WASHINGTON, Pa. (April 30) – Senior
Nick Riggle (Pittsburgh, Pa./Keystone Oaks) tied the school's all-time wins record on Friday afternoon, as the California University of Pennsylvania baseball team belted a combined six homers while sweeping a doubleheader over No. 7 Seton Hill at Wild Things Park in Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) West play, winning 4-1 in Game 1 before posting a 9-3 victory in Game 2.
With the sweep, the Vulcans improve to 22-12 this season behind a 13-9 mark in divisional action. Cal U swept a home doubleheader against Seton Hill for the first time since the Griffins joined the PSAC in 2014. The Vulcans now sit tied for second in the PSAC West standings with six games left in the regular season. Meanwhile, the Griffins fall to 23-4 overall with a 15-4 record in league play.
Riggle earned the complete-game victory to improve to 7-2 this spring to match his career high in wins. He allowed one run (earned) while scattering nine hits and one walk over 7.0 innings (96 pitches). Riggle is now tied with former All-American
Randy Sturgill (2008-11) for first place in school history with 23 career victories. He also became only the second Cal U pitcher to log at least 250 innings pitched in a career on Friday.
Junior shortstop
Jacob McCaskey (Tarentum, Pa./Deer Lakes) belted a homer in each game of the doubleheader against the Griffins. He now is tied for second in the PSAC with a team-leading nine homers and extended his league-leading RBI total to 46.
In Game 1, Riggle forced Seton Hill to strand a runner on third in the top of the first following a two-out triple. The Vulcans turned a double play in both the third and fourth innings before McCaskey led off the bottom of the fourth with a homer, 1-0.
Cal U took a 2-0 lead in the fifth on a two-out RBI single by junior second baseman
Anthony Venezia (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shaler). In the sixth, senior
Louden Conte (California, Pa./California) and sophomore
David Lee (Pittsburgh, Pa./Thomas Jefferson) belted back-to-back homers with two outs to stretch the lead to 4-0. The Griffins avoided the shutout in the seventh with a two-out, pinch-hit RBI single.
In Game 2, junior
Dylan Brosky (East Millsboro, Pa./Brownsville) registered the victory to improve to 7-1 this season. He yielded two runs (both earned) on seven hits while tallying six strikeouts in 5.0 innings (96 pitches). Classmate
Patrick Gumto (Allison Park, Pa./Shaler) posted his fourth save of the year after allowing one run (earned) on two hits with two strikeouts in 2.0 innings.
Seton Hill took a 2-0 lead in the top of the second on a two-run homer by shortstop Owen Sabol before loading the bases with one out. Brosky then recorded back-to-back strikeouts to end the inning. The Vulcans countered with back-to-back homers by McCaskey and junior right fielder
Patrick Brogan (Pittsburgh, Pa./Our Lady of the Sacred Heart) with two outs. McCaskey belted a three-run homer after the rally started with a single and walk.
In the fourth, senior center fielder
Aaron Previsky (California, Pa./California) added a solo homer, his third of the year, to take a 5-2 lead. Cal U added four runs on two hits and two walks in the sixth to extend the lead to 9-2. Junior left fielder
Nick Serafino (McDonald, Pa./Canon-McMillan) collected a two-run double before the Vulcans scored two runs on a pair of errors on a pickoff attempt.
McCaskey finished 2-for-3 with a three-run homer and Venezia went 2-for-4 with two runs scored. Previsky scored a pair of runs in the victory.
The Vulcans continue their series with the Griffins tomorrow, Saturday, May 1, with a doubleheader in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, at 1 p.m.
