BASEBALL FALLS IN SATURDAY DOUBLE DIP TO NEW MEXICO STATE

4/26/2008

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – The Sacramento State baseball team fell to the New Mexico State Aggies in a Western Athletic Conference doubleheader at Hornet Field on Saturday, April 26.

New Mexico State took game one, 5-3, before winning the afternoon cap 11-5. With the action on the day, the Hornets fall to 19-22, 10-8 in WAC play, while the Aggies improve to 21-25 and 8-11 in the WAC.

The Hornets started game one hot at the plate, scoring two runs in the bottom of the first. Junior Gabe Jacobo connected on a RBI single to light up the scoreboard, scoring senior Taylor Watanabe, who had himself singled to start the inning, making the score 1-0 in favor of the Hornets. Sophomore Tim Wheeler followed with a sacrifice fly, plating senior Ryan Blair, who had also singled in the inning, to give the Hornets the two-run advantage.

New Mexico State would get a run back in the top of the third on a RBI groundout by Bryan Marquez, scoring Franky Busani to make the score 2-1. The Hornets then followed the Aggie run with one of their own, as Wheeler connected on a RBI double in the bottom of the inning, bringing home senior David Flores, who had reached on a bunt single, to make the score 3-1.

The Aggies then crawled back to tie the score at 3-3, scoring a run in the sixth on a RBI double by Tyler Hardt, and an additional run in the seventh on a leadoff solo home run by Marcus Quade. The Hornets then let an opportunity to retake the lead in the bottom of the eighth, as Sacramento State had the bases loaded with one down, and failed to score the go-ahead run.

With the score still tied at 3-3 in the top of the ninth, New Mexico State was able to put together a pair of unearned runs on a Hornet throwing error to take home a 5-3 victory.

Neither starter factored in the decision, as Noah Garza (1-0) picked up the win in relief for the Aggies, allowing no runs in two innings of work, while Hornet senior Alvaro Orozco (4-1) took the hard-luck loss, allowing a lone unearned run in 1.1 innings pitched without surrendering a hit. Erik Nyquist picked up his fourth save of the season, and second of the series for the Aggies.

Game two started in a similar fashion to game one, with the Hornets taking a lead in the bottom of the first. With one out, Blair doubled down the left field line, and advanced to third on a single by Flores. Jacobo then knocked Blair in with a RBI single, giving the Hornets a 1-0 lead. This time New Mexico State would have the immediate answer, as in the top of the second, Jeffery Farnham supplied a RBI ground out, scoring Chris Auten, tying the score at 1-1.

With the score still tied in top of the fourth, Auten hit a one-out solo home run, which was followed later in the inning by back-to-back RBI doubles from Farnham and Busani, giving the Aggies a 4-1 advantage. The lead would grow to 7-1 in the sixth on a RBI double by Farnham and a two-run single by Busani, only two by followed by a run in the seventh and two more in the eighth, ballooning the lead to 10-1.

Sacramento State then came up with a rally in the bottom of the eighth, as Flores hit a leadoff double, which was followed by a RBI single from Jacobo, making the score 10-2. Senior Brian Boyd then pinch-hit and singled through the left side, setting the stage for Wheeler, who doubled home Jacobo to make it a 10-3 ballgame. With one out in the inning, junior Jeff Roth provided a pinch-hit RBI groundout, which was followed by a pinch-hit RBI double by senior Brett Tanigawa, pulling the Hornets to within five runs at 10-5. But the comeback would fall short, as New Mexico State added a run in the top of the ninth before holding the Hornets hitless in the bottom half of the frame, securing the Aggies an 11-5 win, and a series victory over Sacramento State.

Sebastien Vendette (1-4) picked up his first victory of the season for New Mexico State, allowing five runs on 14 hits in eight innings of work, striking out five batters without allowing a walk. Junior Brian Smith (2-1) was saddled with the loss for the Hornets, allowing four runs on six hits in five innings pitched.

The Hornets were led at the plate by Wheeler, who finished the day 3-for-8 with three RBI and a run scored, while Flores was 4-for-10 with two runs scored. Wheeler extended his career-best hitting streak to 20 games. Busani was 5-for-8 at the plate with three RBI and three runs scored to lead the Aggie bats, who have now slugged six home runs in the first three games of the series..

The two teams will finish up the four-game set with a 1 p.m. first pitch on Sunday, April 27 at Hornet Field.