HAVERFORD, Pa. – The eighth-ranked Salisbury University baseball team split a doubleheader with the Haverford Fords, dropping the opener 6-5 before bouncing back to salvage the finale 8-5 on Saturday afternoon at Kannerstein Field.
GAME ONE
The Sea Gulls notched a pair in the first inning on RBI groundouts by
Dylan Winebrenner and
Noah Burroughs, then in the fourth
Max Ehrhardt singled another home to put SU up 3-0. The Fords answered with three in the fifth, tying the game at 3-3 on a Chuck Norton RBI single.
Norton tagged a go-ahead solo homer in the seventh to give Haverford its first lead, but Salisbury countered to go back in front in the eighth. After a single, error, and sac bunt,
Jackson Inman tagged a two-run double to left center, swinging the margin back to SU at 5-4.
The Fords rallied in the ninth, though, using back-to-back leadoff hits to put the tying and winning runs in scoring position. Jonny Flieder tied it with a sac fly, then after a walk Norton played the hero again with a game-ending RBI single to left, giving the home side a 6-5 win.
Game Notes
- Danny Sheeler accounted for four of the Sea Gulls' six hits in the game, going 4-for-4 with a double and two runs scored.
- Jackson Inman finished 1-for-4 with a two-run double.
- Garrett Beaver (1-1) endured the loss after seeing the two runs in the ninth charged to him.
- Aidan Brinsfield completed five innings in a no-decision, surrendering three runs on four hits with one walk and six strikeouts on 66 pitches.
GAME TWO
Danny Sheeler stayed hot at the plate by belting a solo homer to right center in the first inning. The Fords answered in the third with solo shots by Jackson Sgro and Harry Genth to go on top, but
BK Wilson continued the slugfest with an opposite-field two-run blast in the fourth to put the Sea Gulls back up 3-2. HC knotted things again in the fifth with a sac fly that made it 3-3.
Salisbury broke the game open with a four-run seventh. With the bases loaded and one out,
Noah Burroughs hit a grounder that ate up the third baseman and allowed
Trent Waire to score the go-ahead run. After a fielder's choice cut down a runner at the plate,
Ben Anderson worked a walk to force in another, and Wilson reached on another error at short that scored two to put SU up 7-3.
Haverford inched closer with solo dingers by Sgro and Matt Dahl in the seventh and eighth, respectively, cutting the margin to 7-5. Anderson put it away for the visitors in the ninth, though, with a solo blast to left – the Sea Gulls' third of the game and the seventh overall – to rebuild the lead to 8-5, where it would stay to the final out.
Game Notes
- Danny Sheeler went yard for the third time this season and 24th time in his SU career, finishing 1-for-2 with three walks. He now sits two back of Dave Westervelt for fifth on the all-time Sea Gull leaderboard.
- Ben Anderson and BK Wilson each tagged home runs and notched two RBIs.
- Shawn Rosemond (1-1) scooped up the win in relief, lasting 2.1 innings and giving up two runs while striking out three.
- Bryce Sterling converted his third save with a perfect four-pitch ninth inning. He is already one save shy of tying eight others for sixth in SU single-season history.
- Cole Williams made it five innings in his start, allowing three runs on five hits with two walks and two punchouts on 78 pitches.
The Sea Gulls will return home to face Ursinus in a Sunday matinee. First pitch from Donnie Williams Stadium is set for 12 p.m.
Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with affiliate membership in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (football, men's & women's swimming) and the Coastal Lacrosse Conference (men's lacrosse). With over 500 student-athletes in 23 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the nation's most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, featuring dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on and off the field. The Sea Gulls have won a combined 23 team national championships, 24 individual national championships, and 202 conference championships, and have produced 50 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 follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.