EWING, N.J. (April 29, 2019) – The Rutgers University-Camden baseball team knew it needed help to make the New Jersey Athletic Conference playoffs after being swept in a Sunday doubleheader against Ramapo College.
 
Ironically, it was Ramapo College the Scarlet Raptors were rooting for on Monday in their NJAC game against Rutgers-Newark, but that help never came, with Newark posting a lopsided 12-6 victory in a makeup game over the Roadrunners, while Rutgers-Camden was losing, 17-5, in another NJAC makeup game at No. 5/8 The College of New Jersey.
 
With the NJAC tie-breaker system, if both teams lost, the Scarlet Raptors would have made the sixth and last spot in the NJAC playoffs, which start Tuesday by virtue of one win against a higher-ranked team, since both Newark and Camden split their head-to-head meeting this year. Camden split with TCNJ this season, winning a game last Thursday.
 
Instead of a tie-breaker, the scenario became academic as Newark finished with a 9-9 conference mark, while Rutgers-Camden ended up 8-10.
 
The Scarlet Raptors closed their season with a 17-21 record overall, while TCNJ will take a 27-9 overall mark and a 13-5 conference mark into the NJAC playoffs.
 
In the Newark/Ramapo game, the Scarlet Raiders jumped to a quick 4-0 lead after two innings and were well on their way to a win after three, leading, 8-1. For Rutgers-Camden, however, its final game started out with promise as the Raptors tied the game in the top of the third at 1-1, loading the bases on a pair of errors and a milestone single by junior catcher Tyler Travis. With his single to third base, Travis (pictured above) joined the  career 100-hit club at Rutgers-Camden, becoming the third Raptor to reach that milestone this season, following juniors Nolan Gerold and Matthew Stoots. Gerold plated the run with a sacrifice fly.
 
The game remained tied until the bottom of the fifth, when TCNJ turned four walks and six hits into nine runs, the second nine-run inning the Scarlet Raptors allowed in two days. The other came in a 23-6 loss in the second game of Sunday's doubleheader against Ramapo.
 
The Scarlet Raptors got one run back in the top of the sixth inning when freshman catcher Mike Gismondi singled and the Raptors loaded the bases on walks to freshman pinch-hitter Garrett Warner and senior first baseman Chris Jones. Junior pinch-hitter Thomas Gosse plated the run with a ground out.
 
TCNJ countered with five runs in the bottom of the sixth and both teams scored in the eighth, with the Scarlet Raptors scoring three times and the Lions plating two. The Raptors scored when Warner led off the frame by reaching on an error. Jones and Gosse followed with singles, with Gosse's hit to right field plating Warner. Stoots singled to load the bases before Jones scored on a passed ball. After a walk to sophomore right fielder Rob Scanlan re-loaded the bases, freshman second baseman Jared Weaver plated the final run with a ground out.
 
Rutgers-Camden managed five hits off a trio of TCNJ pitchers, while the Lions collected 17 hits off of five Scarlet Raptor hurlers.