WAYNE, N.J. (May 7, 2021) – The William Paterson University baseball team entered the New Jersey Athletic Conference tournament as the second seed in the playoffs, but also as the 23rd-ranked team in the nation.
 
The Pioneers played the part here Friday as they defeated seventh-seed Rutgers-Camden, 6-2 and 16-3, to eliminate the Scarlet Raptors on the first day of the best-of-three quarterfinal series.
 
Paterson improves to 25-6 as it heads into next weekend's best-of-three semifinal series. The Pioneers' 25 wins include seven against Rutgers-Camden this spring, from non-conference games to NJAC contests and to Friday's pair of playoff wins.
 
Rutgers=Camden closes its season at 9-18.
   
In the opening game, the Scarlet Raptors struck first, but the Pioneers struck more often. Rutgers-Camden scored a first-inning run on a solo home run by senior left fielder R.J. Concepcion, his fifth homer of the season. Behind the pitching of sophomore Dylan Wichrowski, that run stood up until the third inning, when Paterson tied the game on a walk and two hits, including a RBI single by senior center fielder Steven DiGirolamo.
 
Paterson took the lead for good with a four-run fourth inning, featuring four hits and one Scarlet Raptor error. The big hit was a two-run double from junior second baseman Colin Lombardo.
 
Both teams scored a run in the seventh inning, with the Scarlet Raptors producing a pair of singles from junior designated hitter Jesse Gerdes and senior catcher Thomas Gosse for their tally. Gosse collected a RBI.
 
Wichrowski (1-2) took the loss, working six innings and scattering nine hits and two walks. He struck out three and allowed six runs, three of them unearned.
 
Sophomore Darmany Rivas raised his record to 7-0 for the Pioneers, working seven innings and allowing six hits and two earned runs. He walked one and struck out seven.
 
Gerdes went 2-for-4 with one run scored as the lone Raptor with multiple hits. DiGirolamo and senior left fielder Frankie Deane had three hits apiece for William Paterson, while junior designated hitter Dan Carter added two hits.
   
The Pioneers exploded for seven-run innings in both the third and the seventh as they pounded out 14 hits and took advantage of eight walks.
 
Paterson put the game away early, using three hits, a sacrifice fly, five walks and four wild pitches in its big third inning. The big hit was a RBI triple by senior shortstop Matt Ferrara. Ferrara went 3-for-6 with two runs and two RBIs and Deane went 3-for-5 with two runs and one RBI to lead the William Paterson attack.
 
Trailing, 8-0, the Raptors broke the Pioneers' shutout bid with a run in the fifth inning on back-to-back doubles by Gosse and junior right fielder Brett Yurgin. They added a run in the seventh on a single by Yurgin, a wild pitch and a RBI single by sophomore shortstop Danny Vazquez.  The Scarlet Raptors' final run came in the eighth inning on a RBI single by senior first baseman Mike Lavenia.
 
Senior Mike Calabrese (1-4) started and took the loss for Rutgers-Camden, working 2.1 innings and allowing three hits, five walks and seven earned runs. He struck out one.
 
Senior Jack DeFouw (6-1) earned the win, working six innings of six-hit ball. He allowed one earned run, struck out four and didn't walk a batter.
 
Rutgers-Camden collected 11 hits, including three by Yurgin, who went 3-for-4 with one run and one RBI. Gerdes and senior first baseman/third baseman Matt Yanick both added two hits.