May 21, 2023

No. 2 Salisbury Baseball bests PSH, 10-5, wins Harrisburg Regional

More news about: Salisbury

Batting

Salisbury
2B: Jacob Ference
3B: none
HR: none
Penn State-Harrisburg
2B: Maddux Ryan 2; Blaine Waltimyer
3B: none
HR: Dallas Hite
full stats

MIDDLETOWN, Md. – The second-ranked Salisbury University baseball team clinched its third consecutive region championship after besting the Penn State Harrisburg Lions, 10-5, in Game Four of the best-of-five NCAA Harrisburg Regional on Sunday afternoon at Nittany Field. With the 3-1 series win, the Sea Gulls advance to the NCAA Super Regionals against 23rd-ranked Rowan beginning on Friday.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

  • After falling behind early in the first three games of the series, the Sea Gulls stormed ahead to a five-run lead before the Lions could come to bat. Cameron Hyder led off the first inning with a single and moved up to second on a sacrifice bunt. After a walk and a hit batsman to load the bases, Jacob Ference shot a two-run single through the left side to get SU on the board.
  • Two batters later Luke Weddell dunked an RBI single to right, then after another walk Scott Cameron plated two more with his own base knock to put Salisbury ahead 5-0.
  • PSH began its comeback in the second. Kevin Lehner led off with a walk and scored on a wild pitch, flyout and Carolos Irizarry grounder that resulted in an error to make it 5-1.
  • In the fourth, Maddux Ryan doubled to lead off and scored two batters later on a Blaine Waltimyer two-sacker to make it 5-2. A Dallas Hite solo home run in the fifth moved the Lions within 5-3.
  • Harrisburg finally closed the gap in the seventh. With two on and one out, Ryan notched another double down the right field line to bring home a pair and tie the game at 5-5.
  • Undeterred, the Sea Gulls grabbed the momentum right back in the top of the eighth. Max Ehrhardt led off with a base hit and took second on a bad pickoff. After a Cameron single put men on the corners, Hyder brought Ehrhardt home with the go-ahead run on an RBI groundout.
  • Cameron stole third, then after a walk to Ben Anderson, Kavi Caster muscled an RBI single through the right side, and two batters later Ference brought home a third run in the inning on a sac fly that made it 8-5.
  • Salisbury tacked on a pair of insurance runs in the ninth. With men on second and third after two hit batsmen and a passed ball, Roman March slapped a two-run single into left to boost the lead to 10-5.
  • With ample room to work, Brock Hilligoss calmly retired the Lions in order in the bottom of the ninth, getting Irizarry to fly out to center and clinch the Sea Gulls a spot in the final 16 of the dance.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

  • Jacob Ference provided several big blows at the plate for the Sea Gulls, going 2-for-3 with a double, run and three RBIs.
  • Scott Cameron finished 3-for-3 with two RBIs, two runs scored and a stolen base.
  • Luke Weddell batted 1-for-4 with an RBI and two runs, while Roman March scored as a pinch-runner and notched a two-run single in his only plate appearance.
  • Brandon Epstein (7-0) tossed two-thirds of a scoreless inning in the seventh to pick up the win in relief.
  • Brock Hilligoss nailed down his second save with a pair of scoreless frames in the eighth and ninth.
  • Mitchell Wittkamp provided five innings of yeoman's work in a no-decision, giving up three runs on five hits with one walk and four strikeouts on 75 pitches.
  • The regional title is Salisbury's third straight and its eighth in program history (2001, '04, '11, '14-15, '21-23) and marks the first time SU has three-peated as region champions.

PENN STATE HARRISBURG

  • Dallas Hite homered for the third straight game, going 2-for-5 with a solo blast.
  • Maddux Ryan finished 2-for-5 with two doubles, one run and two RBIs.
  • Blaine Waltimyer went 2-for-3 with a rib-eye.
  • Nick Fitzgerald (1-3) took the loss after battling through 6.1 inning in relief, allowing two runs on five hits with three walks and five punchouts on 103 pitches.
  • Christian Lubic got knocked out in the first inning, surrendering five runs on three hits and two walks in just two-thirds of a frame.

UP NEXT

  • The Sea Gulls will face Rowan in the best-of-three NCAA Super Regionals on Friday and Saturday at a location and time to be determined. The winner of that series will advance to the Division III Baseball Championship in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
  • The Profs emerged victorious from the Ambler, Pa. (Arcadia) Regional, sweeping their way through SUNY Brockport and Susquehanna twice.
  • Salisbury previously played Rowan on March 29 at Donnie Williams Sea Gull Baseball Stadium, winning 6-4.

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 and men's and women's swimming, and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference for men's lacrosse. 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 44 Academic All-Americans.

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