SALISBURY, Md. – The fourth-ranked Salisbury University baseball team took to the skies for four more home runs on the way to a 13-2 win over the Virginia Wesleyan Marlins on Tuesday afternoon at Donnie Williams Sea Gull Baseball Stadium.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Sea Gulls struck early again with a run in the bottom of the first inning. Kavi Caster lined a two-out single into right and promptly stole second. Danny Sheeler then rolled an RBI base hit through the right side to put SU up 1-0.
• Salisbury loaded the bases with no out in the second on two infield singles and a sac bunt-turned-error, and Cameron Hyder brought home the first run of the frame on a sac fly to right. Luke Weddell followed with a squeeze bunt to score another and beat out the throw for a single.
• Caster came up next and blasted a three-run home run to deep right field, then Sheeler followed with his own solo homer to the same spot to make it 7-0. Later in the inning with two out and Stephen Rice aboard after an error, Jacob Ference belted the Sea Gulls' third home run of the inning, a two-run shot to right center to make an eight-run frame and a 9-0 lead.
• In the third, Hyder led off with a single and advanced to second on a groundout. Caster doubled to right to bring Hyder home, then Sheeler dropped a double into no-man's land in left to put men on second and third. An RBI groundout by Ben Anderson increased the SU lead to 11-0.
• The Sea Gulls tacked on one more in the fifth on an RBI fielder's choice by Anderson to make it 12-0.
• The Marlins broke up the shutout in the top of the sixth. Samuel Kasprow reached on a one-out error, then after a walk Connor Hall hit a ground-rule double to left center to bring in Kasprow. Chase James brought home a second run on a sac fly to get VWU within 12-2.
• Ference answered in the bottom of the sixth with his second home run of the game, a solo shot to the same spot in right center where he hit his first, to push the SU lead back to 13-2.
• Salisbury kept the margin at 11 as the Marlins only managed one baserunner the rest of the game.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Kavi Caster and Danny Sheeler each hit their seventh home runs of the season and finished a triple shy of the cycle. Caster batted 4-for-5 with three runs, four RBIs and a stolen base, while Sheeler went 4-for-4 with a run and two RBIs.
• Jacob Ference finished 3-for-3 with two homers, three RBIs and three runs scored. Ference now has two multi-homer games this season and three dating back to May 2022.
• The Sea Gulls have now hit four home runs in four of their 17 games this season after only hitting four-plus dingers twice over 51 games in 2022. Salisbury currently ranks third in NCAA Division III with 27 home runs.
• Luke Weddell went 2-for-5 with an RBI and two runs scored, while Ben Anderson went 1-for-3 with two RBIs.
• Jackson Balzan (4-1) stifled the Marlins over six innings, giving up two unearned runs on five hits with one walk and nine strikeouts on 96 pitches.
• Brandon Epstein, Corey Burton and Brock Hilligoss each tossed a scoreless inning in relief to finish the job.

VIRGINIA WESLEYAN GAME NOTES

• Connor Hall finished 1-for-3 with an RBI double for the Marlins' only extra-base hit of the day.
• Chase James came off the bench to go 1-for-1 with a sac fly.
• Blake Mitnick (0-2) was saddled with the loss after giving up seven runs (six earned) on seven hits over an inning and a third.

UP NEXT

• The Sea Gulls will host a doubleheader against Haverford on Saturday afternoon.
• First pitch of the opening game from Williams Stadium is set for 12 p.m. with coverage on the Sea Gull Sports Network (SGSN) beginning at 11:45 a.m. The second game will begin approximately 30 minutes after the conclusion of the opener.

Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with the New Jersey Athletic Conference for football, Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse and the Metropolitan Swimming and Diving Conference for men's and women's swimming. With over 500 student-athletes in 21 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, and dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on-and-off the field. The Sea Gulls have celebrated 22 team national championships, 24 individual national champions, 188 conference championships and 43 Academic All-Americans.

To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit www.SUSeaGulls.com or on social media @SUSeaGulls.