WASHINGTON, D.C. – Home plate saw a lot of action on Wednesday afternoon at the Nationals Youth Baseball Academy with 29 total runs getting registered, as the Marymount (Va.) University baseball team remained perfect in Capital Athletic Conference play with a 16-13 victory over Penn State University-Harrisburg. 

The Saints recorded a blistering 19 hits including three homeruns to hold off the Lions for their fifth-consecutive win, setting a new mark in program history with the streak. Six players had a multi-hit game paced by a career-high four-hit day by freshman Luke Tyree, who went 4-for-5 for a career- and game-high four RBI while launching his first collegiate homerun. 

The battle of the bats started up right away in the top of the first with PSU crossing two over home plate, holding the 2-0 lead up to the bottom of the second when the Saints started heating up. Sophomore Kaden Darrow got the runs started for Marymount, sending a single to left field to bring home sophomore Stephen Berczek. Tyree followed up on the next at-bat, dropping in a RBI single into right center to score freshman Nick Smutko. 

In the top of the third, the Lions grabbed the advantage again in the midst of a double play by the Saints to take a 3-2 lead. MU registered three double plays in the game, as it moved to No. 2 in the country in the category with 22 for the season. 

PSU didn't maintain the lead for too long with junior Ben Berczek hitting the sweet spot on the bat for a long shot over the left-field fence in the bottom half of the inning. Tyree followed it up in the next inning with a two-run shot over the center-field fence to push a 5-3 advantage. 

The fifth inning was a four-run inning for both squads. On the Saints' side of the inning, junior Roy Coates earned a walk on his at-bat before stealing second. Stephen Berczek stepped into the box next and showed no mercy on the scoreboard with a boom shot to left field, smacking the board for a two-RBI homer. Tyree kept the score rolling several batters later with a grounder through the right side to score Smutko, and junior Lorenzo Calderon used the next at-bat to single through the left side to bring home Darrow to give the Saints a 9-7 lead. 

Over the next two innings, the Lions tacked on two more runs to draw the score even at nine apiece, but in the bottom of the eighth, the Saints sealed the deal with seven more runs, the most in a single inning this season. 

Ben Berczek got the scoring started in the inning with a sacrifice fly to center field to bring home junior Brandon Savage. His brother, Stephen Berczek, singled up the middle two batters later to score junior Brandon Orbe. 

Coates, who was posted up on second base, was subbed out for pinch runner Karlis Graubics, who eventually moved to third on a Smutko walk to load the bases. Graubics didn't hesitate to take advantage on a poor pass to the mound by the catcher, as he quickly slid into home plate on the error. Darrow was up next, sending a RBI single to right field before Calderon followed suit to score Smutko. Savage, batting for his second time in the inning after hitting a lead-off double to start the bottom half, tallied a RBI on a single through the left side to score Darrow before a passed ball brought home Calderon to cap off the scoring for the Saints for the game. 

The Lions homered twice in the top of the ninth, but it wasn't enough to close the deficit, as the Saints took the 16-13 decision. 

The game was split up by five different Saint pitchers with freshman Conner Hall taking the win pitching two innings of relief in the seventh and eighth inning, striking out two. Juniors John LaMotta and Scott Robison, who are both ranked in the top five in the country in pitching appearances, also took the mound for relief in the game. LaMotta pitched three innings for four strikeouts, while Robison went one inning, fanning one batter. Sophomore Dylan Gerdts capped off the game with the final three outs, including a strikeout. 

Along with Tyree's four-hit game, Smutko went 3-for-3 at the plate while getting walked twice and touching home plate a game-high four times. Stephen Berczek was also one of many on the squad to work around the full diamond along with bringing home others, registering three runs and three RBI. 

The Saints will look to keep their unblemished league record and win streak alive on Friday, March 18 with a rescheduled game against No. 11 Frostburg State University at Bishop O'Connell High School. The single nine-inning battle is set to begin at 1 p.m.