PHILADELPHIA, PA – The Rider University baseball team won a wild, high-scoring contest at La Salle, 12-11, on Tuesday afternoon in non-conference action at Hank DeVincent Field.

The Broncs (8-14) scored the first seven runs of the game and erased a late deficit with a pair of runs in the top of the eighth to hand the Explorers (12-12) their fourth straight loss.

Trailing, 11-10, in the top of the eighth, Rider put runners on second and third thanks to a single, a walk and a wild pitch. With two outs in the frame, junior second basemen Zach Fick (South Elgin, IL/St. Charles North) singled to right field to bring home both the Broncs in scoring position.

In the bottom half of the frame, freshman Danny Kirwin (Lansdale, PA/North Penn) came out of the Rider bullpen to strike out the side. After a scoreless top of the ninth, Bronc closer Zach Gakeler (Jobstown, NJ/North Burlington) got out of a jam to seal the Rider win.

Freshman Andrew Imperatore (New Hyde Park, NY/Herricks) picked up his second win of the season, both of which have come against La Salle, and Gakeler earned his team-leading fifth save of the year. Imperatore worked two-thirds of an inning and struck out two hitters.

At the plate, junior Joe Simone (Wayne, NJ/Wayne Hills) paced the Bronc attack going 3-for-5 with an RBI and three runs scored. Classmate Kyle Johnson (Jackson, NJ/Jackson Memorial) also added three RBIs for Rider.

NOTES & QUOTES
"First, Eiser pitched very well. Five shutout innings and he deserved to get the win. It's hard to explain our defensive efforts in the sixth and seventh innings. Imperatore, Kirwin and Gakeler did a great job out of the bullpen getting the final eight outs. Fick had a big two-out hit for us in the eighth." – Rider Head Coach Barry Davis  

- Rider has now back-to-back games at La Salle. The Broncs and Explorers have split their four games this season.
- Rider had 12 hits in the game. The Broncs have registered 10 or more hits in three of their last four games.
- Freshman Colin Eiser got the start on the mound for the Broncs and he was stellar. Eiser worked five scoreless innings and scattered just one hit. He struck out a career-high seven batters and issued two walks. Eiser has not allowed a run over his last 16 and two-thirds innings of work.
- Gakeler lowered his ERA on the season to 2.25. He has made four scoreless appearances in a row.
- At the plate, three different Rider players had multi-hit games.
- Mike Ionta went 2-for-3 with a walk, a run scored and two RBIs.
- Fick went 2-for-4 with two runs scored and two RBIs.
- Richie reached base three times and scored three runs for the Broncs.

UP NEXT
Rider hosts Siena in a three-game Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) weekend series on March 30-31. The Saints and Broncs open action on Saturday with a doubleheader starting at noon from Sonny Pittaro Field.