Salisbury, MD – Sophomore leftfielder ED KLOEPPING (Pennsville, NJ/Penns Grove)  hit a pair of home runs and finished with four RBI as Montclair State scored eight runs over its final two at bats for a 14-9 over 10th-ranked Salisbury University on Saturday.

MSU climbed out of a seven-run deficit early in the game to improve to 22-18 on the year The victory helped Montclair avenge two losses to the Sea Gulls (32-8) earlier this season and guarantees the Red Hawks an above .500 season as it will close out the year with a two-game set at home against Ithaca College on Saturday, May 12 and Sunday, May 13.

Trailing 7-0 after the second inning, MSU got back into the game as it plated a run in the fourth inning on MICHAEL NUNES' (Hazlet, NJ/Raritan) third home run of the year and pulled within 7-6 in the sixth inning as it scored five times. MARC PALESTINA (Paramus, NJ/Paramus) singled home the first run and ROB BOWNESS (Sparta, NJ/Seton Hall Prep) added a two run single to make the score, 7-3. With runners at first and second, Kloepping came up to pinch hit and crushed a pitch over the right field fence for a two-run homer.

Salisbury would push the lead back to 8-6, but again Montclair responded with three times to take the lead. ANDREW VICARO (Randolph, NJ/Randolph) connected for his second homer. Bowness reached on a strikeout-passed ball and Kloepping made that miscue hurt as he launched his second round-tripper giving MSU a 9-8 lead.

The Sea Gulls tied the game once more in the bottom of the eighth inning as an MSU error helped lead to the tying run.

In the ninth, MSU exploded with five runs. Bowness began the scoring with an RBI single to give Montclair State the lead for good. Junior first baseman LOU POLITAN (LIvingston, NJ / Livingston) had a two-run double and SCOTT EVANGELIST (Northfield, NJ/Holy Spirit) added a two-run double to cap off the inning as MSU built its five-run cushion.

Freshman righthander JESUS CASTANO (West New York, NJ/Memorial) was the beneficiary of the late scoring as he picked up his seventh win of the season. Castano (7-2) recorded the final eight outs allowing an unearned run and two hits. He struck out one and did not walk a batter. Senior righthander RAY ANDERSON (North Caldwell, NJ/West Essex) junior lefthander NICK RECCHIA (Randolph, NJ/Randolph) and junior righthander C.J. Fleming (Dobbs Ferry, NY/Dobbs Ferry) combined to pitch 4.2 innings of solid relief giving up an unearned run and one hit.

Nunes, Bowness, Vicaro, Evangelist and ANDREW HIMMELFARB (Nyack, NY/Nyack) each had two hits for Montclair State as the Red Hawks collected 15 in the game.