MILLERSVILLE, Pa. (May 7) – The California (PA) baseball team rallied from a pair of deficits on Wednesday afternoon to earn a 7-4 victory against No. 24 West Chester in an opening-round elimination game at Cooper Park in the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament.

With the victory, the Vulcans improve to 35-11 overall and advance to face host Millersville tomorrow, Thursday, May 8, at 1:30 p.m. Cal has advanced past the opening day of the PSAC Tournament in each of its last two appearances (2023). Additionally, the Vulcans have won at least 35 games for the fourth time in school history (2007, 2013, 2019). Meanwhile, West Chester falls to 35-15 this season and will likely earn an at-large berth to the NCAA Tournament after being seeded second in the latest regional rankings.

Senior right fielder James Salvatori collected two hits and three RBI from the leadoff spot on Wednesday. Senior second baseman Nathan Meeks tallied two hits and two RBI, while sophomore shortstop Caleb Collins finished with two hits and two runs scored. Senior first baseman Santino Marra registered two hits, including a solo homer, and two runs scored in his first start since April 26 due to injury.

The Vulcans took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second on a homer by Marra, his career-high fifth of the season. West Chester countered by manufacturing a run in the third with a leadoff single, sacrifice bunt and ground-out. The Golden Rams then claimed a 3-1 advantage in the fourth after tallying a pair of RBI singles after the inning started with a double and two errors.

Cal answered with a pair of runs in the bottom of the inning to tie the score, 3-3. The Vulcans loaded the bases on a walk and back-to-back singles before sophomore center fielder Ikon Jones reached on a bases-loaded hit by pitch. Collins then scored on a fielder's choice that allowed Salvatori to reach base. West Chester again seized the lead in the fifth by a 4-3 margin with a solo homer by designated hitter Ben Bolhouse.

The Golden Rams opened the seventh with a single and fielder's choice before junior Jake Kramer entered the game and halted the inning with a strikeout and caught stealing at second. In the bottom half, Jones led off with a triple and scored on a sacrifice fly by Salvatori. Senior left fielder Ryan Callahan and Marra later reached on back-to-back singles with two outs before Meeks delivered a go-ahead, two-run double to left center.

In the bottom of the eighth, Collins reached on a hit by pitch and stole second before scoring on a two-out RBI single by Salvatori to give the Vulcans a 7-4 lead. West Chester led off the ninth with a walk and the runner advanced to third on consecutive ground-outs before Kramer induced another ground-out to end the game.

Kramer (4-0) earned the victory after working 2.2 innings of scoreless relief (38 pitches). He has registered a pair of wins while logging a combined 5.2 scoreless innings in two career appearances in the PSAC Tournament. Junior starting pitcher Michael Valente (11-0) took a no-decision for the first time this season, allowing four runs (three earned) on seven hits in 6.1 innings (86 pitches).

West Chester used six different pitchers in the loss with starter Ryan DeHaver lasting just 3.1 innings (66 pitches) after yielding three runs (all earned) on seven hits. Nick Noga (5-4) suffered the loss on Wednesday, surrendering two runs (both earned) on three hits in 1.0 inning of relief.

The Vulcans will face the Marauders tomorrow at 1:30 p.m. and the loser will play an elimination game tomorrow at 5 p.m. Millersville opened play at the league tournament with a 2-0 victory against Slippery Rock on Wednesday night. The Vulcans and Marauders met six times in the PSAC Tournament from 2011-22 with Cal earning a memorable 11-9 comeback win in 2019 at Point Stadium in Johnstown, Pennsylvania.