The University of Scranton baseball team entered Tuesday's non-conference tilt against Wilkes on a seven-game winning streak. But it came to an end as the Colonels rallied to score four runs over the final three innings to hand the Royals an 8-7 setback at Connell Park.

The loss ends Scranton's second seven-game winning streak of the season and is just the team's second loss in its last 16 games. It's also the Royals' sixth one-run loss of the season and their first loss at Connell Park in nine games this year.

The Royals (21-13) jumped out to a 5-1 lead after four innings. They took a 2-1 lead in the second when freshman right fielder Chase Standen (Newtown Square, Pa./St. Joseph's Prep) delivered an RBI single and freshman first baseman Anthony Caladie (Mountain Top, Pa./Crestwood) added an RBI ground out.

In the fourth, Caladie delivered a two-run single and scored on an RBI sacrifice fly by sophomore catcher Dan Hansen (Helena, Mont./Helena).

Wilkes (17-20) started its comeback with a run in the fifth and two in the sixth, but Scranton got two back in the bottom of the sixth for a 7-4 lead. Freshman second baseman Michael Ratner (Langhorne, Pa./The Pennington School) delivered both runs with a two-run double.

But the Colonels scored twice in the seventh, once in the eighth and again in the ninth for the victory. Six of their runs in the game were unearned as the Royals committed four errors.

Caladie finished the day with a hit and three RBIs, senior designated hitter Ross Danzig (Clarks Green, Pa./Abington Heights/Blair Academy, N.J.) singled, doubled and scored twice, and sophomore third baseman Kevin Raszka (Scotch Plains, N.J./Scotch Plains-Fanwood) doubled.

The top-seeded Royals will open the Landmark Conference playoffs when they host fourth-seeded Catholic in a best-of-three semifinal series this weekend. The teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday at 11 a.m., and a single game, if necessary, on Sunday at 11 a.m. All games are nine innings.

--ROYALS--