EWING, N.J. – The TCNJ baseball team helped the Miracle League of Mercer County celebrate its 2022 Opening Day by winning its first two NJAC games of its 2022 schedule. The Lions threw a pair of shutouts at New Jersey City, winning 4-0 and 7-0 on Saturday in a briskly played doubleheader at George Ackerman Park.
 
Game One: TCNJ 4, NJCU 0
Ben Amon was masterful in throwing a complete-game shutout, allowing just five hits – all singles – in throwing 104 pitches. Amon pitched to contact, striking out five while walking just one. He went into the ninth inning at 86 pitches.
 
The Lions had six hits, but it was more than enough to provide four runs of offense. The eventual winning run came nice and early in the bottom of the first inning. Jack Haynes walked, and he moved to second on a groundout. He later scored on Chris Cote's RBI single up the middle.
 
In the third, a botched double play attempt by the NJCU defense allowed two runners to be on, but another poor defensive play gave the Lions their second run. Chris Reeder struck out, but the ball was in the dirt with two outs and two men on, so he took off for first. That throw to retire Reeder was offline, and Ryan Goodall came in to score on the play.
 
Goodall drove in the next two Lions' runs. He singled home Haynes in the fifth after Haynes singled earlier in the inning. Goodall then led off the eighth inning with a solo home run into the trees in left. That made it 4-0.
 
The only drama that remained was if Amon would complete the game with less than 100 pitches. With two outs in the ninth, he gave up a single on pitch No. 99. Five pitches later, the shutout was finished.
 
Michael Schumacher added the Lions' sixth hit of game one.
 
Game Two: TCNJ 7, NJCU 0
The solid offensive output continued in game two, as did the TCNJ shutout streak. Tom Kelly allowed just three hits through six innings to earn his first victory of the season, and Chris Cassini followed with three shutout innings with five strikeouts to earn his first save of the campaign.
 
On the offensive side, the Lions scored one in the first on a Haynes groundout to score Mike Lagravenis. Three more runs came across in the second. An infield single by Joey Cruciata scored Reeder, and Lagravenis followed with a two-run single to right to plate Justin Marcario and Joe Oczkowski.
 
NJCU put runners on in both the third and fourth innings, but the TCNJ defense turned inning-ending double plays to end both frames.
 
Reeder put the game further out of reach in the fifth inning, hitting a two-run homer to left that also brought home Goodall. TCNJ capped the day's scoring with another run in the sixth. Cruciata stole third and scored when the throw went into left field.
 
Reeder and Cruciata each had two hits to lead the team, with each posting a double in addition to Reeder's home run.
The Lions return to action on Tuesday at Immaculata.