SALISBURY, Md. – The seventh-ranked Salisbury University baseball team found its stroke early and often, building an eight-run lead and holding off a rally from the Hobart Statesmen to win 11-6 on the second day of the Salisbury Regional of the 2026 NCAA Division III Baseball Tournament on Saturday afternoon at Donnie Williams Sea Gull Baseball Stadium.
With their 14th straight win dating back to Apr. 13, the Sea Gulls are now one win away from their sixth consecutive regional crown and will face either Hobart or Mount Union in the regional final beginning Sunday at 11 a.m.
The Sea Gulls got off on the right foot in the first inning as
Jackson Inman banged a two-out double off the wall in right center and
Jay Newton tripled him home. Then in the second SU manufactured another on back-to-back singles, a sac bunt, and an RBI groundout by
Ethan Ruiz to put the home side up 2-0.
Salisbury kept the foot on the gas throughout a six-run third. After loading the bases with one out,
Jake Witter brought the first home on a sac fly and
Max Ehrhardt laid down a perfect bunt up the first base line for a squeeze play.
Griffin Shirk followed with an RBI single, then after a hit batsman to load them up again Ruiz brought another in on a groundout. Two batters later
Trent Waire delivered with a two-run single up the middle, making it 8-0.
The Statesmen got three back in the fifth, all with two outs. Jack O'Neil belted a double to left to drive in one, then Sean Garvin dropped a sun-assisted pop fly single into left to score two and get Hobart within 8-3. In the sixth, HC put two on with two out for Jack Byrnes, who cracked a three-run home run off the scoreboard in left center to make it 8-6.
SU shored up the lead in the eighth, loading the bases with no out to set up Newton for a sac fly. Waire advanced to third on the flyball, then on a Hobart pickoff move to first, Waire broke for the plate and stole another run. Following a groundout, Ehrhardt rolled an RBI single up the middle to get it to 11-6, where it would stay to the final out.
GAME NOTES
- Jay Newton finished 2-for-3 with a double, triple, run, and two RBIs from the cleanup slot.
- Max Ehrhardt batted 3-for-5 with a double, two RBIs, and two runs scored.
- Trent Waire went 2-for-4 with two runs and two rib-eyes, plus a steal of home in the eighth.
- Jackson Inman doubled and scored three runs on a 3-for-5 day.
- Jack Rucker (7-0) ate up 12 of the 27 outs earned by Sea Gull pitching, lasting four innings and giving up six runs on six hits with two walks and six strikeouts.
- Ethan Hirschfeld put up a pair of zeroes as the opener, scattering one hit and one walk across the first two innings.
- Cole Williams posted two scoreless in the seventh and eighth, stranding the tying runs on base in the latter frame. With his 70th career appearance, Williams now owns sole possession of second-most in program history and seven back of the record of 77 held by Corey Burton '23.
- Bryce Sterling locked it down with a 1-2-3 ninth, highlighted by back-to-back strikeouts to seal the deal.
- SU's 14-game winning streak is its longest in a single season since 2021 when the Sea Gulls won 14 in a row through the end of the regular season and postseason to capture the national championship.
The Sea Gulls will face the winner of Saturday's late elimination game between Mount Union and Hobart on Sunday afternoon. First pitch from Donnie Williams Stadium is slated for 11 a.m. A Salisbury win would clinch the regional crown for the sixth straight year and 11th time overall. A loss would force a winner-take-all game to be played 45 minutes after the conclusion of the first.
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), Coastal Lacrosse Conference (men's lacrosse), State University of New York Athletic Conference (field hockey), and Colonial Women's Golf Conference (women's golf). 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 211 conference championships, and have produced 54 Academic All-Americans.
To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.
