WASHINGTON, Pa. (April 21) – Junior first baseman David Marcus (Whitby, Ontario/Father Leo J. Austin) hit a pair of home runs in leading the Vulcans to a non-conference doubleheader sweep of West Liberty on Tuesday afternoon at CONSOL Energy Park, winning 8-2 in Game 1 before taking an 11-7 win in Game 2.

With the sweep, the California University of Pennsylvania baseball team improves to 21-19 overall.  The Vulcans close out the regular season this weekend with a four-game series against Clarion. Meanwhile, West Liberty falls to 21-16 this season.

Marcus, who hit both of his homers in Game 2, moved into sole possession of second place in single-season school history with 13 homers. The Ontario native is now just two homers shy of the school record of 15 longball set by Bryan Hartung in 2003. Marcus entered the year with just one homer in 244 career at-bats over the previous two seasons.

In Game 1, the Vulcans jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first when junior center fielder Mick Fennell (Butler, Pa./Butler) reached on an error and stole second. After advancing to third on an infield single, Fennell scored on an RBI double to left by senior shortstop Matt Peters (Upper Darby, Pa./Upper Darby). Marcus then drove in sophomore left fielder Danny McGrath (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) on a sacrifice fly. After the Hilltoppers tied the game with two runs in the top of the third, the Vulcans retook the lead in the fifth on an RBI single from Peters and bases-loaded hit by pitch by junior right fielder Jared Grove (Greencastle, Pa./Greencastle-Antrim).

Cal U pushed across four insurance runs in the bottom of the sixth on a pair of run-scoring singles from redshirt freshman third baseman Levi Krause (East Berlin, Pa./Spring Grove) and McGrath before Peters and senior designated hitter Kris Fielding (Port Perry, Ontario/Port Perry) each recorded sacrifice flies.

Sophomore starting pitcher Lucas Cox (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park) earned his first career win after allowing two runs (both earned) on seven hits with five strikeouts in 5.0 innings (80 pitches). Peters finished 2-for-2 with three RBI and one run scored, while McGrath was 2-for-3 with three runs scored.

In Game 2, Marcus highlighted a four-run first inning with a 10-pitch at-bat that resulted in a two-run home run to right center as Cal U took a 4-1 lead. The Vulcans added two runs in the second on a double from Marcus, who advanced to third on a ground-out before scoring on a wild pitch. In the bottom of the fourth, Marcus again paced the offense, as he hit a three-run, opposite-field home run to push the Vulcan lead to 10-1 before adding a run in the fifth.

West Liberty rallied in the top of the sixth as the Hilltoppers pushed across six runs to cut the lead to 11-7 before Cal U secured the win.

Marcus finished the game 3-for-3 with two homers, seven RBI and three runs scored. Fennell was 3-for-4 with three runs scored out of the leadoff spot and the duo of McGrath and Peters each totaled two hits. Senior starter Luke Burton (Ambridge, Pa./Ambridge) earned the win after yielding one run (earned) on four hits over 5.0 innings (57 pitches).

The Vulcans return to Pennsylvania State Athletic (PSAC) West action on Friday, April 24, when they host a doubleheader against Clarion on Senior Day, beginning at 1 p.m.