MAHWAH, N.J. – The TCNJ baseball team split its regular season-ending doubleheader at Ramapo on Saturday, solidifying its spot as the No. 4 seed in next week's NJAC Tournament. The Lions took game one, 3-1, before losing in game two, 14-8. The Lions will play on the road Tuesday in the first round of the double-elimination tournament at Montclair State. The remaining rounds of the tournament will be played at Kean next weekend.
 
Game One: TCNJ 3, Ramapo 1
The TCNJ pitching staff continued its string of strong performances as Jordan Gray tossed seven innings of two-hit baseball while striking out five. Gray threw 5.1 innings without allowing a hit, and he got the final two outs of the sixth inning without allowing a run to cross.
 
By the time Gray gave up his first hit in the sixth inning, the Lions already had a 3-0 lead. TCNJ scored all three of its game-one runs in the top of the fourth inning, and all three runs came after the first two hitters were retired.
 
Chris Reeder was hit by a pitch, and Ryan Goodall walked. That preceded three consecutive RBI singles for the Lions, started by Joe Oczkowski. His base hit scored Reeder to make it 1-0. Andrew Fernandez followed to plate Goodall to make it 2-0, and Justin Marcario capped the inning with a single to right to bring Oczkowski home.
 
Ramapo got a run back in the eighth, but Alec Schwartz came on in the ninth to post a scoreless frame for the save.
 
Game Two: Ramapo 14, TCNJ 8
The tide turned towards the offenses and the Roadrunners in game two. The Lions opted for a bullpen game, and Ramapo scored six runs in the first three innings before breaking the game open late.
 
Trailing 2-0 in the top of the third, the Lions tied the score with back-to-back RBI singles from Goodall and Oczkowski.
 
Ramapo scored four more in the bottom of that inning to take a 6-2 lead, but TCNJ scored twice in the fifth to make it 6-4. The Lions loaded the bases to start the inning with walks to Fernandez and Marcario before Sebastian JnoBaptiste singled to right field. Jack Felipe and Joey Cruciata each reached on fielder's choices to force a run to the plate. That made it 6-4.
 
Ramapo took a 14-4 lead with five runs in the sixth and three more in the seventh, but TCNJ scored one in the eighth and three more in the ninth.
 
In the eighth, Marcario singled home Goodall. In the ninth, Zach Hochheiser walked with the bases loaded to make it 14-6. Marcario singled home Zach Weiner to make it 14-7, and JnoBaptiste was hit by a pitch to force home Christian Hay to make it 14-8.
 
After a pitching change, Jack Felipe lined out to short to end the game.