MIDDLETOWN, Pa. – Thanks to a two-out, walk-off home run by Dallas Hite in the opening contest of Saturday's doubleheader, Penn State Harrisburg's baseball team split games two and three of its NCAA Regional Series with No. 2 Salisbury on Saturday afternoon to guarantee a third day of competition beginning on Sunday morning.

The Lions twice erased multi-run deficits to earn a 12-11 victory in game two of the series before the Sea Gulls used a seven-run eighth inning to seal a 13-5 win in game three. After three contests at the Middletown Regional, Salisbury holds a 2-1 series lead.

GAME 1

Facing an 0-2 count with two down and the tying run 90 feet away, Dallas Hite crushed a breaking ball over the fence in center field to give Penn State Harrisburg (34-11) an electrifying walk-off win over No. 2 Salisbury (31-6) in the first of two NCAA Regional Games on Saturday, May 20.

The Lions entered the bottom of the ninth trailing 11-9 but Blaine Waltimyer gave his squad life with a one-out triple to right field. With two away, Lucas Floyd cut the deficit to one with an RBI triple to right field that plated Waltimyer and brought the winning run to the plate in Hite. After falling behind 0-2 and fouling off the third pitch of the at-bat to stay alive, Hite got all of the fourth pitch he saw, blasting the 31st home run of his career to straightaway center to complete the comeback in epic fashion before being mobbed by his teammates at home plate.

Waltimyer and Maddux Ryan each had three-hit games, while Hite, Brendan Henn, and Kevin Lehner drove in two runs apiece. Hunter Merritt earned the win after throwing the final 1.2 innings and allowing just one hit to go along with one strikeout. Fisher Druck got the start and went 4.2 innings, allowing three earned runs on six hits. He also struck out four batters.

Kavi Caster went 3-for-5 to lead the way for Salisbury, while Stephen Rice, Luke Weddell, and Scott Cameron all had multi-hit outings. Cameron, Weddell, and Danny Sheeler drove in two runs apiece.

Penn State Harrisburg led by as many as five runs following a Lehner two-run blast in the bottom of the sixth but Salisbury's offense came to life in the top of the eighth, sparked by a two-run shot by Danny Sheeler that cut the deficit to three. The Sea Gulls followed it up with five straight hits, including two doubles and a triple, and plated five more runs to climb back out in front.

The Lions used a six-run bottom of the fifth to erase a 4-1 deficit. Henn got things started with a two-out, two-run home run before back-to-back singles from Matt Parks and Lehner allowed Ryan to tie things up with an RBI single through the right side. After a Carlos Irizarry walk, Waltimyer gave his team the lead with a single through the right side that drove in Lehner and Ryan before Irizarry plated on a passed ball.

Penn State Harrisburg scored the game's first run when a two-out wild pitch allowed Waltimyer to cross the plate in the bottom of the second before Salisbury used three extra-base hits, an error, and a sacrifice fly to put up four runs in the top of the fifth.

GAME 2

Salisbury (32-6) used two big innings to pull away from Penn State Harrisburg (34-12) and secure a 13-5 victory in game three of the teams' NCAA Regional Series on Saturday afternoon.

Stephen Rice led the way with three hits, including a double, and two runs scored for the Sea Gulls. Danny Sheeler finished 2-for-4 with a home run, three RBI, and a pair of runs, while Jacob Ference, Zach Geesaman, and Max Ehrhardt each had two-hit outings. Ehrhardt also drove in a game-high four runs. Benji Thalheimer earned the win on the mound, while Tyler Villa threw the final four innings to secure the save.

Lucas Floyd and Kevin Lehner hats two hits apiece for Penn State Harrisburg and Dallas Hite hit his second home run of the afternoon.

For the third time in as many games, the Lions scored first after a Kevin Lehner double to left center field moved Matt Parks to third base and a passed ball allowed him to come across in the top of the opening frame. The Sea Gulls tied things up in the bottom of the second when Max Ehrhardt singled up the middle and scored Stephen Rice from second base.

Penn State Harrisburg reclaimed the lead in the top of the third when Hite launched a solo home run over the fence in left field and the Lions held a one-run advantage for the next two stanzas before Salisbury used three doubles, a triple, an error, and three walks to jump out to a four-run advantage in the bottom of the fifth.

The Lions got one back in the top of the sixth thanks to a two-out, RBI single by Floyd that drove in Maddux Ryan but they could pull no closer before the Sea Gulls erupted for seven runs in the bottom of the eighth. Sheeler led off the frame with a solo shot and his teammates followed suit, using six hits, two walks, a pair of hit by pitches, and a sac fly to tack on six more runs and put things out of reach.

A Matt Isaac RBI double plated Floyd in the top of the ninth before a passed ball allowed Isaac to score but Villa got a foul out to deep right field to seal the win for the Sea Gulls and give Salisbury a 2-1 series lead heading into the final day of the regional on Sunday.

WHAT'S NEXT?

Game four of the NCAA Regional Series between Penn State Harrisburg and Salisbury is scheduled to begin at 10 a.m. on Sunday morning. The Sea Gulls lead the series 2-1 and can advance to next weekend's Super Regional Round with one more victory. The Lions will have to win twice on Sunday to advance in NCAAs.

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