MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Faulkner exploded for 17 hits including eight of the extra-base variety and starting pitcher Jack Charleston was the beneficiary as the Eagles blasted William Carey 15-4 here Thursday night to remain unbeaten in the Southern States Athletic Conference Tournament at Paterson Field.

The No. 10 Eagles, in improving to 44-12, got home runs from Robert Llera, Cody Sos and Greg Howard in the rout. Dario Polanco added a pair of triples and Chris Madera had another, with Nick Cain and Llera each collecting doubles in the 17-hit attack - Faulkner's biggest offensive output of the season. For Charleston (8-1), it was another impressive performance, allowing only one run on four hits in 6 2/3 innings of quality work. The sophomore righthander struck out 10 and walked only one.

William Carey fell to 29-22 with the lopsided loss. The Crusaders play Bethel Friday morning at 10, with the winner of that game facing Faulkner at 4 p.m. If Faulkner wins, it earns a spot in Saturday's tournament championship game. A Faulkner loss would result in a rematch of the two teams Saturday morning, with the winner playing for the title later in the day. Auburn Montgomery, Mobile and Martin Methodist are battling it out in the opposite bracket for a chance at the championship. AUM and Mobile played late Thursday night, with both teams trying to stay unbeaten in their bracket.

"It was good to see us hit on all cylinders tonight," Faulkner head coach Patrick McCarthy said. "I thought Jack did a great job, and the bats finally got hot for us. We know there's still a long way to go in this tournament, and there's a lot of work left to be done."

The Crusaders struck in the top of the first, with Cody Christian and Tyler Richardson both getting singles off of Charleston. With two outs and runners at second and third Charleston threw a wild pitch, allowing Christian to score for a 1-0 lead.

Faulkner bounced right back, collecting four hits in its half of the opening inning to gain control. Madera who had singled, scored on Randy Joung's RBI base hit to tie the game at 1 apiece. One out later, with runners at first and second, Polanco tripled off the right-field wall that scored two to put the Eagles on top 3-1.

The advantage grew to 4-1 in the fifth when Madera singled with two outs and scored on Llera's double over Tyler Richardson's head in centerfield. Faulkner broke it open with seven runs in the sixth, then added four more in the seventh to knockout the Crusaders.

Polanco's second triple of the night played Dennis Morton for the first run of the inning, followed by a Cain single that made it 6-1. Sos then blasted a two-run homer for a 8-1 lead and the blowout was on. Later in the inning, which saw the Eagles pound out eight hits, Madera tripled in a run and Llera added a two-run homer of his own as Faulkner raced to an 11-1 advantage.

In the seventh, after a hit batsman, walk and single, Howard blasted a grand slam home run that hit the scoreboard over the left-field wall that pushed the Faulkner run total to 15. The Crusaders scored three runs in the final two innings off of Eagle relievers Patrick McGrady and Vinny Lujan. 

William Carey starter Brandt Bourgeois (5-8) lasted five innings, surrendering eight runs on 11 Faulkner hits. Four Crusader relievers - Chris Miller, Jake Chambliss, Michael Coelho and Kyle Deckwa - combined to allow the other seven run and six hits recorded by the Eagles. For the day, Llera ended up with three hits and four RBIs, while Madera, Joung, Polanco and Cain each had two hits. Howard's four RBIs were followed by the three from Polanco and the two from Sos. Kevin Torres, Junior Santos and Madera scored two runs apiece.