BUTLER, Pa. (May 1) – Senior shortstop Matt Peters (Upper Darby, Pa./Upper Darby) broke the all-time school record for hits and tallied four RBI on Friday afternoon, as the Vulcans were eliminated from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament with a 10-9 loss to Seton Hill at Kelly Automotive Park.

With the loss, the California University of Pennsylvania baseball team finishes the year with a 25-22 overall record. The Vulcans have now registered at least 25 wins in each of the last 16 seasons, posting an overall winning percentage over .500 each year. Meanwhile, Seton Hill improves to 41-10 overall after advancing to the College World Series for the first time in program history last season.

Peters went 2-for-4 with a solo homer, four RBI and two runs scored, while finishing his career with 224 hits. He eclipsed the previous mark of 223 hits set by former All-American outfielder Sam DiMatteo (2007-10) and also finished his career ranked fourth in school history with 130 RBI and sixth with 128 runs scored. As a senior, Peters posted the second-highest batting average in single-school history, hitting at a .446 clip (70-for-157), which ranks only behind the.462 mark set by Denny Brown in 1969.

In addition, junior first baseman David Marcus (Whitby, Ontario/Father Leo J. Austin) belted a solo homer to tie the single-season school record of 15 homers originally set in 2003 by Hall of Famer Bryan Hartung, who still holds the all-time record of 39 homers. Marcus entered the year with only one homer in nearly 225 career at-bats before averaging one homer every 10.4 at-bats this season.

Seton Hill took a 2-0 lead in the top of the first before first baseman Zac Heide belted a solo homer in the third. The Griffins added another run in the third before the Vulcans countered with five runs in the bottom of the inning. Freshman third baseman Levi Krause (East Berlin, Pa./Spring Grove) led off the inning with a solo homer, his fifth of the year, and Cal U later loaded the bases on back-to-back singles and a throwing error. Peters then tied the school record for hits with a three-run double and later scored on a two-out RBI single by freshman designated hitter Chris Wastchak (Peters Twp., Pa./Peters Township).

In the fourth, the Vulcans stranded runners on the corners before Seton Hill reclaimed the lead in the fifth by scoring four runs on three hits, 8-5. The Griffins collected a pair of RBI singles before right fielder Cody Herald belted a two-run homer to right center. Seton Hill stretched the lead to 9-5 in the top of the sixth with a solo homer by shortstop Garret Vrbanic before Cal U answered with two runs in the bottom of the inning. Junior left fielder Jared Grove (Greencastle, Pa./Greencastle-Antrim) opened the inning with a homer, his second of the year, before junior center fielder Mick Fennell (Butler, Pa./Butler) delivered an RBI triple with two outs.

Cal U forced Seton Hill to strand runners at second and third in the seventh before tying the score in the bottom of the inning at 9-9 with back-to-back solo homers by Peters and Marcus off different pitchers. In the eighth, the Griffins opened the inning with a single and later loaded the bases with back-to-back, two-out walks. Cal U kept the game tied after recording the final out of the inning when center fielder Taylor Schmidt attempted to score from third on a wild pitch. The Vulcans opened the bottom of the eighth with a leadoff single but were unable to advance the runner past second.

In the ninth, Seton Hill opened the inning with a single before Herald lined an RBI double down the left-field line to give the Griffins a 10-9 lead. Herald then moved to third on a sacrifice bunt before Fennell registered back-to-back strikeouts. Cal U managed a two-out walk in the bottom of the ninth before a pop-up ended the game.

Four different Vulcans registered multi-hit games in the loss. Fennell finished 2-for-4 with one RBI and one run scored while batting leadoff. He also tied the school record of 20 career triples previously reached by Pete LaBraska (1974-77) and Steve Luko (1976-80). Marcus and freshman second baseman Garrett Brooks (Connellsville, Pa./Greensburg Central Catholic) both also collected a pair of hits in the contest.

Fennell (2-3) suffered the loss after allowing one run (earned) on two hits in 1.1 innings of relief. Redshirt junior starter GJ Senchak (New Castle, Pa./New Castle) took a no-decision after yielding nine runs (all earned) on 11 hits and three walks in 6.0 innings (98 pitches). Seton Hill freshman Perry DellaValle (2-2) tossed 3.0 innings of relief and allowed one run (earned) on one hit and three walks to earn the victory.

PSAC TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
Wednesday, April 29
Game 1 – (W3) Slippery Rock d. (E2) West Chester, 9-9
Game 2 - (E4) East Stroudsburg d. (W1) Mercyhurst, 18-11
Game 3 - (W2) Seton Hill d. (E3) Shippensburg, 11-5
Game 4 - (E1) Millersville d. (W4) California, 8-0

Thursday, April 30
Game 5 - (W1) Mercyhurst d. (E2) West Chester, 14-2 (West Chester eliminated)
Game 6 - (W4) California d. (E3) Shippensburg, 9-3 (Shippensburg eliminated)
Game 7 - (E4) East Stroudsburg d. (W3) Slippery Rock, 13-4
Game 8 - (E1) Millersville d. (W2) Seton Hill, 8-4

Friday, May 1
Game 9 - (W1) Mercyhurst d. (W3) Slippery Rock, 11-2 (Slippery Rock eliminated)
Game 10 - (W2) Seton Hill d. (W4) California, 10-9 (California eliminated)
Game 11 - (E1) Millersville d. (W1) Mercyhurst, 7-6 (Mercyhurst eliminated)
Game 12 - (W2) Seton Hill d. (E4) East Stroudsburg, 11-7

Saturday, May 2
Game 13 - (W2) Seton Hill vs. (E4) East Stroudsburg, 11 a.m.
Game 14 - Winner of Game 13 vs. (E1) Millersville, 2 p.m.