The TCNJ baseball team lost its first New Jersey Athletic Conference game of the season on April 3, falling 17-8 at home against Rutgers-Camden. The game was suspended at the top of the ninth inning due to darkness and was declared complete several hours later.
This defeat marked TCNJ’s first home loss of the year and brought their overall record to 11-11. The Lions initially led the contest, responding to an early run by Rutgers-Camden with five consecutive runs. Jesse Beer and Brian Lovaglio each contributed two runs batted in during this stretch, while Nate McLaughlin added another RBI in his return from injury. TCNJ expanded its lead in the fourth inning, taking advantage of errors by Rutgers-Camden to go up 8-2 entering the fifth.
Starting pitcher Andrew Wilkinson delivered a strong performance for TCNJ, allowing only one earned run over five innings before being replaced after throwing 89 pitches. Following Wilkinson’s exit, momentum shifted toward Rutgers-Camden as they scored twice in the seventh inning, five times in the eighth, and eight more times before play was halted for darkness.
Braden Dromboski also stood out for TCNJ with two hits, two runs scored, and a walk. Despite these efforts, Rutgers-Camden finished with a decisive victory as defending conference champions.
Looking ahead, TCNJ will have an immediate chance for redemption as they travel to Camden for another matchup against Rutgers-Camden on Friday afternoon.
