NUTTER FORT, West Virginia- Following a few weeks road stretch, the Salem Tigers baseball team returned home for action. Salem looked to keep the momentum rolling against Fairmont State and the Tigers did just that. The Tigers were able win all 3 of the first games, but the Falcons would come back to avoid the sweep in game 4.

Salem 4, Fairmont State 3
In game 1, Sam Schmitt started on the mound, while looking to continue his impressive season. Reese Rinna would get Salem on the board first in the top of the 3^rd with a triple to right field. Aidan McMurdo would score on the play. A few plays later, Luis Angarita would extend the Tiger lead with a 2 rbi double. Ryder Costa and Aaron Forbes scored. Fairmont State would not go down quietly after scoring a run in the top of the 4^th after a double and error by Salem. After 4 innings, Salem now was up 3-1. The Falcons would come back to tie things up in the 7^th inning after multiple singles led to 2 runs. Fairmont would do enough to send the game to extras but were unable to do anything in the top of the 8^th. In the bottom of the 8^th, Hunter Rose would come up huge with a walk off rbi single to knock in Luis Angarita. Salem defeated Fairmont State 4-3 in game 1. Richie Preston was credited with his first win on the season.

Salem 10, Fairmont State 9
During game 2, Jackson Thoma led the Tigers on the mound. However, the Fairmont bats would get off to a good start scoring 3 runs in the opening inning after a couple singles. Fairmont would hold the 3-0 lead for a major part of the game, as the Salem offense struggled to get things going. Fortunately, in the top of the 5^th the game would turnaround. Jose Lojo hit a rbi single, followed by a McMurdo double. Jacob Hurley would go onto knock in McMurdo for the Tigers 3^rd run. After 5 innings, the game was now knotted up at 3. In the 6^th inning, Reese Rinna would hit a bomb to right field giving the Tigers the first lead of the game. Max Castro would follow that up with a 2 rbi single to center field. Fortunately, the Tigers weren't done in that inning as Lojo chipped another rbi double. The Tigers would go all the way back through the order and Rinna was back up. Rinna knocked in 2 more runs with a double to deep center field. After a wild 6^th inning, Salem now held a commanding 10-3 lead. However, the Falcons would not go down quietly. Fairmont would start the 7^thwith a single and double that led instantly to 4 more runs. Now, Salem just held a 10-7 lead. Fairmont would keep that momentum rolling with a huge homer to center field and cut the deficit. Fortunately, the Tigers were able to avoid the Falcons full comeback. Salem defeated Fairmont 10-9 in a wild game 2.

Salem 4, Fairmont State 0
In game 3, it would be Conor Thiele getting the start on the mound for Salem. Reese Rinna would pick up right where he left off in game 3 with an 1^st inning homer to right field. Aidan McMurdo would score on the play. Hunter Rose was able to keep it rolling in the bottom of the 2^nd after reaching base on a costly error by the Falcons. That error would lead to 2 more runs for Salem. Max Atkinson and Luis Angarita would both score from the error on the play. Thiele was able to keep the Fairmont bats in check, as the Tigers were able to hold the 4-0 lead comfortably. Salem was able to cruise to a 4-0 game 3 victory. Thiele was credited with his 5^th win on the season and remains undefeated.

Fairmont State 7, Salem 6
In the final game of the series, the Tigers were looking to pull off the weekend sweep. Eric Kovach started at pitcher for Salem. Fairmont would get off to a nice start with a 2-run homer in the top of the 1^st. Fortunately, Aaron Forbes would answer back with a grand slam to give Salem the 4-2 lead after the 1^st. Fairmont got a run in the 3^rd, but Salem answered back in the 4^th with one of their own. Heading into the 6^th, Salem was now up to 5-3. The Falcons would get a runoff of a sac fly in the top of the 6^th. Jacob Hurley knocked in Hunter Rose in the bottom of the 6^th. Salem was up 6-4 as we headed to the last inning. Unfortunately, Fairmont would have a huge 7^th inning with multiple doubles and singles to take the lead. Salem couldn't answer back in the bottom of the 7^th, as Fairmont would take the final game to avoid the sweep.

After a good weekend, the Tigers will look to keep this momentum rolling as they head back on the road. Salem will travel to California, Pennsylvania for a 4pm contest against Cal PA. Salem is now a record of 18-16 on the season.