Maryland baseball center fielder Zach Jancarski retreated to third base after taking a sizable lead in the first inning of the Terps’ 5-1 win over Rutgers on Saturday afternoon. He swung his arm toward the ground, visibly frustrated for not attempting to score on a past ball with two outs.
But first baseman Brandon Gum’s two-out RBI single drove home Jancarski, who reached on an error to begin the game. It was the first occasion Maryland capitalized on a Scarlet Knights miscue, and the second offensive burst seemingly put the game out of reach.
Rutgers right-hander Serafino Brito induced a ground ball with runners on first and third and one out in the fifth frame. But instead of an inning-ending 4-6-3 double play, shortstop Kevin Welsh’s throw went up the first-base line, prolonging the inning in which the Terps scored three runs.
Coach John Szefc’s team was able to capitalize on the mistake, as right fielder Marty Costes’ two-out triple extended Maryland’s advantage to four. And Gum’s line drive to third base was too much for third baseman Christian Campbell, who was unable to field it cleanly, to handle, allowing another run to score.
The sequences gave right-hander Brian Shaffer a five-run edge, and though the Terps scored twice against Brito in the first, it appeared the extra offense would be needed early. A Scarlet Knights two-out single followed by a walk required Maryland’s ace to pitch out of a first-inning jam, and it momentarily seemed Shaffer’s streak of consecutive outings of at least seven innings was in jeopardy after he hit Rutgers first baseman Milo Freeman to open the second.
But pitching coach Ryan Fecteau visited the mound after Freeman’s at-bat, and Shaffer regained command. Campbell’s home run in the sixth to make it a four-run contest was one of just four hits Shaffer allowed after the discussion.
Over seven innings, Shaffer allowed five hits and one run while walking a batter and striking out four. Despite Shaffer’s early command issues, he again turned in the type of outing the Terps have come to expect from their Friday starter.
Maryland’s ability to take an early advantage was perhaps most notable because they played about half the game without shortstop Kevin Smith. He attempted to make a diving catch on Mike Martinez’s bloop double into left field in the fourth, initially remaining in the game before departing in the bottom of the fifth.
By the time Smith exited, though, the Terps’ five-run lead was more support than Shaffer needed.
Right-hander Ryan Hill held Rutgers off the board in the final two innings, recording three strikeouts.
Maryland has won three of its first four Big Ten games entering Sunday’s doubleheader against the Scarlet Knights.
