EWING, N.J. – Visiting Rowan scored five runs in the sixth inning to break open an NJAC nail-biter on Friday night, ultimately pulling away for an 8-3 win over the TCNJ baseball team at George Ackerman Park on Friday afternoon.
 
Gianni Marano drove in all three runs for the Lions (20-12, 8-4), who were unable to prevent the Profs from securing a sweep of the season series. Austin Kreyenhagen struck out 10 in 6.2 strong innings for Rowan.
 
The Profs (21-8, 6-4) struck for two runs in the first inning, helped along by a TCNJ error.
 
Jordan Gray kept Rowan at bay for the next four innings and change, but the Lions never landed a knockout blow on Kreyenhagen. Mike LaGravenis started a rally in the third, legging out a two-out infield single on a grounder to third before another infield single by Jack O'Donnell and a free pass to Marano loaded the bases. Kreyenhagen, however, bore down to strike out Ryan Goodall looking on a 2-2 pitch.
 
Gray got out of a two-on, no-out jam in the fifth with a 4-6-3 ground-ball double play to LaGravenis, and the right-hander induced a weak roller to LaGravenis to end the inning.
 
TCNJ got on the board with a two-out rally in the fifth as O'Donnell beat out another infield hit and later scored on a double down the left-field line by Marano.
 
Rowan chased Gray with one out in the sixth on an RBI double by Dave Appolonia, who came around to score on Tyler Cannon's base hit up the middle to make it 4-1. The Profs tacked on three more runs in the frame, two of them coming on a single by Marco Mannino.
 
Marano's two-run single to center in the seventh plated Andrew Fernandez and O'Donnell, who doubled right before Marano, to trim the deficit to 7-3, but Rowan got one of the runs back in the eighth on a two-out RBI single by Damon Suriani, who drove in three on the day.
 
The Lions stranded two runners in the eighth and ninth, finishing with a dozen men left on base.
 
O'Donnell (3-for-4, 2 runs) and Marano (2-for-4, 3 RBI) combined for five of the Lions' seven hits.
 
Gray allowed five runs (three earned) on eight hits over 5.1 innings, striking out two and walking four.
 
Connor Lamanteer pitched a scoreless ninth with a strikeout.
 
NOTES

• LaGravenis, who made several outstanding defensive plays, moved into a tie for 22^nd in program history with his 182^nd career hit

UP NEXT

• TCNJ hits the road to face No. 7 Kean in a Saturday doubleheader