SLIPPERY ROCK - Vince Lloyd talks a big game. He pitched an even

bigger one.

Slippery Rock University's junior right-hander limited California (Pa.) to five hits in a route-going mound effort Saturday afternoon at Critchfield Park.

The result was a 12-2 victory in the second game of a doubleheader, enabling The Rock (11-7, 1-3) to avoid a four-game weekend sweep at the hands of the Vulcans (11-5, 3-1).

"Was that a must win? Absolutely," SRU coach Jeff Messer said. "We couldn't afford to fall four games behind at any point in the season, let alone now.

"The top teams in the West - Cal, Mercyhurst, IUP - the goal is to always split against those teams. I feel like we're only one game down

in the standings, really."

Lloyd improved his season record to 3-0. He entered the game with a 1.88 earned run average and made one mistake Saturday - a hanging slider that Shayne Busti drilled for a two-run homer.

"I hung that thing right over the middle of the plate," Lloyd said.

It cost him a shutout, but nothing else. Lloyd threw 109 pitches Saturday, 69 for strikes, struck out six and walked four.

When Busti's home run occurred, SRU - already had an 8-0 lead in the sixth inning.

"That run support felt really good," Lloyd said. "Last year, I didn't feel like we scored many runs when I pitched. When you get the offense, you really appreciate it." SRU banged out 14 hits in the nightcap. Adam Jury had a homer, double, single, six RBI and two runs scored. Hitting .439 on the year, he had a chance to hit for the cycle, but walked in the sixth inning, forcing home a run.

Derek Diruscia homered, doubled and contributed four RBI for The Rock.

Grobve City High School graduate Billy Herman, Matt Adams and Scott Bender all had two hits. Slippery Rock High graduate Billy Messer had two runs scored and a RBI.

SRU entered the game with a .370 team batting average. "We're going to win a lot of games," Lloyd said. "We didn't begin the season 18th-ranked in the country for nothing. There is a lot of talent here. “We just had a bad weekend. That happens in baseball. We'll be in this thing at the end."

Three of The Rock's top six pitchers aren't healthy right now. Rich Hocanson came up with a sore arm after pitching two innings Friday. Don Pugliese is out until midseason and Zach Jeney has a sore shoulder and has yet to pitch

this year.

Couple those injuries with Rock losses of 6-5, 4-0 and 8-3 in the first three games of the California series and the importance of Lloyd's mound effort comes to the forefront.

"We preach to our pitchers to pitch inside, but we don't need to tell Vince that because that's what he does all the time," Messer said. "Leave pitches over the plate to California and they'll hit it hard. That's a good hitting team."

Lloyd said his slider and fastball were working for him Saturday.

"From the first pitch, I just went hitter by hitter. I didn't want them to get anything going," he said.

The Vulcans didn't get two runners on base in an inning until the fifth.

California got home runs from Jon Selby and Stephen Herrman to win the first game, 8-3. The lead was 5-0 going into the bottom of the fifth inning before SRU got its bats going.

The Rock left the bases loaded in the fifth and seventh innings to curtail its late rally. Butler graduate Aaron Ordy played first base and for the

Vulcans during the series. The

sophomore delivered three hits, two sacrifice bunts, two RBI and a run scored. Ordy's two-out, two-run single in the seventh inning gave

California a come-from-behind 6-5 win in the first game of the series.

"We gave one away there," Messer said. "We should have

been 2-2 this weekend."

SRU hosts Gannon Friday in PSAC West action at Critchfield Park.