SALISBURY, Md. – Senior Chris Connor hit a three-run home run to right field to highlight a six-run eighth inning and freshman Brett Collacchi threw six innings of three-hit ball as the No. 5 Salisbury University baseball team completed a sweep of St. Mary's (Md.) College, 9-1, at the SU Baseball Field on Tuesday.
Connor's blast off St. Mary's reliever Sam Coe with two outs in the eighth ensured the Sea Gulls' (18-3, 10-2 CAC) eighth straight win in a game that was close throughout.
Collacchi (4-0) allowed just one run and two walks, striking out three for the win but Seahawks' (13-11, 5-7) starter Mike Victory (3-2) was solid as well. Victory pitched 7 2/3 innings, surrendering just three runs before Salisbury broke the game open.
Tyler Bennett batted 3-for-5 with a double, one run scored and four driven in while Connor, Joey Jones and Ken O'Neill each tallied two hits. Nick Gentry scored three runs.
Salisbury used a pair of unearned runs in the bottom of the third inning to get on the scoreboard first. O'Neill started the rally with a one-out single to left and Bill Root reached on a pop up mishandled by second baseman Nick Urso before Bennett ripped a two-out single down the left-field line for a 1-0 lead. After Connor walked to load the bases, Quinn Griffith bounced into a fielder's choice. SMC third baseman Keith Johnson, though, was unable to force Bennett at the bag, plating Gentry on the play.
Zach Nadolny cut the lead in half in the top of the fourth for the Seahawks, driving a double to the gap in left-center field to score Corey Napier from first with two outs. Nadolny collected two hits to lead St. Mary's.
Collacchi stayed steady for the rest of his outing which included working out of a jam in the top of the sixth unscathed. The Bear, Del., native allowed a single to leadoff batter John Stewart. Napier put down a sacrifice bunt, advancing Stewart to second prior to Collacchi inducing a groundball from Johnson. O'Neill at shortstop pivoted and threw to Griffith, who tagged Stewart at third for the second out. O'Neill's play allowed the Gulls to maintain their lead as the next batter, Nadolny, lined a single to center. Alex Lenovitz flew out to right to end the threat with Salisbury ahead, 2-1.
From there, the bullpen trio of Dan Fein, Kyle Hamby and Danny Druzgala kept St. Mary's at bay.
Bennett added an RBI double in the seventh to score Gentry and increase the lead to 3-1 heading to the eighth.
Victory hit Gentry with the bases loaded in the eighth for the first run of the inning and Bennett came up with a two-run single through the right side, scoring Root and O'Neill. Coe came on to face Connor and the designated hitter made the right-hander pay, hitting his first homer of the season.
Salisbury heads to Virginia Beach, Va., to face Virginia Wesleyan College Wednesday at 3 p.m.