Montclair State University Athletics

Montclair, NJ – The #13/15 Montclair State University Baseball team fell to William Paterson 9-2 in the 2026 New Jersey Athletic Conference Tournament Semifinals on Thursday afternoon at Yogi Berra Stadium.

HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Red Hawks (30-9) put the first two batters on to begin the home half of the first as JARED LEVIS was hit by a pitch and ZACH STEARNS singled through the left side. After BILLY TIGAR moved the runners into scoring position with a sacrifice bunt, MATT KALISKE plated Levis from third on a sacrifice fly to break the scoring open. After CHRIS MATESIC induced a double play in the top of the second, the Red Hawks put a runner on second with a leadoff hit from JOHN TOMSHO and sacrifice bunt from MICHAEL WANSAW JR. Montclair threatened again with two runners in scoring position later in the frame, but the Pioneers would escape on a flyout. William Paterson put two of the first three batters on in the third on a pair of singles, with a groundout moving them into scoring position. A single to center field during the next at-bat brought both runners in to push the visitors in front.
• William Paterson added to their lead in the fourth, putting runners on the corners with two singles and a flyout. A triple to center field in the ensuing at-bat wiped the bases, plating two more tallies to push the difference to three. The Pioneers singled to right field to drive in the runner from third, making the score 5-1 after three and a half. In the top of the fifth, they searched for more with a leadoff double, but CHRISTIAN ADDOTTA worked around the runner in scoring position by setting down the next three batters. Montclair cut into the deficit in the bottom of the fifth, as LUKAS EGENHAUSER homered down the left field line. William Paterson was able to escape the rally attempt with a throwdown to second on a steal attempt and groundout.
• The visitors pushed another pair of markers home in the top of the sixth, putting runners on the corners with two outs. A hit batter loaded the bases, with a single up the middle during the resulting at-bat driving in both tallies. William Paterson retired six of the next seven batters to go into the eighth up five, where they would add to the advantage again. An error put runners on the corners with one out, with a safety squeeze bringing in the runner from third. A single through the right side plated the final run of the day during the next at-bat. Montclair loaded the bases in the bottom of the eighth on singles from Stearns, Kaliske, and DANNY O'BRIEN. The Pioneers escaped with the final two outs of the stanza and sealed the victory in the bottom of the ninth to advance.

INSIDE THE RESULTS

• Stearns led the way offensively for the Red Hawks with a trio of hits, matching his season-best that he reached four times during the campaign.
• The home run was the first of Egenhauser's collegiate career as he extended his hitting streak to six games. With the hit, Levis continued his stretch in which he has reached base safely in every game this season.
• Wansaw pushed his hitting streak to 12 games dating back to April 10. Tomsho has notched a hit in 25 of his 28 collegiate games.
• Montclair totaled 10 hits for the day, marking the 27th time this season in which it has collected double-digit hit totals in a game.

FROM THE BALLPARK

"Credit to William Paterson, they outplayed us today and we were unable to get outs in some crucial situations defensively. We will look to reset and refocus over the next two weeks for the NCAA Tournament, which will be a great opportunity for our players and program." - Head Coach Dave Lorber

UP NEXT

The Red Hawks will await the NCAA Tournament Selection Show on Monday, May 11.