PISCATAWAY, N.J. – A five run seventh inning which included a two run dingle from third baseman Brian Estevez led the University of Hartford baseball team to an 11-8 series finale victory over the Rutgers Scarlet Knights on Sunday afternoon. Hartford improves to 18-13 overall while Rutgers stands at 14-18.

Overall, the Hawks finished with 15 hits led by first baseman David MacKinnon who finished with a game-high four hits, including a pair of doubles. He also drove in one run, one of eight players to drive in the Hawks 11 total runs. Estevez led the way with three RBI, finishing 3-of-4 at the plate. Left fielder Adam Touhey was also among the hit leaders with three while centerfielder Chris DelDebbio added a pair of RBI.

Freshman David Drouin started the series finale for Hartford, pitching four innings before being lifted for Sam McKay who earned his team leading fifth victory. Drouin finished with three runs allowed, two earned, on seven hits, while Mckay pitched two innings without allowing a run while giving up two hits.

Senior Brian Hunter pitched one and one-third innings for the Hawks closing out the game and earning his first save of the season. The right hander faced just four batters and retired all four in order.

Hartford would need to work from behind in the early going after allowing a single run in the bottom of the second. After erasing that deficit with three runs in the fourth, the Hawks wouldn't trail the remainder of the game, despite a 3-3 stalemate that lasted spanned the fifth and sixth innings. The three runs in the fourth for Hartford all came with the help of a pair of Scarlet Knight errors, with Estevez, Touhey and Trey Stover driving in the runs.

A five run seventh inning gave the Hawks an 8-3 lead, one they would not relinquish. That inning included five hits, three of which were doubles, with Estevez using his second hit of the game to drive in a pair of runs with two outs.

Hartford added three more insurance runs, two in the eighth and one in the ninth to guarantee the victory with Rutgers mustering just two more runs in the eighth. DelDebbio would drive in both of his runs in the eighth when he sailed a single into left centerfield scoring MacKinnon and catcher Billy Walker. The final run in the ninth came by way of hits from Estevez, Stover and MacKinnon with the latter of those forcing Estevez across the plate after he led off the inning legging out an infield single.

The Hawks are scheduled for a pair of mid-week contests before returning to league action next weekend against the Albany Great Danes. The first of those mid-week games will come on Tuesday afternoon when they travel to Hamden, Conn. for a rematch with the Quinnipiac Bobcats. First pitch on Tuesday is scheduled for 3 p.m.