With their compacted schedule getting close to taking the final turn, Catasauqua's baseball team faced a busy week with possible long-range consequences and results.

The Roughies began the week with a 5-4 win over Salisbury Monday and then faced the task of meeting Bangor (Tuesday weather permitting), Palisades (Wednesday), Pius X (Thursday) and Palmerton (Saturday) as they began a span of four games in six days.

In the win over Salisbury, Tyler Correll roped a double in the top of the seventh that gave them a 5-3 advantage.

Dakota Schiffer struck out the final batter with the tying run on third to end the game. The Roughies netted the win off Salisbury senior Justin Aungst, considered by many to be the best hurler in the league.

With the win, the Roughies raised their record to 4-2 and temporarily kept them on top of the Colonial League North Division.

"This was one of the biggest wins we had in a while," said Roughies' senior Zack Bradley, who went 1-for-3 and had a sacrifice bunt to help put runners in scoring position for the win.

"It was a great team win in which we all hit well. We also beat one of the best pitchers around."

His father, head coach Steve Bradley, realized the importance of the victory as well as the remaining games.

"This is really a big week for us," said the elder Bradley. "We knew Salisbury would be a tough game for us and especially facing Aungst. We then had games on the road against Bangor and Palisades before we faced Pius X, which always had a good program.

"If we can get through this week with more wins than losses, it will put us in a good position for the rest of the season."

Bradley also was hoping for some consistency this week as his club was shutout consecutively against Notre Dame of Green Pond (5-0) and Southern Lehigh (7-0) before they recorded their own whitewash, a 10-0 win over Notre Dame of East Stroudsburg last week.

"Against Notre Dame, it really was anyone's ballgame in the sixth inning," said Bradley. "We also were hitting the ball right at people and their shots seemed to find a hole. We had one routine ground ball hit a stone and that helped load the bases.

"We just didn't play to our potential against Southern Lehigh. We played badly. But we managed to get some confidence back against Notre Dame (East Stroudsburg)."

With a busy schedule last week, Bradley had the opportunity to work both junior Jake Kober and sophomore Nate Pontician into the pitching rotation. The duo combined for the 10-0 shutout in which they didn't allow a hit in the five-inning game.

"Jake (Kober) settled down after first inning and really threw the ball well," said Bradley. "Nate (Pontician) came in and closed the game for us. He (Pontician) also threw well and he took a big step in staying with us."

The skipper also praised Kober's efforts in the outfield where he, Alex Torres and Mike Shutta have all covered a lot of ground. He also lauded the efforts of Schiffer and Brandon Purrone.

"I would say they could be the best defensive outfield in the league," said Bradley. "They are also hitting the ball for us.

"Schiffer continues to be a stopper for us, and Purrone had really hit the ball hard. He (Purrone) has been hitting some shots right at people, but those will turn into hits if he keeps going like he is."

A triumphant week can be a springboard toward the league and district playoffs.

"This team does have confidence and some big wins will help us," added Bradley. "We just have to stay focused in the field and be consistent. We just have to keep working."