March 18, 2016 Box Score
ANNAPOLIS, Md. - Senior Howie Brey (Middletown, N.J.) allowed just one run over eight innings on the mound, but Navy rallied for two in the bottom of the ninth to claim a 3-2 victory over Rutgers baseball Friday at Max Bishop Stadium. It was the first meeting between the two programs since 1954.
Making his 29th career start, Brey struck out six batters in the 104-pitch effort. He permitted six hits and one walk, but stranded six runners on base to log the longest outing by a Scarlet Knight this season.
At the plate, the Scarlet Knights (7-10) jumped ahead in the top of the second on a solo home run by sophomore Milo Freeman (Millburn, N.J.). The opposite field shot was his first long ball of the season and second of his career.
Brey would make that tally hold through the middle innings, including working around a leadoff hit in the second, fourth and fifth innings. He then sat down nine consecutive batters until the start of the eighth.
Rutgers added an insurance run in the top of the seventh. Junior Tom Marcinczyk (Middlesex, N.J.) picked up a one-out walk and scored all the way from first on a double to the left-center gap by freshman Mike Martinez (West New York, N.J.).
That Midshipman (13-4-1) rallied for one run on a two-out single in the eighth, but Brey kept the lead with a strikeout to escape the jam.
However, Navy used a single, sacrifice bunt and pinch-hit single by Christian Hodge to tie the game in the last of the ninth. Then with two outs, Robert Currie hit a walk-off single up the middle to end it.
Andrew Bartek (3-1) picked up the win with 2.2 innings of relief for the hosts, as starter George Coughlin surrendered three hits and two runs over 6.1 innings in the start. Senior Reed Shuttle (Lansdale, Pa.) (0-2) suffered the loss for RU.
Rutgers will finish its seven-game spring break trip Saturday with a 10 a.m. game versus NJIT at Max Bishop Stadium.
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