WEST LONG BRANCH, NJ - After opening the game with four runs in the top of the first, Rutgers was forced to rally from an 8-5 deficit with four unanswered runs in a 9-8 win over Monmouth this afternoon in West Long Branch. The win was also head coach Fred Hill's 700th at Rutgers and runs his RU mark to 700-411-2 in 21+ seasons with the Scarlet Knights. RU is now 16-9 overall and has won four in a row.
The Scarlet Knights came out strong, as Todd Frazier (Toms River, NJ) led off the game with a double to center and scored on a one-out single from Rich Canuso (Monroe, NJ). Colin Gaynor (Toms River, NJ), who had walked, scored on a single from Johnny Defendis (Staten Island, NY), while two more runs crossed when Tim Querns (Cherry Hill, NJ) was hit by a pitch and Frank Meade (Linden, NJ) walked with the bases loaded.
Monmouth sliced the lead in half with a two-run, two-out rally in the bottom of the inning against RU starter Tom Malafronte (Somerville, NJ), while Rutgers added another in the second when Jeff Grose (Iselin, NJ) walked and scored on Canuso's second RBI single in as many innings.
In the bottom of the third, Monmouth parlayed a throwing error from Malafronte into a five-run inning, taking a 7-5 lead after he fired a comebacker into centerfield on a possible inning-ending double play ball. The Hawks added another run in the fourth, extending its lead to 8-5, before Hill summoned Jim Jansen (Hillsdale, NJ) from the bullpen. Jansen proceeded to pitch four shutout innings to pick up the win (his fourth career victory vs. Monmouth), while Tim Woodhull (Princeton Jct., NJ) shut the door with a 1-2-3 ninth inning for his first save of the season. Jansen wiggled out of jams in the seventh and eighth innings, aided by Frazier, who snared a line drive to leave two runners on base to end the seventh.
The RU offense, meanwhile, scored one in the fifth when Querns led off with a walk and scored on Grose' triple to cut the lead to 8-6. An inning later, RU scored three more to take a 9-8 lead, aided by a pair of costly Monmouth errors. After Defendis led off with a single, Rodriguez's flyball to left was misplayed, putting runners on first and second with no outs. Dave Williams (Franklin, NJ) then laid down a bunt, which was overthrown, allowing Defendis to score. Querns plated Rodriguez with a single, tying the game, while Williams scored the winning run when pinch-hitter Ryan Hill (Hillsdale, NJ) grounded into a double play.
Jansen allowed two hits and no runs in 4.0 innings, striking out two to pick up his first win of the season, while Canuso (2 RBI) and Defendis led the offense with two hits apiece.
Rutgers returns to action and BIG EAST play this weekend, when it travels to Morgantown, WV for a three-game series with WVU. The series starts on Saturday with a noon doubleheader.
The Automated ScoreBook
Rutgers at Monmouth
04/06/05 at W. Long Branch, N.J. (MU Baseball Field)
Rutgers 9 (16-9)
Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB
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FRAZIER, Todd ss......... 5 1 1 0 1 0 3 1 3
GROSE, Jeff lf........... 3 1 1 1 2 0 3 0 0
GAYNOR, Colin dh......... 3 1 1 0 2 1 0 0 2
CANUSO, Rich 1b.......... 5 1 2 2 0 0 7 3 2
DEFENDIS, Johnny cf...... 5 2 2 1 0 1 3 0 0
RODRIGUEZ, Cory 2b....... 4 1 0 0 1 2 0 3 0
WILLIAMS, Dave rf........ 4 1 1 0 0 2 4 0 3
QUERNS, Tim 3b........... 3 1 1 2 1 0 1 2 0
MEADE, Frank c........... 2 0 0 1 1 1 2 1 0
HILL, Ryan ph........... 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
GOSSARD, Jon c.......... 1 0 0 0 0 1 3 0 0
MALAFRONTE, Tom p........ 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0
PUSTAY, Matt p.......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
ACAMPORA, Bobby p....... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
JANSEN, Jim p........... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
WOODHULL, Tim p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Totals................... 36 9 9 7 8 8 27 11 10
Monmouth 8 (7-14)
Player AB R H RBI BB SO PO A LOB
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Ogorzat, Rob cf.......... 3 0 0 0 1 0 2 0 0
Hussa, Mike lf........... 5 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 2
Lewis, Jon pr/lf........ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Massari, Nick 2b......... 4 2 2 0 1 0 1 2 0
Rotella, Fran rf......... 3 2 1 0 2 1 2 0 0
Conner, Brett dh......... 5 1 2 2 0 0 0 0 2
Weres, Marc 3b........... 5 1 3 2 0 0 0 4 0
Meyers, Andy 1b.......... 4 0 1 0 0 1 11 0 3
Braun, Justin ph........ 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Dennis, John c........... 4 1 1 1 0 1 8 0 0
Pilitowski, Frank ph.... 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0
Higgins, Kyle ss......... 4 0 0 1 0 1 1 3 2
Crystal, Jordan p........ 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0
Apicelli, Cip p......... 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0
Totals................... 39 8 11 6 4 5 27 11 9
Score by Innings R H E
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Rutgers............. 410 013 000 - 9 9 3
Monmouth............ 205 100 000 - 8 11 4
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E - D. Williams; Malafronte; B. Acampora; Hussa 2; Higgins; Apicelli. DP -
Rutgers 1; Monmouth 1. LOB - Rutgers 10; Monmouth 9. 2B - T. Frazier(5); J.
Grose(5); Hussa(4); Rotella(2). HBP - T. Querns; Ogorzat. SH - D. Williams.
SB - T. Frazier 2; Ogorzat.
Rutgers IP H R ER BB SO AB BF
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MALAFRONTE, Tom..... 2.1 5 6 4 2 2 13 15
PUSTAY, Matt........ 0.0 2 1 0 0 0 2 2
ACAMPORA, Bobby..... 1.2 2 1 1 2 0 6 8
JANSEN, Jim......... 4.0 2 0 0 0 2 15 16
WOODHULL, Tim....... 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 3 3
Monmouth IP H R ER BB SO AB BF
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Crystal, Jordan..... 2.0 5 5 5 4 3 11 16
Apicelli, Cip....... 7.0 4 4 2 4 5 25 30
Win - J. Jansen (1-0). Loss - Apicelli (0-2). Save - T. Woodhull (1).
WP - B. Acampora 2; Crystal 2. HBP - by Crystal (T. Querns); by J. Jansen
(Ogorzat). PB - F. Meade.
Umpires - HP: Tim Lombarto 1B: Bruno Catrambore
Start: 3:07 pm Time: 2:46 Attendance: 210
M. Pustay faced 2 batters in the 3rd.
