for-3 to extend his career record to 211 hits.
 
The Scarlet Raptors added another solo home run in the sixth when Eisler went yard, part of a stellar 4-for-4 day in which he nearly hit for a cycle. Eisler, pictured above, had his second single of the game in his final at bat instead of the triple he needed.
 
While Eisler was doing his damage from the ninth spot in the lineup, Yurgin was going 4-for-5 from the leadoff spot, collecting three singles and a double. Concepcion and Jones both notched two hits in the Raptors' 14-hit attack.
 
Stockton cut the gap to 7-5 with a run in the eighth off Paciocco, sparked by a two-out triple from freshman right fielder Brendan Doherty, who had a fine 4-for-5 day of his own. After a walk and a RBI single by senior designated hitter Austin Gonella, Paciocco was relieved by senior Vince Sturtevant. He worked out of the jam with a ground out and retired the side in order in the ninth for his second save of the season.