Newark, NJ|The men of Newark suffered their fourth loss of the season Friday against Baruch College at Weequahic Park. The Bearcats downed the Rutgers-Newark baseball team 13-6 in their season opener to start the year 1-0 while the Scarlet Raiders fall to 2-4.
Rutgers University-Newark (2-4) fell behind 7-0 early in the game due to costly errors. Daniel Reardon (0-1) got the start on the night and gave up eight runs, none of which were earned. Connor Clare had a strong performance finishing the game going 3-for-4 with four RBI, and a pair of runs. Chris Suleski led all batters in the game in hits with four as he went 4-for-5, with a run scored. John Kilmowich went 1-for-4, and Mathew Rypkema went 2-for-4, both ending the game with an RBI each.
Baruch College (1-0) got out on the Scarlet Raiders early and never looked back. Paul Sirakowski (1-0) got the start and picked up the win as he pitched 2.0 innings giving up two runs on three hits. Theodore Avgerinos scored four times by the conclusion of the game and picked up three hits to lead his squad going 3-for-5. Both Robert Schmuck and Eric Diaz went 2-for-5 with 2 RBI and Liam O'Gara was 1-for-4 with a triple.
During the second inning, the Bearcats of Baruch accumulated six runs on just three hits because of three errors and a hit batsman. The Scarlet Raiders showed some fight in the bottom half of the inning when Connor Clare led off with a home run, his first of the year. The lead was cut to five when Chris Suleski scored on a Matthew Rypkema single.
Errors continued piling up for the Scarlet Raiders as two more unearned runs were scored in favor of the Bearcats in the third as Robert Schmuck and Theodore Averginos scored on a dropped ball by Jamir Ramos extending the lead to 9-2. Once again the Scarlet Raiders showed grit coming right back in the bottom half of the inning. Connor Clare sent a two-run triple to right, bringing in Lisandro Ulerio and Michael Streim. He was driven home by a John Kilmowich single to left and the score was now 9-5.
The bats quieted down for both teams and the score was 10-5 in the sixth inning. The Bearcats scored on a sacrifice fly by Luke Lombardi and the Scarlet Raiders brought a run home due to a Connor Clare single. That was the final run the Scarlet Raiders would score on the night.
Baruch College added two more runs during the top of the seventh with RBI singles from Robert Schmuck and Connor McCabe making the score 13-5 and closed the door on the Scarlet Raiders night.
Next up for Rutgers University-Newark will be a doubleheader against FDU-Florham at Weequahic Park. Game one will be at 11:30 am and game two is scheduled for 2:30 pm.
