Box Score

Allentown, PA … The College of New Jersey baseball team swept a pair of games from Muhlenberg College as they have now won four straight and seven of their last eight games.
 
The Lions (10-7) battled from behind to win the first game 7-3. They scored in six of nine innings in the second game, which allowed them to absorb a pair of big innings by the Mules and gain a 13-10 victory.
 
TCNJ will square off against a pair of tough, non-conference opponents this week before opening New Jersey Athletic Conference play on Saturday, March 31 when they host Kean University in a double-header.
 
Game 1: TCNJ 7  Muhlenberg College 3 –  

Senior Jimmy Ruzich (Verona, NJ/Montclair Kimberly Academy) had a pair of clutch hits late in the game to lead TCNJ past the Mules 7-3. With the scored tied 3-3 in the seventh, the senior first baseman ripped an RBI-single to score sophomore Joe Dispoto (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) and give the Lions a 4-3 advantage. Ruzich came to the plate with the bases loaded and two outs in the ninth and delivered a bases-clearing triple to ice the game.
 
Junior Robert Graber (Franklin Lakes, NJ/Ramapo) put forth his best effort of 2012 to earn his victory of the season. He tossed seven innings, allowing eight hits and three runs to pick up the win. Sophomore Alan Genitempo (Nutley, NJ/Nutley) and senior Mike Ham (Sparta, NJ/Pope John Paul XXIII) pitched the final two innings of scoreless relief out of the bullpen.
 
The Lions bullpen has not allowed an earned run in 19 2/3 innings.
 
TCNJ took a 2-0 lead in the fourth inning when Michael Murphy (Staten Island, NY/Staten Island Tech) singled and beat the throw at second base on a fielder's choice. Junior Nick Cifelli (Ewing, NJ/Ewing) stroked a run-scoring single to right field and John Macaulay (Haddon Heights, NJ/Paul VI) plated a second run with a ground ball for the first RBI of his career.
 
Muhlenberg answered back with two runs in the bottom of the frame and then took the lead in the sixth. Catcher Brett Rosen cracked an RBI-double to right field to put the host up 3-2.
 
The Lions tied the game when a ground ball off the bat of freshman Jacob Dewitt (Florence, NJ/Florence) scored classmate Anthony Cocuzza (Absecon, NJ/St. Augustine Prep). Cocuzza had singled to open the inning.
 
From there, Ruzich took care of the rest on offense. He drove in a season-high four runs, highlighted by his three-run triple. Ruzich went the first 130 games of his career without a three-bagger before tripling in back-to-back games.
 
Murphy finished with two hits as did junior Scott Kelly (West Windsor, NJ/West Windsor-North). Dispoto had a hit and scored twice.
 
Game 2: TCNJ 13  Muhlenberg College 10 –  

TCNJ starting pitcher Robert Schneider (Township of Washington, NJ/Westwood) was able to overcome a rocky start to produce five scoreless innings en route to his first win of the season. After the Lions jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the first punctuated by an RBI-triple from Galeotafiore, Muhlenberg took command by scoring a run in the bottom of the first and five in the second. Schneider settled in to find his groove and did not allow a hit in innings three through seven. Only four runners reach base, one via base on balls and three others on infield errors.
 
After manufacturing a run to close the gap to 6-4 in the third, the Lions took advantage of some shaky pitching and defense in the fourth. The ball never left the infield in the inning, yet five TCNJ runners crossed home plate. A combination of walks, balks, errors, wild pitches, and passed balls produced five unearned runs. Cifelli and junior Jonathan Gabriel (Orefield, PA/Parkland) delivered run-scoring singles in the inning.
 
The Lions tacked on three more in the sixth. Cocuzza knocked in a two runs with a single up the middle and Galeotafiore drove in his second run of the with an opposite field hit. The lead grew to 13-6 in the ninth inning before Muhlenberg rallied for four runs in the bottom of the ninth.
 
Ham entered the game with a runner on second and nobody out in the ninth and retired three of four batters to earn his third save of the season. The runs by the Mules in the ninth broke a streak of 19 2/3 innings without permitting an earned run by the Lions' bullpen.
 
Dispoto finished the game with three hits and two runs scored. Ruzich, Murphy, Galeotafiore, and Gabriel also had two hits for TCNJ
 
The Lions visit Messiah College on Tuesday, March 27 at 3:30 p.m. before returning home to host Alvernia Univeristy on Wednesday, March 28 at 3:30 at George Ackerman Park.