The Hornets scored 15 runs on 19 hits to defeat Nevada at the WAC Tournament.
MESA, Ariz. – The No. 2 seed Sacramento State baseball team scored at least one run in six different innings and run-ruled No. 3 seed Nevada, 15-5, on Thursday afternoon at Hohokam Park in the Hornets’ first game of the Western Athletic Conference Tournament.
The game was ended in the eighth inning with one out after the Hornets took a 10-run lead with five runs in the frame. According to WAC rules, a game is ended if a team leads by 10 or more runs after the seventh inning. Sacramento State was down 3-2 heading into the bottom of the fourth but scored once in that inning followed by one in the fifth, three in the sixth, three in the seventh and five in the eighth.
Sacramento State hit for the cycle in the sixth inning. Sophomore Will Soto led off with a double and, two at-bats later, sophomore Justin Higley lined a home run that skipped off the top of the wall in right center. After a ground out, WAC Player of the Year, junior Andrew Ayers, tripled to left center and senior Trevor Paine followed with a single.
The Hornets will now meet the winner of tonight’s Fresno State and New Mexico State game at 7 p.m. on Friday. The victor on Friday earns a spot in the WAC Tournament championship game.
Nevada (32-24), which defeated Louisiana Tech on Wednesday night earn the right to play the Hornets, scored five runs on 10 hits with three errors. Sacramento State (30-26) now has 30 wins in a season for the first time since 2003 after tallying 15 runs on 19 hits, which matched a season high. The Hornets had a bye through the first round after being a top-2 seed.
The victory is the Hornets’ second all-time in the WAC Tournament (2-6). Sacramento State’s last appearance in the WAC Tournament was in 2008, when the Hornets were eliminated by Nevada, 15-5, four years ago to the day (May 24, 2008 in Ruston, La.)
Higley went 2-for-5 with three RBIs, including his two-run home run to right. Soto had a team-high three hits while sixth others matched Higley with two hits. Freshman Rhys Hoskins tied Higley with a team-high three RBIs, including a two-run double in the first inning.
Reliever Tyler Hoelzen earned the win after allowing no runs on two hits in 2.1 innings. Starting pitcher Dallas Chadwick gave up five runs on eight hits in 5.2 innings. Nevada used five pitches and each allowed at least one run.
Sacramento State 15, Nevada 5 (May 24, 2012 at Mesa, Ariz.)
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Nevada.............. 000 320 00 - 5 10 3 (32-24)
Sacramento State.... 200 113 35 - 15 19 1 (30-26)
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Pitchers: Nevada - Jameson, Tom; Blueberg, Colby(6); Prihar, Sean(6); Van Gaver, Elliot(7);
Suarez, Bryan(7) and Carlos Escobar Jr. Sacramento State - Chadwick, Dallas; Hoelzen, Tyler(6) and Chung, Derrick; Hottman, Brent.
Win-Hoelzen, Tyler(3-1) Loss-Blueberg, Colby(1-3) T-3:02 A-0
HR SAC - Higley, Justin (4).
Weather: 94F, wind out to LF 9-14 MPH
Game: 12WAC4
