VIRGINIA BEACH -- Juniors Mitch Green, Shayne Paskanik and Gage Collins combined for nine hits Wednesday to bolster an impressive pitching performance by Virginia Wesleyan College and help guide the baseball Marlins to an impressive 8-1 victory over No. 21/23 ranked Salisbury University.

Green (Cordova, Md./St. Michaels) led the effort, posting a 4-for-4 showing at the plate, all singles.  Paskanik (Fredericksburg, V.a/Colonial Forge) added one-baggers in the second third, and eighth innings and Collins (Newport News, Va./Menchville) ripped singles in the third and fourth innings.

Salisbury (0-1), ranked No. 21 by the Collegiate Baseball Newspaper and No. 23 by D3baseball.com, took a 1-0 lead in the second inning on a two-out RBI hit from Bill Root (Coatesville, Pa./Coatesville).

Virginia Wesleyan (3-0) came back with a four-run third to take the lead for good.  Collins started it with a single and moved to second on a sacrifice hit from sophomore Ryan Estrella (Bridgeport, Conn./Trumbull). Myles Shipp (Virginia Beach/First Colonial) drew a two-out walk to load the bases for Jacob Pierce (Chesapeake, Va./Western Branch),who reached base on a two-run error.  Paskanik followed with a two-run single before the inning ended with VWC leading 4-1.

The Marlins tacked on two runs in the fifth, helped by a double from junior Josh Hathaway (Williamsburg, Va./Jamestown),to open up a 6-1 advantage.  VWC capped scoring with a two-run eighth, which opened with a Paskanik single.

Senior Jake Newton (DeRutyer, N.Y./DeRuyter) started on the mound for VWC and pitched six innings.  Rookie Reid Hoffler (Chesapeake, Va./Suffolk Nansemond River) took over in the seventh for two innings, before sophomore Ryan Matalon (Virginia Beach/Floyd E. Kellam) closed.  Newton struck out four and allowed four walks and a hit.  Hoffler gave up just a walk and fanned three batters, and Matalon produced two strikeouts and allowed nothing.

Salisbury used Kyle Judson (Gaithersburg, Md./Quince Orchard), Dustin Herbert (Huntingtown, Md./Huntingtown), Chris Greiner (Baltimore, Md./Mt. St. Joseph) and Drew Baldwin (Winston-Salem, N.C./Mount Tabor) on the mound.  They surrendered 11 hits and four walks, and struck out seven batters.

Salisbury finished with a single each from Root and Devon Qualietta (Monroe Township, N.J./Notre Dame).

Virginia Wesleyan competes again on Friday, Feb. 18, in Demorest, Ga., against Alabama's No. 9-ranked Birmingham-Southern College at 7 p.m.  The Marlins will take on host Piedmont College on Saturday, Feb. 19 at 6 p.m. and close out the trip against Lynchburg College at 12 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 20.

--AMDG--