SALISBURY, Md. – On a day when the second-ranked Salisbury University baseball team honored its 14 graduating seniors, a senior came up with the game's biggest hit. Kavi Caster hit a walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the ninth to lift the Sea Gulls past the ninth-ranked Christopher Newport Captains, 6-5, in a back-and-forth tilt between two Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) titans on Saturday afternoon at Donnie Williams Sea Gull Baseball Stadium.
 
HOW IT HAPPENED

• The Sea Gulls brought the thunder early as Dom Frigiola went yard with a first-inning solo home run to put SU on top 1-0.
• The Captains punched back in the top of the third. Ayden Stuffel led off with a single, then after a sac bunt Justin Liakos ripped an RBI double to the right field corner to tie the game. Two batters later Josh Reinhold bounced a ground ball off the first base bag for a two-out single, scoring Liakos to give CNU the lead. Another single and a Justin Bowers ground-rule double produced another run to make it 3-1.
• In the bottom of the third, the first three Sea Gulls were plunked to load the bases with no out, but Frigiola lined into an unassisted double play at first base and Kavi Caster rolled out to second, allowing the Captains to escape unscathed.
• Salisbury drew even in the fourth. Jacob Ference drew a 10-pitch walk with one out, then Stephen Rice hit a grounder that the shortstop booted for an error. Ben Anderson tagged a single into right to score Ference and move Rice to third, and Scott Cameron dragged a squeeze bunt up the first base line to bring home Rice and tie it 3-3.
• CNU got those runs back in the top of the fifth. After Josh Reinhold singled to lead off, Caster dropped a flyball from Zach Dzarnowski to put men on second and third. Back-to-back knocks from Alec Reilly and Jacob Benedict brought both runners home to make it 5-3 Captains.
• SU countered once again in the home fifth. After Frigiola was hit by a pitch, Caster doubled to put two in scoring position. Danny Sheeler then laced a double to right to bring Frigiola and Caster home and tie it up at 5-5.
• The Sea Gulls had a chance to push the go-ahead run across in the eighth. Ference singled to lead off, then after a sac bunt Andrew Kell pegged a pinch-hit single to left to move Ference to third. Luke Weddell came up to pinch hit and bunted up the first base line, but Bowers flipped the ball home and Ference was tagged out. CNU reliever Danny Checkosky then struck out pinch-hitter Adam Tommer to strand two men.
• In the bottom of the ninth, Cameron Hyder hoisted a leadoff double to the right center gap to put the winning run in scoring position. Frigiola was then hit by a pitch to bring up Caster. On a 1-1 pitch, Caster bounced a ground ball through the right side for a base hit, and Hyder slid into the plate ahead of a sweeping tag for the winning run, setting off a wild celebration that spilled out of the dugout and flooded through the packed bleachers of Williams Stadium.

SALISBURY GAME NOTES

• Kavi Caster finished 2-for-5 with a double, run and the game-winning, game-ending RBI single in the ninth.
• Cameron Hyder doubled and scored the winning run in the bottom of the ninth; for the day he went 1-for-4.
• Dom Frigiola batted 1-for-2 with his third home run of the year, two runs scored, two HBPs and a walk.
• Danny Sheeler finished 1-for-4 with a two-run double.
• Brandon Epstein (5-0) earned the win in relief by getting the final two outs in the top of the ninth. Epstein worked around a two-out single and struck out one batter.
• Jimmy Adkins pitched five innings in a no-decision, allowing five runs (four earned) on 11 hits with no walks and seven strikeouts on 89 pitches.
• Robbie Hollenbeck faced the minimum over 3.1 shutout innings to bridge Adkins and Epstein, allowing one hit with one punchout.
• Salisbury has now won nine straight games against CNU dating back to April 10, 2021.
• Before the game the Sea Gulls took the time to honor their 14 graduating seniors: pitchers Zach Adams, Jimmy Adkins, Jackson Balzan, Corey Burton, Brandon Epstein, Brock Hilligoss and Robbie Hollenbeck; catcher Jacob Ference; infielders Patrick Campbell, Stephen Rice and Luke Weddell; and outfielders Scott Cameron, Kavi Caster and Cameron Hyder.

CHRISTOHPER NEWPORT GAME NOTES

• Ayden Stuffel proved unstoppable from the seven-hole for the Captains, going 4-for-4 with a run scored.
• Justin Liakos finished 2-for-4 with two doubles, one run and one RBI.
• Josh Reinhold and Zach Dzarnowski combined to go 4-for-10 with an RBI and three runs scored from the two- and three-holes.
• Danny Checkosky (1-1) suffered the loss after giving up the winning run in the ninth.
• Jackson Baird matched Adkins with five innings for CNU, giving up five runs (four earned) on four hits with one walk, one punchout and four hit batsmen.
• Jack Braley put up 2.1 scoreless frames in relief between Baird and Checkosky.

UP NEXT

• The Sea Gulls will wrap up their regular season home slate against 10th-ranked Randolph-Macon on Tuesday afternoon.
• First pitch from Williams Stadium is set for 3 p.m. with coverage on the Sea Gull Sports Network (SGSN) beginning at 2:45 p.m.

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.