PISCATAWAY, N.J. – Rutgers baseball rode another big offensive day to defeat Lafayette by a score of 18-6 in seven innings on Wednesday afternoon at Bainton Field. 

The Scarlet Knights (15-6) scored multiple runs in each of the first five innings to cruise against the Leopards (3-16) in run-rule victory.

Ben Gorski started on the mound for RU and worked around a run in the first inning to throw three innings, giving up a run on four hits, three strikeouts and one walk. With a scheduled bullpen day, Gorski earned the win to move to 2-1. 

Despite an early 1-0 hole, the Scarlet Knight lineup took the lead back in the bottom of the first on a sac fly from Pete Durocher and a throwing error on an attempted pickoff. 

With a 2-1 advantage in the second, RU added three more. Johnny Volpe came home on a wild pitch, Trevor Cohen laced an RBI single and Tony Santa Maria tripled him in to push the advantage to 5-1. 

In the third, RU scored six more to make it 11-1 and all but put things to rest. It started with an RBI groundout from Volpe, followed by a two-run single from Cohen. Santa Maria doubled home a pair and Josh Kuroda-Grauer singled into left to score Santa Maria. Three more came home in the fourth on an RBI double from Cameron Love, a wild pitch and an RBI groundout. 

In the bottom of the fifth, Pete Ciuffreda singled against his former team to bring home Kuroda-Grauer and make it 15-1. After entering the game as a pinch-runner, Pablo Santos delivered a bases-loaded triple for his first career hit, scoring three more runs and giving his team an 18-1 advantage. 

With a 10-run rule in place, the Rutgers pitching staff was able to work around a five-run sixth and Ethan Bowen closed out the win with a scoreless top of the seventh. Bowen recorded the last four outs and did not give up a run, allowing two hits and no walks. 

Up next for Rutgers is its first home series of the season against UConn, with game one set for 4 p.m. on Friday afternoon.   

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