ST. MARY'S CITY, Md. – The No. 7 Salisbury University baseball team took its first Capital Athletic Conference loss of the season with a 3-1 defeat to St. Mary's College of Maryland, Wednesday afternoon at the Hawks Nest.

The contest was a pitching duel for much of the game. Salisbury (9-3, 2-1 CAC) was kept in the contest by junior Dylan Anderson, who threw seven innings, allowing three runs on 10 hits. The righty allowed only a run through the first six innings before letting up a pair in the bottom of the seventh.

The Sea Gulls came into today's contest averaging 8.6 runs per game but were held off the scoreboard by St. Mary's (7-5, 3-2 CAC) starter Sam Beatty until the eighth inning, when freshman Pete Grasso singled to left field with two outs, scoring junior Tyler Illian to cut the Seahawk lead to 3-1. Salisbury put the tying run on base when senior Quinn Griffith followed Grasso with a walk, and put the winning run on when junior Bobby Sanzone got an infield single to load the bases. Salisbury was unable to further cut the lead, as junior Jordan Gowe grounded out to second to end the inning.

Junior Ryan Belanger relieved Anderson to begin the eighth and worked around a leadoff error to retire the next three batters to keep the Sea Gulls within two runs heading into their last at-bat.

Salisbury would go quietly in the ninth, as Beatty finished off the complete game, allowing the lone run on seven hits.

The Sea Gulls committed four errors in the contest, including two in the second inning, but Anderson worked around the miscues and received some help from the defense as well. In the second, after an error allowed Kenny Beyer to reach to open the inning, junior Austin Barefoot erased the runner by throwing him out attempting to steal second.

Salisbury will be in action this Friday, hosting Albertus Magnus College. That contest is scheduled to begin at 2:30 p.m.