BUIES CREEK, N.C. – Rutgers baseball ended its series against Campbell with a 16-3 win on Sunday afternoon. The Scarlet Knights wrapped up the weekend on a high note after dropping the first two games to the Camels.
RU wasted no time getting to work, hanging a 4-spot in the first inning.
Ryan Lasko walked to lead things off, stole second, went to third on a groundout and came home on an errant pickoff throw. After the Camels walked the bases loaded, true freshman
Trevor Cohen made them pay, singling into left to bring home a pair of runs.
Danny Melnick scored the fourth run when Cohen broke for second and got caught in an intentional rundown, allowing Melnick to score on the throw to second.
Jordan Sweeney came through with the team's first home run of the season, leading off the second with a solo shot. Campbell added a run on a bases loaded walk in the bottom half, but Rutgers responded right away with a Melnick double and Cohen single to make it 6-1. The Scarlet Knights pushed it to 9-1 in the fifth, with Cohen hitting a sac fly to center and reaching second when the ball was dropped. With runners on second and third, Sweeney dropped down a bunt to score Melnick, with Cohen never stopping on the play and scoring from second on the throw to first.
They punctuated the victory with a 6-run top of the ninth, highlighted by a bases-clearing doubly by
Josh Kuroda-Grauer. Cohen,
Maximus Martin and Lasko all drove in runs in the final frame as well.
Jake Marshall made his first start in a Scarlet Knight uniform, going 3.0 innings, allowing 1 run on no hits, six walks and three strikeouts. He was replaced by
Grant Besser, who dazzled in his first RU appearance, throwing 4.0 scoreless innings, allowing four hits, walking none and striking out three.
Sam Bello and
Ben Gorski combined to finish off the final two innings of the game.
Rutgers returns to action on Friday in the Swig and Swine Classic in South Carolina. RU will play Canisius on Friday, Ball State on Saturday and Boston College on Sunday.
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