There was a point midway through the season that Salisbury could have said goodbye to any hopes of qualifying for any postseason tournament. The Falcons, losers of six of their first eight games, endured an ugly five-game losing skid that put their postseason lives in severe jeopardy.

Instead of hiding or making excuses for that rough stretch, the Falcons’ turning point came in late April. Salisbury went on a season-defining eight-game winning streak that helped qualify the Falcons for their sixth straight district playoff appearance.

As the No. 4 seed in Class AA, Salisbury (11-9) hosts No. 5 Minersville (14-6) on Wednesday. First pitch is schedule for 4:30 p.m. at Salisbury High School.

“We improved, certainly,” head coach Mike Pochron said. “At one point we were 2-6, and then we went on an eight-game winning streak. That’s what got us going. The bats came alive somewhat. It’s not where we want to be totally, but we did improve.

“We were worried that we weren’t even going to make the district playoffs. It took us a good rally. Getting us those eight straight wins got us into the playoffs.”

The biggest change has come in the batters box. Early on, just generating a steady stretch of consistent hitting was a struggle. Through those first eight games, Salisbury was held to two or less runs on five occasions. The most runs they scored in that same span was six, in a loss against Catasauqua in the second game of the season.

But then there was a spark that turned into an offensive explosion. In that eight-game winning streak, the Falcons averaged nearly eight runs per game and scored double-digit runs twice.

Add that offense in with a dominant pitching effort, led by senior ace Chad Cooperman, and crisp, clean defense, and the Falcons have found themselves playing baseball in late May once again.

“When we win,” said Pochron, “we get strong pitching and play very good defense. That’s what has gotten us to where we are right now.”

The Falcons’ last game, a 6-2 win over Dieruff, came eight days ago. Their run at qualifying for one of the final six Colonial League tournament spots came up short after dropping their final three league games, including one against Palmerton in a win-and-advance situation.

That wait, however, didn’t go wasted. The Falcons got to work on a number of areas with a scrimmage against Easton last week. They’re hoping that has helped prepare them for Minersville and ace Dylan Stephen (7-1, 1.88 ERA).

“We probably know which pitcher we’re going to see,” Pochron said. “They have some good hitters. They have a lot of speed at the top of their lineup that really makes them go.”

Salisbury will counter with Cooperman, who also owns seven wins on the mound with a 1.31 ERA.

The winner advances to Monday’s semifinal game against top seed North Schuylkill.