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WASHINGTON, Pa. (April 27) – Sophomore second baseman Evan King (Lancaster, Pa./Lampeter-Strasburg) and senior left fielder Sean Welsh (Doylestown, Pa./Central Bucks East) each collected three hits on Wednesday afternoon to help the Vulcans post a 6-1 non-conference victory against Fairmont State at CONSOL Energy Park.

With the win, the California University of Pennsylvania baseball team improves to 24-14 this season. The Vulcans have 11 of their last 13 games and are ranked sixth in the latest Atlantic Regional rankings, which were released on Wednesday. Meanwhile, the Fighting Falcons drop to 11-25 overall.

Senior pitcher Corry Ryan (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) made his first start since April 2008 and took a no-decision after working 4.2 scoreless innings (60 pitches). He scattered just two hits and registered five strikeouts in his fifth appearance of the season. Junior Pat Gannon (Pittsburgh, Pa./Upper Saint Clair) earned the win in relief, allowing one run (earned) on two hits in 3.1 innings (54 pitches), and classmate Jim Kirker (Bridgeville, Pa./South Fayette) tossed a scoreless ninth with three strikeouts.

After a scoreless first, the Vulcans took a 1-0 lead in the second after loading the bases on a single and two walks. King then reached base on a two-out fielding error that allowed Welsh to score from third. Fairmont State threatened in the fifth with runners on the corners and two outs before Gannon entered the game and ended the inning with a strikeout.

The Fighting Falcons tied the game at 1-1 in the top of the sixth on a solo homer (ninth of the season) by center fielder Andy Leach. Cal U quickly responded by scoring three runs in the bottom of the inning to reclaim the lead, 4-1. Senior shortstop Casey Teagarden (Greensburg, Pa./Hempfield) started the inning with a single and stole second before scoring on an RBI single by senior right fielder Chuck Faust (Hershey, Pa./Hershey). After a sacrifice bunt, junior catcher JB Sapienza (La Plata, Md./La Plata) collected an RBI single and King followed with a single. With runners on the corners, senior third baseman Aaron Ordy (Butler, Pa./Butler) delivered an RBI single for the final run of the inning.

The Vulcans added to their lead in the eighth, scoring two runs on three hits. King led off the inning with a single and stole second (18th of the year) before scoring on an RBI double by junior center fielder Troy Handza (Glenshaw, Pa./Shaler). Senior first baseman Adam Links (New Hope, Pa./Central Bucks East) then delivered an RBI single to stretch the lead to 6-1.

In the ninth, the first two batters for the Fighting Falcons reached base safely before Kirker registered three-straight strikeouts to close the game.

Fairmont State's Shaun Vernesoni (1-2) suffered the loss after allowing three runs (all earned) on seven hits in 3.1 innings of relief (55 pitches). Junior starter L.G. Shea took a no-decision after yielding one run (unearned) on one hit in 2.0 innings of work.

In addition to three hits by King and Welsh, Links finished 2-for-5 with one RBI. In the three-game series against Fairmont State this year, Welsh led the team with a .727 average (8-for-11) with three RBI and three runs. Every starter for the Vulcans posted at least one hit on Wednesday and junior designated hitter Kyle Bowser (Stoystown, Pa./North Star) extended his team-best hitting streak to nine games.

The Vulcans are scheduled to return to the diamond tomorrow, Thursday, April 28, with a doubleheader at Gannon, starting at 1 p.m. The twinbill was originally was slated for April 22 and has been postponed several times due to severe weather in recent days around Erie, Pa.

Notes:
Cal U played its first game on the newly installed artifical surface at CONSOL Energy Park ... The Vulcans could play seven games (all conference) over the next four days to close the regular season