Salisbury's baseball team might not have been accustomed to playing in tight games this season. But the Falcons are no strangers to playing close district playoff games against Schuylkill County's Pine Grove.

The Cardinals beat the Falcons in last year's District 11 Class AA title game, 7-6. This year the teams met again in the district title game. Once again, Pine Grove had Salisbury on the ropes late in the game. But this time, the Falcons battled back.

The Cardinals, who scored three runs in the sixth inning, took a 5-2 lead into the seventh and were three outs from again ending the Salisbury's hopes for a district title.

The Falcons responded when it mattered most. Salisbury rallied to score four runs in the bottom of the seventh. Ryan Utsch's walk-off RBI-single sent the Falcons into the District 11 AA title game for the third straight season with the 6-5 victory.

"That was the only game this year where we've done something like that," said head coach Mike Pochron. "We've been fortunate that we haven't been in situations like that. It was like we need a big inning. Are we going to get one? And we did."

Pochron pinch-hit for Utsch earlier in the game, but decided to bat Utsch in the sixth and seventh innings. Little did he know the type of impact that choice would have on the outcome.

With the mindset of just getting getting on base in the seventh with the scored tied 5-5, Utsch did more than that. He came through with the biggest hit of his career. Facing a full count with runners on second and third, Utsch drove a single to right field that brought home Mason Kresely and propelled the Falcons into Wednesday's title game against Notre Dame (Green Pond).

"My mindset was to just get on base no matter what and help my team out," said Utsch.

"I flip-flopped back and forth with who seems hot," said Pochron. "Dee has been hot for a good part of the year, so I go on a feeling. I gave Anthony [Dee] two at-bats, and it just didn't look like maybe it was his day. So I gave Ryan [Utsch] two shots, and it paid off."

Two Cardinal errors and a walk by Justin Aungst loaded the bases to start the seventh. Kresley then connected on a single to left field that scored Ampietro.

Chase Rogers' sacrifice fly scored Aungst to cut the deficit to one. Zach Seitz, who went 3-for-3, blasted a double to deep right field that scored Tyler Cooperman and tied it up.

"What he [coach Pochron] said from day one when he started was keep hitting the ball, and play how we know how to," said Utsch. "We just did that in the bottom of the seventh. We got one guy after the other, and we just hit."

Ampietro and Aungst recorded RBI hits in the first inning to put the Falcons up 2-0 early. The bats, however, were relatively quiet up until the four-run seventh. The Falcons managed just four hits in innings two through six.

"We started hitting the ball in the air, and tonight was not the time to hit the ball in the air, not with this wind," said Pochron.

"We hit some good shots, but tonight you weren't getting anything with that. With the help of some walks and a few plays, we got the ball down on the ground a little bit and we were able to score some runs."

Ampietro collected five strikeouts, and allowed just two runs on three hits through five innings. Combined with two Falcons errors in the sixth, however, the Cardinals brought three more across home plate.

The Falcons will look to make it two district titles in the past three seasons on Wednesday when they face Notre Dame-Green Pond at Coca-Cola Park. Game time is set for 4:30 p.m.