The St. Thomas Aquinas College baseball team rapped out 15 hits - including a home run and four RBI by Nick Barbalato, to defeat Felician College in a non-conference game at Provident Bank Park. Mike Russo also hit his second homer in as many games for the Spartans who won their second straight to improve to 18-10 overall, while Felician fell to 10-22.

For the second straight game, St. Thomas Aquinas trailed after just two batters when the visitors used a leadoff walk and an RBI double off starter Kevin Rentas to grab a 1-0 edge. The Spartans would waste little time grabbing the lead for good, with help from Golden Falcons starter Dean Loucka yielded three walks, hit a batter, and threw two wild pitches - one allowing two runs to score - to give STAC four runs without the benefit of a hit.

When all was said and done, the Spartans had a 5-1 lead after an inning and Rentas settled in, allowing just two runs over his five frames. STAC tacked on a run in the fourth on a Barbalato RBI single and another in the fifth on Russo's homer to left to extend the margin. Barbalato's three-run blast deep into the porch area in right field sealed the deal on a comfortable STAC win.

Six different Spartans had two hits apiece in the balanced attack, while four pitchers tossed an inning each of scoreless relief to close the door.

The Spartans return to action on Friday, April 12, when they start a four-game weekend set against Mercy College at Provident Bank Park. The opener of the East Coast Conference series set gets underway at 4:00 pm, followed by a double-header at Mercy on Saturday, and the series finale back at Provident Bank Park on Sunday.