IRISH MAKE THE MOST OF THEIR HITS

YOUNGSTOWN OH— Salem swung the bats well Monday, but it wasn’t enough to take down Ursuline, falling 6-4 in a tough one where the Quakers actually out-hit the Irish 9-8.

Things started strong for Salem. Colin Riesen came up big in the first inning, clearing the bases with a double to give the Quakers an early 3-0 lead. But the offense cooled off just enough to leave the door open.

Ursuline made their move in the fifth, putting together a big inning. Luke Kollar slapped a two-run single to tie it up, AJ Snyder brought another run home with a sac fly, and Thomas Kosovan followed with a go-ahead RBI single. Just like that, the Irish flipped the script and never looked back.

Marshall Boron took the loss for Salem, going six innings and battling through eight hits and six runs (five earned), striking out three and walking two. Ursuline’s Dom Polkovitch started strong but wobbled early before settling down, and Rowan Urbach slammed the door out of the bullpen, striking out two in a clean inning to grab the win.

Troy Gibson had himself a day for Salem, picking up four hits, while Riesen drove in all four of the Quakers’ runs with a 2-for-4 showing. Bairon Exline also chipped in a pair of knocks.

Ursuline got a spark from the bottom of the order too, with Jake Bednar going 2-for-3. Kollar drove in two big runs to lead the Irish offense. Ursuline stayed clean defensively, not committing a single error.

Salem heads to Marlington next, looking to bounce back, while Ursuline gears up for a big showdown with rival Mooney on Tuesday.