SALISBURY, Md. – Trailing 7-2 and down to its final six outs, the seventh-ranked and second-seeded Salisbury University baseball team stormed back with six unanswered runs, culminating in a walk-off RBI single by
Griffin Shirk in the bottom of the ninth to sink the third-seeded Christopher Newport Captains, 8-7, in the semifinal round of the 2026 Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference (C2C) Tournament on Friday afternoon at Donnie Williams Sea Gull Baseball Stadium.
With the win, their 11th straight dating back to Apr. 13, the Sea Gulls advance to Saturday's C2C Tournament championship game at top-seeded Mary Washington, with the first pitch from Dickinson Stadium in Fredericksburg, Va. scheduled for 3 p.m.
The Captains drew first blood in the first inning as Sam Benedict singled and Josh Reinhold belted a two-run home run. The Sea Gulls answered from the bottom of their order in the second as
Mickey Haynes doubled with two out and
Ethan Ruiz tripled him home to cut the deficit in half.
In the top of the third, Jacob Benedict led off with a single and came around to score on a stolen base, sac bunt, and RBI single by Aaron Maxie. Then in the fourth Donovan Newell belted a solo home run deep to right, giving CNU a 4-1 advantage.
Max Ehrhardt doubled to lead off the home sixth and scored two batters later on Haynes's RBI single to get SU within 4-2. The Captains reinforced their lead in the top of the eighth, though, with three runs off a pair of two-out doubles by Logan Adams and Lukas Miller to make it 7-2.
Undaunted, the Sea Gulls began their comeback in earnest in the home eighth. Ehrhardt got things started with a walk, followed by an infield hit by Shirk and an RBI knock by Haynes to make it 7-3. Following a sac bunt and a shallow flyout,
Trent Waire cranked one into the right center field jet stream for a no-doubt three-run homer, bringing SU back within one at 7-6.
Bryce Sterling kept it a one-run game with a perfect top of the ninth, setting up the dramatic finish in the bottom of the ninth.
Jay Newton led off with a four-pitch walk and
Jake Witter grooved a soft liner into left for a single before swapping out for pinch-runner
Cole Swift. After fouling off two bunt attempts, Ehrhardt came through in the clutch with a line drive single into right center, and Newton slid in ahead of the tag with the tying run.
That brought up Shirk, who attacked the first pitch he saw and lifted a hot shot to center that glanced off the leaping Captain fielder's glove and fell for a single. Swift trotted home with the winning run, and the Sea Gulls poured out of the dugout to mob Shirk behind the first base bag.
GAME NOTES
- Griffin Shirk played the hero with the game-winning, game-ending single in the ninth to cap a 2-for-5 day in which he scored one run along with his crucial RBI.
- Max Ehrhardt finished 2-for-3 with a double, RBI, and two runs scored, sparking multiple rallies and tying the game with his single in the ninth.
- Mickey Haynes reached base all four times he came to bat, going 3-for-3 with a double, walk, two runs, and two rib-eyes.
- Trent Waire put a charge in the Sea Gulls with a three-run home run, his fifth of the year.
- Ethan Ruiz finished 2-for-3 with an RBI triple for SU's first run of the day.
- Bryce Sterling (2-0) set himself up for the dub with a perfect ninth inning, needing just eight pitches to induce a groundout and two flyouts from his Captain foes.
- Aidan Brinsfield lasted six innings in his start, surrendering four runs on six hits with two walks and five strikeouts on 94 pitches.
- Cole Williams handled the seventh and eighth innings, giving up three runs on four hits. With his 67th career pitching appearance, Williams moves into a tie with Eric Willey '09 for fifth-most in SU baseball history; his next game will tie him for third.
- The walk-off is Salisbury's third of the season following similar victories over North Carolina Wesleyan on Mar. 7 and Gwynedd Mercy on Mar. 24.
- The 11-game winning streak is Salisbury's longest since rattling off 14 in a row from Mar. 19 through Apr. 19, 2023.
The Sea Gulls are now one win away from their fifth C2C title in six years and 20th conference championship overall. Standing in their way is Mary Washington, who dispatched Regent 5-0 in Friday's other semifinal tilt. The two sides split their season series, with the Eagles picking up a 7-2 win at home on Mar. 28 and SU returning the favor, 11-1 in seven innings, at Donnie Williams Stadium on Apr. 18.
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 210 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.
