The nationally-ranked Salisbury Sea Gulls scored four runs in the fifth inning to pave the way to a 13-4 win over the Albertus Magnus baseball team in non-conference action on Friday afternoon. Despite the loss, Robert Gambardella (North Haven, Conn.) had a solid outing, going 2-for-4 with one run scored.
With the loss, the Falcons finish their spring break trip 0-6 but faced two teams ranked nationally in the top-10. Today's win improves No. 8 Salisbury's overall record to 12-3 on the year.
The Falcons scored first in today's contest as three errors by the Salisbury shortstop in the second inning opened the gates for the Falcons to take a 2-0 lead. Freshman Pete Haggerty (South Windsor, Conn.) reached base on the first error of the frame before the Falcons were able to get runners on first and second because of the Sea Gulls' second error.
Haggerty scored the unearned run on the third error of the inning to give the Falcons a one-run lead.
Salisbury matched the Falcons' run in the bottom of the frame as Ken O'Neill recorded an RBI single to tie the game. The Falcons put two more runs on the board in the third inning. Three-straight singles with one out scored the Falcons' go-ahead run as Nick Sedia (Bronx, N.Y.) recorded an RBI single to score senior Kyle Calechman (North Haven, Conn.) from third. The run was Calechman's fourth of the season, while for Sedia, it was his first hit and RBI of his career at Albertus.
Haggerty followed with a groundout that was able to plate Gambardella for the Falcons' third run of the contest.
Again, Salisbury matched the Falcons in the bottom of the frame. A lead-off single and a double put two runners in scoring position before back-to-back groundouts. Hank Adams' single down the right-field line scored both Sea Gulls as Salisbury tied the game at three. The Sea Gulls took the lead in the fourth inning as Chris Gaines grounded out to second to score the Sea Gulls' fourth run of the game before an RBI single from Tyler Bennett put Salisbury up by two at 5-3.
Salisbury added four more runs in the fifth on four hits and one Falcon error to extend their lead to 9-3. The inning was highlighted by a two-RBI single from Kyle Hayman. The Sea Gulls added another run in the sixth, two in the seventh and one in the eighth to extend their lead to 13-4.
Albertus scored its fourth run of the game in the top of the eighth inning as Patrick Dornfried (Berlin, Conn.) recorded his first sacrifice fly of the season.
Junior Matt Finkenzeller (Wolcott, Conn.) started on the mound for the Falcons as he threw four innings and allowed 12 hits and nine runs before coming out of the ballgame. Mike Barillaro (Meriden, Conn.) came out of the bullpen and went two innings and allowed just three hits and one unearned run.
Salisbury recorded 19 hits in today's contest and was led on the mound by Brett Collacchi who went six innings and gave up seven hits and two earned runs. The Sea Gulls threw four pitchers in the contest, while the Falcons went four-deep out of the bullpen.
Gambardella's two-hit effort in today's game gives the junior his team-leading third multiple-hit game of the season, while he also extended his hitting streak to six on the year.
Next up for the Falcons will be an away game at Mt. St. Mary College in New York. The Falcons will travel to Newburgh, N.Y. for the 4:00 p.m. non-conference contest on Wednesday, March 21.
