Box Score
INSTITUTE, W. Va. (April 11, 2018) – A day after suffering its worst loss of the season, the Salem University Tigers baseball team showcased its resiliency, bouncing back to defeat the West Virginia State University Yellow Jackets 2-0 on the road.

Starting pitcher Logan Persse gave the Tigers eight solid shutout innings, spreading out nine hits and striking out four with only one walk. And Dillon Champagne, who was named the Eastern College Athletic Conference Co-Rookie of the Week, was phenomenal in the clutch—delivering the go ahead run on a solo shot over the center field fence and striking out two in the final inning to pick up the save.

"This was one of our biggest wins in this new era of Salem baseball against a state power," Head Coach Addison Rouse said. "I'm really proud of how we responded after Tuesday. It showed the character of our team to come out and win today."

In picking up his fifth victory of the season, Persse remains undefeated in eight appearances. He went relatively unchallenged through the first five innings; not allowing more than one baserunner at a time until the sixth inning when he surrendered back-to-back, two-out singles before inducing a groundout to end the inning.

It was Persse's fourth appearance this season without allowing an earned run, dropping his Earned Run Average down to 2.03, which is the best mark for any Salem pitcher with more than five innings pitched.

Offensively, Salem took advantage of some wild pitches in the first inning after Noah Suarez led the game off with a single to left field. Suarez moved to second on a wild pitch, then, after moving over on a groundout by Jimmy Cramer, scored on another wild pitch.

After both teams traded one scoreless inning after another, Champagne stepped to the plate to lead off the seventh inning, belting his sixth home run of the season.

Champagne then took the mound to start the bottom of the ninth inning, striking out the first batter he faced. A dynamic pitcher who is second on the team in strikeouts (35) and walks (20), Champagne then walked the next two hitters. He struck out the next batter swinging and induced a grounder to Dalton Robison at shortstop, who threw the ball to Remmington Boyce at second for the force out to end the game.

With the win, Salem improves to 16-11-1 on the season and now have a winning record at 10-9-1. West Virginia State falls to 17-13. The Tigers next scheduled game is a double header on the road against Alderson Broaddus on April 17 at 4:30 p.m.