WASHINGTON, Pa. (May 7) – The Vulcans secured a berth to the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament with a doubleheader sweep over defending-regional champion Seton Hill in divisional play on Saturday afternoon at Wild Things Park, winning 7-5 and 4-3.

With the sweep, the California University of Pennsylvania baseball team improves to 31-14 overall with a 16-10 record in PSAC West action. The Vulcans have now reached the 30-win mark for the ninth time since the 2004 campaign. Cal U enters the final day of the regular season tied for third in the divisional standings and sit just one game back of second place. Meanwhile, the Griffins fall to 29-17-1 this season behind a 13-13 mark in league play.

In Game 1, the score was tied 5-5 in the bottom of the sixth before senior third baseman Louden Conte (California, Pa./California) delivered an opposite-field, two-run homer off the videoboard in right field with two outs. Seton Hill threatened in the seventh with back-to-back walks and later loaded the bases before a called third strike ended the game.

Senior first baseman Jacob McCaskey (Tarentum, Pa./Deer Lakes) went 2-for-4 with one RBI. Senior shortstop Anthony Venezia (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shaler) and senior catcher Justin Stewart (Butler, Pa./Butler) both scored twice in the victory.

The Vulcans took a 1-0 lead in the first when Venezia scored on a throwing error. Seton Hill attempted to answer in the top of second when McCaskey threw out a runner at the plate on an assist from junior right fielder Colby Rockacy (Pittsburgh, Pa./Keystone Oaks). The Griffins eventually took a 2-1 lead in the third inning before the Vulcans tied the score in the bottom of the inning on a solo homer by sophomore designated hitter Jayden Taitano (Lancaster, Pa./Conestoga Valley), 2-2.

In the fourth, Cal U took a 4-2 lead on three hits and one walk. Stewart started the inning with a single and later advanced to third on a single by senior left fielder Mike Landry (Jamison, Pa./La Salle). Stewart then scored on a ground-out before McCaskey later collected a two-out RBI single. Seton Hill cut the deficit to 4-3 in the fifth inning on a solo home run by third baseman Jack Oberdorf.

The Vulcans countered in the bottom of the fifth with a two-out RBI double by Rockacy, 5-3. Seton Hill countered with a pinch-hit, two-run double in the sixth to tie the score at 5-5. Conte belted his sixth longball of the season in the sixth inning to give Cal U a 7-5 lead. The Griffins opened the seventh with back-to-back walks before a force-out at third base. Following a strikeout, Seton Hill loaded the bases on a single before a strikeout ended the game.

Senior Dylan Brosky (East Millsboro, Pa./Brownsville) earned the victory to improve to 8-3 this spring, becoming the first pitcher with at least eight wins in consecutive years since Randy Sturgill in the 2010-11 seasons. He allowed five runs (all earned) on 10 hits with three strikeouts over 6.0 innings (85 pitches). Fellow senior Patrick Gumto (Allison Park, Pa./Shaler) recorded his third save of the year after working 1.0 scoreless inning of relief.

In Game 2, Cal U held a 4-0 lead before Seton Hill scored three runs in the top of the sixth. The Griffins later advanced the game-tying run into scoring position in the seventh before the game ended with back-to-back strikeouts.

Landry went 2-for-3 with one RBI and one run scored, while Conte reached base in all three plate appearances (two singles, hit by pitch). McCaskey also recorded a solo home run to extend his hitting streak to 15 games.

The Vulcans took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first on the longball by McCaskey, his 10th of the season. McCaskey is now tied for sixth all-time in school history with 22 career home runs. Cal U extended the lead in the second inning with an RBI single by Rockacy after redshirt freshman second baseman Santino Marra (Uniontown, Pa./Laurel Highlands) opened the inning with a single.

In the fourth, Stewart started the inning with a double before Landy collected an RBI double down the left field-line. Freshman center fielder Adam Crawford (North Fayette, Pa./West Allegheny) then followed with an RBI single to stretch the lead to 4-0.

Freshman starter Roman Gill (Hopewell, Pa./Hopewell) retired 15-straight batters to start the game before Seton Hill started a rally in the sixth when the leadoff batter reached on a wild pitch. The Griffins later collected three-straight, two-out hits to trim the deficit to 4-3. Seton Hill again threatened in the seventh with runners on first and second before sophomore Troy Lincavage (Ambler, Pa./Legend (Colo.)) closed the game with back-to-back strikeouts.

Gill, who was making his second career start in conference play, registered the victory to improve to 5-2 this season. He yielded three runs (all earned) on three hits and zero walks over 5.2 innings (67 pitches) while tallying five strikeouts. Lincavage earned his third save of the year after working 1.1 innings of scoreless relief.

The Vulcans close out the regular season tomorrow, Sunday, May 8, when they travel to face Seton Hill in Greensburg, Pennsylvania, at 2 p.m. Per league mandates, no regular-season games are permitted to be played after tomorrow.