A quick start and clutch pitching - and fielding - by the bullpen fueled the Muhlenberg baseball team to a win for the second straight day, 11-7 in a non-conference game against Albright.

The Mules (6-13), who set a school record with 15 runs in one inning against Dickinson the day before, again showed their ability to score in bunches, plating nine runs in the first inning.

Seven consecutive batters recorded hits in the big frame. After three straight RBI singles by sophomore Mike Carcich, senior Thomas Pranzo, and freshman Danny Cutrupi, sophomore Thomas Rorick belted his second home run of the season, a three-run shot to make it 6-0.

Muhlenberg started up against after the homer with three singles in a row, with freshman Matthew Lehberger knocking in a run. A sacrifice fly by sophomore Sean Habeeb - who led off the inning with a double - and another RBI hit off the bat of Carcich capped the Mules' biggest first inning since they put up nine in the opening frame against Gettysburg in 2003.

The Mules didn't score many more runs, and as it turned out, they didn't need any more.

Junior Esteban Salazar made his first career start and went one time through the lineup without giving up an earned run. Freshman Ian Abramson came on in the second and struck out an Albright hitter who came in the a .507 batting average to end in the inning.

In the third, Abramson gave up a leadoff single but caught a line drive up the middle to start a double play on the next batter. He finished out the third to earn his first career win.

Junior Frank Kern pitched 2.1 innings of scoreless relief from the fourth through the sixth, getting two ground-ball double plays, and freshman Zack Silberstein worked a scoreless seventh.

In the eighth, junior Ryan Schultz hit two of the first three batters he faced, and a double steal put both runners in scoring position. Schultz (pictured above) fell behind Albright's cleanup hitter 3-0 but came back to strike him out, then retired the next hitter on a ground ball to get out of the jam and keep the lead at four.

Facing junior Charlie Siper, the Lions (11-11-1) put runners on second and third again in the ninth. With Albright's leadoff hitter up and the tying run on deck, the lead runner tried to score on a pitch that went to the backstop, but Cutrupi chased it down and threw to Siper, who slapped on the tag to end the game.

In all, Muhlenberg used six relievers, and five of them combined to throw 6.2 scoreless innings.

Carcich went 3-for-5 and drove in three runs, while Habeeb had a perfect day at the plate with three hits, a sacrifice, and a sacrifice fly.

Sophomore Marius Haughton reached base three times, stole two bases, and scored three run.