SALISBURY, Md. – For the fifth consecutive season, the seventh-ranked Salisbury University baseball team can call itself regional champions, pulling away late to bury the Baldwin Wallace Yellow Jackets, 12-1, in the regional finals of the 2025 NCAA Division III Baseball Tournament on Sunday afternoon at Donnie Williams Sea Gull Baseball Stadium.
With the win, the Sea Gulls will host the best-of-three Salisbury Super Regional against Messiah on Friday and Saturday, with the winner advancing to the Division III World Series in Eastlake, Ohio.
After the first two innings passed without a score, the Sea Gulls manufactured their first run in the third.
BK Wilson legged out an infield single to lead off and
Trent Waire bunted him to second. After a
Max Ehrhardt base hit to put men on the corners,
Danny Sheeler hit into an RBI fielder's choice to put SU ahead 1-0.
Salisbury starter
Aidan Brinsfield didn't allow a hit until the fifth when BW's Harrison Johnson led off with a single and took second on a sac bunt. Brinsfield then settled in to force Jace Durschel to line out to short and snag a sharp grounder from Carson Petrecca to strand the runner.
The Sea Gulls scratched across two more in the home fifth without the benefit of a hit.
Andrew Kell led off with a walk and made it to third after a sac bunt and a bad pickoff. Following another walk, Waire laid down another choice bunt and Kell swam around the flip home to touch the plate. Later with the bases juiced,
Dylan Winebrenner drew a free pass to force in another and make it 3-0.
The Yellow Jackets got on the board in the sixth, with Justin Carinci getting things started on a one-out wind-assisted double to right. Carinci took third on an infield hit and scored on a wild pitch, getting BW within 3-1, but Brinsfield held the line from there, with Kell snaring a tough liner in right to strand a man on third.
Waire belted an opposite field home run to lead off the seventh and open the floodgates for SU. Later in the inning with one down and men on second and third,
Noah Burroughs snuck a cue ball through the right side of a drawn-in infield to score both. Then with the bases loaded
Cole Swift blew the doors off with a two-run double, and Wilson brought home one more on a groundout to cap a six-run frame and get it to 9-1.
SU provided the final knockout with three more in the eighth to make it 12-1, and
Bryce Sterling put a bow on it with a perfect ninth, inducing the clinching groundout to Waire at short and marking the return of "Gull Pile U" just to the right of the mound.
GAME NOTES
- Trent Waire continued his weekend to remember from the nine-hole in the batting order, going 1-for-3 with a home run, sac bunt, and two RBIs.
- Noah Burroughs finished 2-for-5 with four rib-eyes, plus a steal and a run scored.
- Max Ehrhardt went 2-for-4 with two runs, while Danny Sheeler walked twice and scored twice.
- Cole Swift finished 2-for-4 with a double and a pair driven in.
- Aidan Brinsfield (5-0) matched his career long with eight dominant innings for his fifth win. Brinsfield gave up just one run on three hits with two walks and seven strikeouts on 109 pitches.
- Bryce Sterling finished off a 1-2-3 ninth, striking out one with a pair of groundouts.
- Waire was named Salisbury Regional MVP after batting .727 (8-of-11) with two doubles, two homers, five RBIs, and six runs scored over the three games.
- Joining Waire from SU on the All-Regional Team were Brinsfield, Ehrhardt, and Sheeler.
- Salisbury has now won 10 regional championships in program history, including five straight since the national title run of 2021.
- This marks the first time in six tries the Sea Gulls have won an NCAA Regional that they have hosted. SU improves to 13-13 all-time at home in postseason play.
The Sea Gulls now prepare to host their fourth consecutive NCAA Super Regional, with Messiah slated to visit town and a trip to the College World Series on the line. The Falcons won their first-ever regional title by going 3-0 in the Ashland, Va. Region as the three seed, dispatching Methodist 9-2 in Sunday's title game.
Game 1 of the Salisbury Super Regional will be played on Friday at 12 p.m. at Donnie Williams Stadium. Game 2 is set for Saturday 11 a.m., with Game 3 (if necessary) to follow approximately 45 minutes later.
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 205 conference championships, and have produced 51 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.
