ERIE, Pa. - The Mercyhurst University baseball team kept its season alive with a 6-4 victory in eleven innings over fifth-seeded West Chester in day three of the 2015 NCAA Division II Atlantic Regional Baseball Championship at Jerry Uht Park. The Lakers improved to 37-9 on the season while the Golden Rams finished their campaign with a 27-15 record.

Mercyhurst scored two runs in the top of the eleventh inning off of West Chester reliever Eric Close to take a 6-4 lead. Redshirt senior Ryan Siegel led off the inning with an infield single - his third hit of the game - and then advanced to second on a sacrifice bunt from junior Brendan Cox. After Close intentionally walked senior Giancarlo Saia, junior Hank Morrison reached on an infield hit to load the bases with one out. Junior Austin Alonge, who entered 0-for-5 in the contest, hit a deep fly ball down the left field line that just landed in fair territory for the Lakers' first run of the inning. Senior Jake Marinelli was then plunked with a 2-1 offering from Close to drive in the other run of the frame.

Junior Matthew Jaskolka, who came on in relief in the bottom of the tenth inning, left West Chester runners stranded at second and third in the bottom of the eleventh to earn his sixth win of the season.

The Golden Rams got to Mercyhurst starter, junior Cam Knott, in the bottom of the first. Knott walked the lead-off hitter, Joey Coyle for his only free pass in five innings of work. Coyle would come around to score on a two-out single by Justin Roman.

Mercyhurst got on the board against West Chester starter Alec Schwartz in the top of the fourth when Marinelli doubled home Siegel. The two-out hit evened things at 1-1.

The score remained tied until the seventh when each team scored three times. Freshman designated hitter Daniel Elliott homered to right for the Lakers, just tucking inside the foul pole. Two more runs crossed the plate on another two-out blow, this one from Cox that scored senior Angel Martinez and Siegel.

But the Golden Rams bounced right back in the home seventh with five hits, including a three-run, game-tying blast from Dylan Tice off of Laker reliever Jake Hall. West Chester had a chance for more, but left the bases loaded.

Both bullpens did their jobs - although not without some anxious moments – until the eleventh. Mercyhurst left two runners on in each of the 8th, 9th, and 10th innings while the Golden Rams left a pair aboard in the last of the 10th.

Knott went five innings, allowed a run, four hits, and struck out six. Hall, who recorded his eighth save of the season against West Virginia State Thursday, gave up Tice's homer in the seventh. He gave up four hits of his own in 1.2 innings. Junior Ben Nolan worked 2.2 scoreless frames, gave up two hits and fanned a pair. Jaskolka allowed two hits and struck out three in 1.2 innings of work.

The Lakers advance to play unbeaten Winston-Salem State on Saturday evening for an opportunity to play for the Atlantic Regional Championship on Sunday afternoon.