LYNDHURST, N.J. – Junior left-hander Jerry Vasto (Atlantic Highlands, N.J./Henry Hudson Regional) pitched a three-hit shutout to lead Felician College to a 2-0 victory over visiting Wilmington (Del.) University in Game 1 of the teams' Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference baseball doubleheader on Monday afternoon at the Lyndhurst Recreation Complex. Wilmington bounced back for a 1-0 Game 2 triumph.

Wilmington (24-5-1, 13-3) is ranked No. 20 in the most recent national NCAA Division II writers' poll. The Wildcats were ranked No.2 and Felician No. 8 in the East Region writers' poll that was released earlier Monday.

Vasto (4-2) did not allow a runner past first base in a dominant 97-pitch performance in Monday's opening game. He faced two batters over the minimum, striking out nine without walking or hitting a Wildcat. His first career nine-inning complete game ended Wilmington's 10-game winning streak.

The Golden Falcon offense came in the form of two RBI doubles by senior left fielder Joe Petosa (Spotswood, N.J./Spotswood). In the bottom of the first inning, Aaron Brill (West Palm Beach, Fla./John I. Leonard) drew a one-out walk and crossed around to third base on Scott De Jong's (North Haledon, N.J./Eastern Christian) ground-ball single. Petosa's two-bagger down the right-field foul line plated Brill and left runners on second and third, but Wildcat junior Ray Gambone (Bridgeport, Pa./Upper Merion) recorded a pair of strikeouts to escape further damage.

Petosa came to the plate to find Brill and De Jong at the corners again in the fifth. This time, he blasted a long drive into left-center field that took one hop off of the artificial surface and over the fence for an automatic double.

Wilmington brought the tying run to the plate in the ninth following a one-out bunt single by Frank Samluk (Middletown, Del./St. Elizabeth's). But on his very next pitch, Vasto induced Josh Swirchak (Manassas, Va./Osbourn Park), the CACC's leading hitter, to ground into a game-ending double play.

De Jong and Ralph Caccavale (Massapequa, N.Y./Plainedge) joined Petosa with two hits apiece in an eight-hit attack for the hosts. Josh Hampton (West Grove, Pa./Avon Grove) and Jon Castro (Wilmington, Del./St. Mark's) had the other two Wilmington safeties. Gambone (3-2) also went the distance, logging seven strikeouts and three walks in eight frames.

The Golden Falcons (18-14, 10-4) struck out 14 times in being blanked in Game 2. After starting at second base in the opener, Samluk (4-0) was the winning pitcher in the nightcap, allowing three hits and three walks and fanning 11 over seven stanzas. Felician left nine runners on base.

The game remained scoreless until the top of the seventh. Wilmington junior Brody Tennant (Ellicott City, Md./Mount Hebron) reached on an infield single with one-out and moved up on a groundout. Swirchak sent a single up the middle, and Tennant arrived at home plate nearly simultaneously with Gabriel Fellin's (Temple, Pa./Muhlenberg) throw from center field. Tennant scored standing up as the ball would not stay lodged in the catcher's mitt.

Felician put its leadoff man on base in both the eighth and ninth innings off of the Wildcat bullpen. Brill singled to start the eighth and was sacrificed to second base, but Nick Marics (Edison, N.J./Edison) responded by recording a groundout and strikeout. The Golden Falcons were also unable to advance pinch-hitter Rob Fisher (Matawan, N.J./St. John Vianney) after his hit off of Tyler Fries (Kennett Square, Pa./Unionville). Fries retired two other Felician pinch-hitters on strikes to end the game and earn his fourth save of the year.

Junior lefty Jack Fowler (Shrewsbury, N.J./Red Bank Regional) (5-2) took the hard-luck loss for the Golden Falcons after giving one run on five hits with two strikeouts and four walks in 6 2/3 innings. Swirchak went 2 for 4 for the Wildcats.