NJIT Baseball Holds Off Purdue 7-5 for Second Win this Weekend Over the Big Ten Foe

Published: Sunday, February 26, 2023
Vurpillat was nearly perfect in three innings out of the NJIT bullpen on Sunday.
Vurpillat was nearly perfect in three innings out of the NJIT bullpen on Sunday.

The NJIT baseball team held off Purdue on Sunday, hitting three home runs and pitching well down the stretch en route to a 7-5 victory over the Boilermakers at Ting Stadium.

Sunday's win puts NJIT back above .500 at 4-3, while the Boilermakers are now 5-3 on the season after the squads split this weekend's four-game series. Purdue took games one and three, while the Highlanders were victorious in two and four. All four contests were close, with NJIT's 5-1 victory in Friday night's game being the largest margin of victory.

The Highlanders got on the board first and never trailed in Sunday's win as  Albert Choi  and  Ray Ortiz  led the game off with back-to-back singles. Choi stole third and scored on an error, while Ortiz was doubled home by  Cole Fleming .

Purdue answered with a run in the home half of the first inning, but NJIT immediately made it a two-run game again as  Brett Helmkamp  scored on a passed ball in the second.

The Boilermakers once again answered with a solo home run in bottom of the second and the score remained 3-2 until  Andrew Eppinger's  first-career home run put the Highlanders ahead 4-2 in the fourth inning. 

Purdue made it a one-run game for the third time with an RBI single in the bottom of the fifth inning, but tremendous pitching out of the bullpen from  Grant Vurpillat  and two more home runs from the Highlanders offense helped NJIT hold on to the victory against their opponents from the Big Ten Conference.

Vurpillat, a graduate student, relieved classmate  Joe Georgini  to begin the sixth. Georgini earned the win to improve to 2-0, tossing five innings and allowing three runs, while striking out a career-high five and not walking a batter. 

Vurpillat struck out the side for a perfect sixth inning and worked around a leadoff single for a scoreless seventh before the NJIT offense added some insurance.

Cole Fleming  led off the eighth inning with his second home run of the season and  Austin Francis  followed up a  Jared Donnelly  walk with his first-career home run, which put NJIT in front 7-3.

Vurpillat pitched another 1-2-3 inning in the eighth and handed the ball to  Liam Reiner  for the ninth inning. Reiner allowed a pair of runs, but was able to get a pair of outs with the tying runner at the plate to preserve the NJIT win. 

Choi, Fleming, and Francis all had a pair of hits to lead the NJIT offense. 

Choi finished the four-game series 9-for-16 (.563) at the plate with three triples, three walks, and three stolen bases.

The Highlanders have now hit 12 home runs this season and have hit at least one in all seven games.

It won't get any easier for the Highlanders, who will return to North Carolina next weekend for three games against perennial power NC State of the ACC. First pitch in Friday's game one is slated for 3 p.m.