SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – The Shippensburg University baseball team eliminated defending conference champions Seton Hill in a late-night Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) Tournament opening round battle Wednesday night at Slippery Rock's Jack Critchfield Park.
 
The Raiders (27-19), behind a magnificent performance on the mound from junior Jaxon Dalena and at the plate from senior Austin Baal, recorded their first postseason victory in six years and avenged a pair of losses to the Griffins (36-14) dating back to last season's PSAC and NCAA Division II Atlantic Region Tournaments.
 
Dalena set the tone early, fanning five of the first seven hitters he faced. Overall, Dalena limited a potent Griffins lineup to just five hits and two runs over 6.2 innings and a season-high 115 pitches. He struck out six and walked none.
 
Baal played a key role during Raider rallies in the fourth and the eighth. He finished 3-for-5 at the dish with an RBI and a run scored.
 
The SU lineup backed Dalena with a pair of runs in the top of the fourth inning. Baal began the rally with a hotshot double off Seton Hill ace Jon McCullough. Singles from sophomore Mike Heckman and senior Andrew Chronister allowed Baal to score, and an infield single two outs later from junior Carter Hinds drove in Heckman and doubled the Raider lead, 2-0.
 
The Griffins got a run back in the sixth on an Elijah Snider solo home run. They tied the score in their next turn, as an outfield miscue resulted in an inside-the-park home run off the bat of Owen Mandler.
 
Back-to-back walks from junior Gio Calamia and graduate Justin Byler began the Raider eighth. Baal then lined a sharp single to left to drive in Calamia with the go-ahead run. Byler later plated a run on a wild pitch, and junior Carter Arbuthnot provided a big insurance run with a two-out RBI single to give the Raiders' a three-run cushion, 5-2.
 
Senior Ethan Miller surrendered a run in the ninth before picking up his sixth and biggest save of the season. Freshman Conner Barto tossed 1.1 scoreless innings to earn the win in relief.
 
Hinds also recorded three hits Wednesday. Overall, the Raiders doubled the Griffins' hit total 12-to-6.
 
SU and Seton Hill, the fourth and final game of opening round play Wednesday, finally got underway at 10:30 p.m. and ended well past midnight. It followed a 16-inning marathon between West Chester and Mercyhurst, that was won by Golden Rams by an 8-7 final score.
 
The Raiders return to action later today with a second-round matchup against West Chester at 1:30 p.m.
 
NCAA Atlantic Division Rankings: The Raiders were the No. 9 seed in the third and final edition of the 2024 NCAA Atlantic Region rankings released prior to Wednesday's game. The NCAA regional rankings are annually used to determine the teams that qualify for the NCAA Division II Baseball Championships. The NCAA Division II Baseball Selection Show is slated for Sunday, May 12, at 10 p.m.