Rutgers-Camden Athletics

Rutgers-Camden preparing for NJAC Baseball Tournament

4/28/2025 10:15:00 AM

CAMDEN, N.J. (April 28, 2025) – When the Rutgers University-Camden baseball team split a doubleheader with William Paterson University here on Saturday, the Scarlet Raptors' post-season chances were in jeopardy and they were looking for help to reach the New Jersey Athletic Conference playoffs.
 
That help came Sunday with two doubleheader sweeps that allowed the Scarlet Raptors to become the sixth seed in the upcoming six-team NJAC playoffs. With Kean University sweeping Rutgers University-Newark and Ramapo College sweeping Stockton University, which left both Newark and Stockton with 7-11 NJAC records. Rutgers-Camden, which went 8-10 in conference play, qualified for the sixth playoff spot.
 
The Scarlet Raptors will open the double-elimination playoffs at top-seeded Kean on Thursday at 3:30 p.m. Win or lose, the tournament moves to Saturday at Montclair State University. If the Raptors defeat Kean, they would play at 3:30 p.m. Saturday against the loser of Thursday's Montclair State at The College of New Jersey game. If they lose to Kean, they will play at 12 p.m. Saturday against the loser of Thursday's Ramapo and Rowan game.
 
NJAC playoff bracket
 
The Raptors' playoff berth marks their third appearance in the NJAC playoffs in the last five years under Head Coach Ryan Kulik, who collected his 100th Rutgers-Camden win on April 15 against Alvernia and has since hiked his total to 104.
 
Rutgers-Camden will bring a 25-15 overall record into the NJAC playoffs to face Kean, which is 34-6 and currently ranked sixth nationally in both the D3baseball.com Top 25 poll and the ABCA Top 30 poll. The next rankings are released Tuesday.
 
Rutgers-Camden peaked at 19th nationally in the D3baseball.com poll and #25 in the ABCA poll on March 18, the Raptors' first national rankings since 2016.
 
The Scarlet Raptors lost a conference doubleheader at Kean on April 5 by scores of 15-0 and 3-2, but swept the Cougars in a 2024 doubleheader and split a 2023 twinbill against them.
 
The season has produced plenty of highlights and records, with graduate student designated hitter/first baseman Jack Murphy setting the program's career records for games played (177),  RBIs (145) and doubles (47), while tying the career mark of 21 home runs. He also tied the single-season doubles record with 16.
 
Senior first baseman Diego Salazar and junior second baseman Frankie Romond both collected their 100th career hits in April, The Scarlet Raptors' offense has produced innings of 11, nine, eight and seven runs during the season, with the 11-run first inning coming in a March 6 15-9 win over York and the nine-run fifth inning coming in a 20-3 victory over Rosemont March 12, the most runs since another 20-3 win against Cairn in 2023.
 
Romond had two five-hit games and two six-RBI games during the season. He homered in both games of a doubleheader against both New Jersey City University and William Paterson University on his way to a team-high eight home runs this season, one shy of the program's single-season record. He leads the team in hitting (.385), triples (4), home runs (8), RBIs (42), total bases (102), slugging (.689) and on-base percentage (.444).
 
Murphy is second on the team in hitting (.343), RBIs (40), slugging (.511) and HBP (8), while leading with 16 doubles. Sophomore right fielder Brandon Petrick is hitting .305 with 24 RBIs and has six outfield assists as teams are increasingly becoming aware of his powerful left arm in the outfield.
 
Salazar was hitting .276 before being injured, while senior center fielder Steven Shaffer is hitting .274 with a team-high 39 runs scored, while adding 15 stolen bases and outstanding defense in center field with 93 putouts and one assist in 94 chances for a 1.000 fielding percentage.
 
Senior third baseman Ryan Nutley is batting .270 with 29 RBIs, is second on the team with 37 runs scored and leads the club with 30 walks and 10 HBP. His 30 walks are only two shy of the program's single-season record.
 
Sophomore infielder/designated hitter Austin Dubler is batting .266 and leads the team with 20 stolen bases.
 
On the mound, graduate student Ethan Carpenter leads the team with 10 starts and 57 innings, while posting a 6-2 record and a 4.58 ERA. Senior Chase Cooper has nine starts and 49 innings pitched, while posting a 5-2 record with a team-leading 2.39 ERA. Senior Daniel Robeson and junior Ryan Rumsey have both made seven starts, pitching 50.1 and 34.1 innings, respectively. Robeson is 2-3 with a 5.36 ERA and a team-leading 59 strikeouts. Rumsey is 4-1, 4.98.
 
In the bullpen, graduate student Jacob Shapley has made a team-high 14 appearances, posted a 2-2 record and a 5.46 ERA and owns 30 strikeouts in 28 innings. He leads the team with four saves. Both senior Joey Rappaport (1-2, 6.75 and one save) and junior Dylan Oliver (1-0, 4.24) have made 13 appearances.