Highlanders Fight Off Elimination With Late Rally in 2-1 Win vs. UMBC

Hours after falling into the losers bracket with a 20-5 loss to Binghamton, the NJIT baseball team pushed across a pair of late runs to rally past UMBC 2-1 in America East Playoff action at Mohaney Diamond on Thursday.

The Highlanders' two runs came on their only two hits of the game, a pair of infield singles from Albert Choi and Kevin Putsky. After Jared Donnelly walked, David Marcano reached via an error and Julio Marcano, and the two base runners moved up a base on a wild pitch, Choi laced a line drive that was knocked down by the shortstop and scored Donnelly to tie the game. One batter later, Putsky legged out an infield single to first and Marcano, who was running on the pitch, came around to score from second to give NJIT the late lead.

Grant Vurpillat worked around a two-out single in the ninth and struck out the final batter of the game for his second win in as many days and sixth victory of the season. Vurpillat struck out three in three scoreless innings after coming in to relieve fellow Californian Aidan Kidd, who struck out a career-high 10 over six innings while allowing just one run. 

UMBC, the fifth seed in the tournament, saw its pitcher Nick Remy pitch 7.1 innings of no-hit ball, but the Highlanders were able to get the only two hits they needed off the Retrievers' bullpen. 

NJIT was forced to play UMBC after falling earlier in the day to second-seeded Binghamton. The Bearcats jumped out to an 8-0 lead after three innings and never looked back.

Nick Hussey, Donnelly, and Andrew Elcock each hit home runs for the Highlanders in the loss to Binghamton.

NJIT will now take on top-seeded Maine in an elimination game at Mahaney Diamond at 2:30 p.m. on Friday. The winner of that contest will take on the loser of Friday morning's winner's bracket final between UMass Lowell and Binghamton on Friday evening for a spot on Championship Saturday.