Box Score

TEANECK, N.J. -- The Fairleigh Dickinson baseball team defeated NJIT, 11-8, on Friday at the Naimoli Family Baseball Complex. With the victory, the Knights improve to 4-7 on the season, while the Highlanders fall to 3-4 overall.

FDU jumped out to an 8-0 lead after three innings, with redshirt sophomore Patrick McClure (Fayetteville, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius ) delivering a towering three-run home run over the left-field fence in the bottom of the second, before the Knights scored five unearned runs in the bottom of the third.

Freshman Zach Tondi (Wood-Ridge, N.J./Bergen County Technical) started the scoring in the third with a one-out RBI single to left-center field, plating junior Shane Siebler (Nazareth, Pa./Nazareth Area). With two down, McClure singled home sophomore John Giakas (Staten Island, N.Y./Tottenville), and sophomore Joel Roman (East Hartford, Conn./East Hartford) followed with an RBI single to score Tondi. Sophomore Dylan Sprague (Brunswick, N.Y./Averill Park) capped the scoring with a two-run single to right field, which knocked home McClure and Roman.

NJIT got a run back in the top of the fourth and erupted for five runs in the top of the fifth to cut the Knights' advantage to 8-6. The big blow in the frame came on Matt Weckerle's three-run homer to straight away center field, cutting the lead to two with one out.

FDU extended its lead to 11-6 with two outs in the bottom of the sixth when Roman cleared the bases with a three-run double to center field, scoring Tondi, sophomore Ryan Brennan (Mooresville, N.C./Mooresville) and McClure.

The Highlanders would score twice in the top of the eighth on Scott Brosman's two-out-two-run homer to make it 11-8, but junior Eric Snyder (Slatington, Pa./Northern Lehigh) would come in to pitch the final 1.1 innings to slam the door on the visitors en route to collecting his third save of the season.

Sophomore Ryan McGrath (Lansingburgh, N.Y./Lansingburgh) (1-0) picked up the victory on the bump after pitching 3.1 innings of relief. The righty allowed two earned runs on two hits, walked four and struck out two. Snyder faced the minimum and recorded one strikeout.

Sophomore starter Nick Cuono (Hawthorne, N.J./Montvale Saint Joseph ) was cruising along until the fifth inning when he ran into trouble. The righty lasted 4.1 innings and allowed six runs, five earned, on five hits while walking three and striking out two.

DJ Roche started for the Highlanders and lasted only 3+ innings, as the Knights touched him for eight runs, two earned, on six hits.

Sprague, McClure and Roman each had two safeties to lead FDU's nine-hit effort. McClure added four RBI and three runs, while Roman also had four RBI. Tondi scored three times as well, and Sprague added two RBI out of the leadoff spot.

Teddy Bickert paced NJIT with three hits and two runs, as the Highlanders collected seven hits in the game. Brossman added two safeties and three RBI, with Weckerle also tallying three RBI.

The Knights will return to action on Saturday when it hosts Lehigh for a 2 p.m. contest at the Naimoli Family Baseball Complex. The two sides will then face each other on Sunday at 11 a.m.