LYNCHBURG, Va. -- Josh Mason just kept on running after he belted a fly ball deep into centerfield at Lynchburg City Stadium on Thursday.

His hit glanced off the glove of the Roanoke College fielder standing in the warning track. By the time the ball was retrieved and thrown into the infield, Mason (Chesapeake/Bishop Sullivan Catholic) was on his way to home plate to score.

The rare four-base error also allowed senior Zach Bach (Virginia Beach/Frank W. Cox), who led off the inning with a single, the time to score ahead of Mason, helping Virginia Wesleyan College's No. 2 seeded Marlins to a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the second inning.  VWC never trailed after that en route to posting an 11-3 win in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference tournament game.

Virginia Wesleyan advances to a second round game on Friday, April 24, taking on the winner of Thursday's late game between third-seeded Randolph-Macon College and fourth-seeded Bridgewater College.  Friday's game begins at 6 p.m. at City Stadium.

VWC (16-11, marking its return to the ODAC tournament for the first time since 2010, knocked out 16 hits against Roanoke (16-14), led byh 3-for-5 showings from junior Matt Murray (Nottingham, Pa./Quarryville Solanco) and sophomore C.J. Lindsay (Remington/Bealeton Liberty).  Lindsay's hits were highlighted by a pair of doubles.

Sophomore Taylor Erby (Norfolk/Lake Taylor), rookie Hayden Lee (Richmond/Douglas S. Freeman), and Mason all added a double each for the Marlins, who also recorded a triple from Bach, the 2015 ODAC Player of the Year. The three-bagger was part of a three-run eighth inning that helped VWC to expand its lead to 11-3.

Roanoke scored on the Marlins in three of the first four innings, but VWC responded in each of those innings by doubling the Maroons' output.  Virginia Wesleyan owned a 6-3 lead after six innings and started to create distance with a two-run seventh. Lindsay and Mason hit back-to-back doubles in the inning.

Virginia Wesleyan's offensive effort was complemented by a strong pitching display from a trio of Marlins, starting with junior Sean Greiser (Virginia Beach/Floyd E. Kellam), the 2015 ODAC Pitcher of the Year. He improved his record to 6-1, striking out 10 of the 28 batters he faced.  Greiser gave up four walks and five hits, before Riley Koonce (Virginia Beach/Ocean Lakes) and Austin Gammon (North Chesterfield/Lloyd C. Bird) entered.  They struck out three more and gave up just three hits.

Roanoke also used three pitchers, including starter Austin Gregory (Roanoke/Hidden Valley), who worked six innings.  Chad Hill (Roanoke/William Byrd) and Michael Mears followed.  The trio combined to strike out six and walk four. Clark Crutchfield (Charlottesville/Covenant) emerged as the only Maroon to record a pair of hits.

--AMDG--