WASHINGTON, Pa. (Feb. 25) – The California University of Pennsylvania baseball team secured a pair of victories over Walsh on Sunday afternoon, notching two runs in the sixth inning to secure a 6-5 win in Game 1 before collecting 23 hits in Game 2 to claim a 17-2 victory.

With the sweep, the Vulcans improve to 2-2 this season while playing all four games at home. Meanwhile, the Cavaliers open the year with a 0-2 mark after being selected to finish fourth in the North Division entering their first year as a member of the Great Midwest Athletic Conference (G-MAC). 

In Game 1, Cal U brought across two runs in the bottom of the sixth after Walsh took a 5-4 lead in the top half of the inning to earn the 6-5 win. Junior designated hitter Eric Fairman (Pittsburgh, Pa./Thomas Jefferson) went 2-for-3 with a solo homer, two RBI and two runs scored. Junior left fielder Nico Marchetti (Laurel, Md./St. Vincent Pallotti) finished with two hits and one run scored while delivering the eventual, game-winning RBI double in the sixth. Redshirt freshman pitcher Richie Serignese (New Castle, Pa./Neshannock) tossed 1.2 innings of scoreless relief with five strikeouts, including three-straight in the seventh, to earn the win. 

The Cavaliers notched an RBI single in the opening two innings to take an early 2-0 lead. The Vulcans cut the deficit in the bottom of the second on a dropped fly ball, as junior catcher Kristian Webb (Whitby, Ontario/Sinclair) scored from first. Cal U scored its second unearned run after a throwing error tied the game at 2-2 in the third. Fairman gave the Vulcans their first lead of the contest on a solo homer to left center in the bottom of the fourth before Cal U posted another run in the following inning on a sacrifice fly. An error and a wild pitch provided Walsh with three runs to take a 6-5 lead late in the game. Fairman produced another RBI after a double by Webb before Marchetti posted an RBI double to put Cal U up 6-5 in the sixth. 

Serignese earned the victory after recording five-straight strikeouts to close out the game. Sophomore starter Nick Riggle (Pittsburgh, Pa./Keystone Oaks) took a no-decision after scattering eight hits and allowing two earned runs with four strikeouts in 3.2 innings (80 pitches). Sophomore Ben Bulchik was saddled with the loss after allowing two runs (earned) in 0.2 inning of relief. 

In Game 2, four different players recorded at least three hits, as Cal U totaled 23 totaled hits in the contest. The Vulcans registered their highest hit total in a game since tallying 24 hits back in 2010 versus Charleston (W.Va.).

Cal U raced out to a 3-0 lead before Fairman belted a two-run homer off the scoreboard in the third to extend the lead. The Cavaliers cut into the deficit with a solo homer and collected a second run on a double-play with the base loaded to make it a 5-2 contest. Cal U posted an offensive explosion of eight runs in the fourth innings starting with a two-run double from Webb followed by an RBI single from Fairman. Redshirt freshman catcher Bill Hitman (Norristown, Pa./Pope John Paul II) then belted a two-run homer to extend the lead before senior third baseman Levi Krause (East Berlin, Pa./Spring Grove) collected a two-run double with two outs to increase the lead to 13-7. In the fifth, Cal U scored a one run on a fielding error before senior second baseman Danny McGrath (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) and senior shortstop Austin Logan (Beaver, Pa./Beaver) delivered RBI singles. Krause once again collected an RBI double to put the Vulcans up 17-2 in the contest. 

Freshman starter Hunter Robinson (Waynesburg, Pa./Waynesburg Central) secured his first collegiate win after surrendering two runs (both earned) on five hits in 5.0 innings (71 pitches). Senior Neil Dudley (Odenton, Md./Chesapeake) and junior transfer Roger Wilson (Williamsport, Pa./Loyalsock Township) both tossed 1.0 scoreless inning of relief in the victory. 
 
In Game 2, Fairman and Webb both went 4-for-4 and Fairman recorded a two-run homer, four RBI and three runs scored, while Webb notched two RBI and also three runs scored. McGrath finished 4-for-5 with one RBI and three runs scored, plus Hitman went 3-for-5 with a two-run homer.

Cal U returns to action tomorrow, Monday, Feb. 26, when it closes out the series against Walsh at Wild Things Park in Washington, Pennsylvania at 12 p.m.