#23 Mercyhurst 5, Slippery Rock 4 (9 inn.)
#23 Mercyhurst 4, Slippery Rock 1 

SLIPPERY ROCK, Pa. – With their backs against the wall, the nationally-ranked No. 23 Mercyhurst College Lakers swept a pair of must-win games at Slippery Rock on the final day of regular-season play to win the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference Western Division and earn the division's top-seed in the postseason tournament.

The Lakers (34-10, 16-7 PSAC West) won game one in dramatic fashion thanks to Shane Latshaw's solo homer in the top of the ninth frame for a 5-4 victory. In the nightcap, Mercyhurst scored all the runs it would need in the first inning before adding another run in the fourth for a 4-1 win over host Slippery Rock (27-17, 15-9 PSAC West).

Ranked second in the NCAA Atlantic Region, the Lakers head to the PSAC Tournament on May 11-14 at Point Stadium in Johnstown, Pa. as the No. 1 seed and the Western Division regular-season champion for the second time in three years since joining the league as a full-time member in 2008-09. The Lakers will face the No. 4 seed from the Eastern Division in the opening round of the conference tournament.

Meanwhile, Slippery Rock heads to the league tournament for the second consecutive season, this time as the No. 2 seed. California (Pa.) is the No. 3 seed and Indiana (Pa.) rounds out the division as the fourth seed.

In the Eastern Division, only Millersville and Shippensburg have clinched spots to date. Millersville is the No. 1 seed and the top-ranked team in the Atlantic Region. The final two spots in the East will be awarded once the teams have completed their make-up games on May 8 and 9.

In the opener, the Lakers trailed 2-0 until the fourth when Craig Denman and Shane Latshaw hit back-to-back doubles to cut the deficit in half. Then, in the fifth, Ethan Santora blasted a two-run homer to left. It was his 27th career home run, leaving him one shy of tying Pat Cutshall's (1994-97) all-time program mark of 28. Mercyhurst would add a run in the sixth for a 3-2 lead before The Rock tied it in the seventh on an RBI-double.

A trio of Mercyhurst pitchers played a part in the win, with Samuel O'Neill earning the win to move to 2-2 on the year.

In the nightcap, ace Zach Leitten went the distance for his first complete game of the season and moved to 4-1 in the process. A solo homer to Adam Jury in the fourth inning was the only blemish on Leitten's performance that included one earned run on four hits while striking out six batters.

On offense, the Lakers power surge continued. In the first, Jonathan Keppler walked to lead off, then scored on a wild pitch before Santora added an RBI-single and Latshaw contributed a sacrifice fly for a quick 3-0 lead. In the fourth, Latshaw roped a liner to left for the Lakers third home run on the day.

Notes:
PSAC Tournament Schedule – Day 1 (May 11)
at Point Stadium in Johnstown, Pa.

Day 1
Game 1 – E2 vs. 3W California (Pa.)
Game 2 – W1 Mercyhurst vs. E4
Game 3 – W2 Slippery Rock vs. E3
Game 4 – E1 Millersville vs. W4 Indiana (Pa.)

Junior Ethan Santora owns 27 home runs in his career, one shy of the all-time mark set by Pat Cutshall (28; 1994-97).

Senior Jonathan Keppler is two walks away from tying his single-season record for walks (47) set in 2009.

The 34 victories are the sixth-most in a season by a Laker squad.