Rutgers University-Newark (NJ) exploded offensively in the seventh and eighth innings as the No. 19 University of Redlands baseball team fell, 5-13, at the hands of the Scarlet Raiders at The Yard on Sunday.

Redlands donned maroon jerseys with white numerals and acted as the visiting team as a part of the California Invitational.

Rain delayed the start of the game by 45 minutes, but Mother Nature let up, parting the clouds at approximately 11:45 p.m.

Rutgers-Newark jumped on the board early with two runs in the first inning against the Bulldogs’ staff ace, senior pitcher/first baseman Nolan Nicholson (Fullerton, CA). Matt Connors started the game out with a single through the right side and subsequently advanced to second on a wild pitch and moved on to third on a balk. Patrick Reitemeyer and Anthony Yeswita both walked to load the bases, and Joe Furnaguera earned an RBI as he took first base on balls as well. Matt Lingo drove in Reitemeyer as the Scarlet Raiders took the early 2-0 lead.

Lingo’s fly ball to centerfield in the third inning plated Reitemeyer for the second time and gave Rutgers-Newark an extra run of insurance.

The Maroon and Gray rattled the near-perfect Scarlet Raider starter, Kevin Matawa, with two runs on four hits in the sixth. Senior infielder Tony Stutevoss (Portland, OR) started the rally with a single to right center and shifted to third on a groundout by junior catcher Jefre Johnson (Canby, OR). Redlands erased Matawa’s shutout with a senior first baseman Matt Hughes (Westminster, CA) double to right center, which easily brought home Stutevoss. In the ensuing at bat, senior outfielder Cory Vane (Simi Valley, CA) singled to the second baseman, putting Hughes 90 feet away from home plate. Sophomore first baseman Manny Cardeiro (San Diego, CA) singled and Hughes took advantage, scoring the team’s second run of the inning.

Down just one run, Redlands appeared to have a comeback prepared. The Scarlet Raiders, however, scored 10 runs total in the seventh and eighth innings, which included two-run home runs by Yeswita and Reitemeyer.

The Bulldogs went down fighting, though, scoring three runs on three hits in the eighth. Hughes walked to start out the inning, and senior outfielder Matt Goldstein (Lincoln, CA) advanced him to third on a double through the left side. A single by senior outfielder Jordan Snider (Temecula, CA) drove in Hughes while senior pitcher/infielder Evan Dunn (Portland, OR) initiated the new Rutgers-Newark pitcher with an RBI single to right. Finally, Snider chalked up the final Redlands run of the inning, crossing home plate on a wild pitch.

Vane reached base safely by means of a hit for the 12th straight game and continued to escalate his batting average with a 2-for-4 showing at the plate.

Additional Bulldog multi-hit games came from Stutevoss and Johnson.

Nicholson (6-1) was charged with his first loss of the season after going five innings while allowing three earned runs on eight hits. He struck out three of the 24 batters he faced. Matawa gained his first win of the year, pitching 7.1 innings while surrendering five earned runs on nine hits.

Redlands (14-6) faces off against Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) rival Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges later this afternoon at 3:15 p.m. at The Yard in a non-conference bout.