Lawrenceville, NJ – The Rider University baseball team defeated visiting NJIT, 8-1, on Wednesday afternoon in non-conference action at Sonny Pittaro Field. The Broncs (10-15) won their second straight contest, while the Highlanders (3-22) dropped their ninth in a row.

Seven different Rider pitchers limited in-state foe NJIT to just five hits and one run, while the Bronc offense erupted for 10 or more hits for the second consecutive game.

The hosts opened the scoring in the second frame thanks to three straight hits to start the inning. Sophomore shortstop Richie Tecco (Drexel Hill, PA/Monsignor Bonner) put the Broncs on the board with a two-run single to left.

Rider blew the game open in the fifth inning by plating four runs to take a 6-0 lead. With two outs and runners on first and second, junior Jake Bender (Ellicott City, MD/Marriotts Ridge) sent a ball over the fence in left center for a three-run shot.

Offensively, Bender was one of five Rider players to record a multi-hit game as he went 2-for-4 with three RBIs and two runs scored. Tecco also had two hits for the Broncs as did Christian Estevez (River Edge, NJ/River Dell), Harrison McClure (Atlanta, GA/South Florida State/North Atlanta) and Lee Lipinski (Glen Arm, MD/Calvert Hall).

On the mound, sophomore reliever Anthony Arneth (Pine Beach, NJ/Central Regional) picked up the win for Rider tossing three innings of scoreless relief. He surrendered just two hits to NJIT and fanned a pair of Highlanders. Following Arneth's outing, five other Bronc relievers threw one inning apiece.

NOTES & QUOTES

“That was probably the biggest hit of the game,” Rider Head Coach Barry Davis said of Bender's blast. “Bender his first career home run took it from a 3-0 game to 6-0 lead to help separate ourselves. Nice to have those guys put some hits together.”

“Estevez hasn't gotten in much this year, but he's a good hitter,” Davis added. “He did a good job today. He knows how I want him to play.”

- The win on the mound was the first of Arneth's career. It also marked his longest outing as a Bronc. 

- Rider starter John Yocum tossed one scoreless inning and struck out one Highlander. 

- Bender's fifth-inning homer was his first of the season and the first of his career.

BRONCS BY THE NUMBERS

- Last week, Tyler Kaiser hit .600 for the Broncs (9-for-15) with five RBIs, three runs scored and two stolen bases. He also had a .625 on-base percentage, highlighted by recording his first career four-hit game in a victory against Iona on Sunday. 

- Lipinski went 2-for-2 with a sac fly, a walk, a hit by pitch and two RBIs.  

- The Bronc 6-7-8 hitters (Bender, Estevez and Tecco) combined to go 6-for-12 with five runs scored and five RBIs.

ON DECK

Rider returns to action this weekend, April 8-9, with a Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) three-game series against in-state rival St. Peter's. On Saturday the eighth, the two squads will play a doubleheader with the second game being seven innings. The set concludes with a single, nine-inning clash on Sunday. Last season, the Broncs took two out of three from the Peacocks in Lawrenceville.