BASEBALL BLASTS FOUR HOMERS, TODD PITCHES EIGHT STRONG IN 12-2 WIN OVER NO. 27 FRESNO STATE

5/21/2010

FRESNO, Calif. - The Sacramento State baseball team hit four home runs, including two from junior Trevor Paine, while junior Logan Todd provided eight innings of two-run ball on the mound in a 12-2 victory over No. 27 Fresno State on Friday night.

With the victory, the Hornets improve to 18-31-1, 7-14 inside of the Western Athletic Conference, while the Bulldogs fall to 32-23, 13-8 in the WAC.

Sacramento State opened the scoring in the top of the second, as after Paine led off the inning with a single, senior Justin Mezzaneras hit a home run over the left field wall to give the Hornets a 2-0 lead. The margin grew to 3-0 later in the inning, as senior Dan McCarthy scored on a RBI single off the bat of senior Josh Powers. Fresno State cut the lead to 3-1 in the bottom of the inning, as Jordan Ribera hit his 25th home run of the season over the center field wall to pull the Bulldogs to within two.

The Hornets increased the lead to 4-1 in the top of the fourth on a RBI single by junior Kirby Young, before opening the flood gates in the top of the fifth with five runs. Paine knocked in the first three runs of the inning with a home run to right center, giving the Hornets a 7-1 lead. Later in the inning, with a man on, Lamb smoked a home run of his own over the left field wall, extending the lead to 9-1.

Two more runs came across the board in the top of the eighth, as after McCarthy and freshman Andrew Ayers produced back-to-back singles, Young drove both runners home with a two-run double to left-center, giving Sacramento State an 11-1 lead. The Bulldogs scored one run in the bottom of the ninth on a RBI double by Garrett Weber to avoid being run ruled, making the score 11-2. The final blow for the Hornets came in the top of the ninth, as Paine led off with a home run, his second of the game and 10th of the season, to account for the final score of 12-2.

Todd (2-5) picked up the win, allowing just two runs on eight hits in eight innings of work, striking out four batters. Senior Tommy Elrod pitched a 1-2-3 ninth for the Hornets, striking out one to close down the Bulldogs. Josh Poytress (6-5) picked up the loss for Fresno State, allowing nine runs, eight of which were earned, on 10 hits in 4.1 innings pitched.

Lamb, Paine, and Young led the Hornets with three hits apiece, and combined to drive in nine of the team's 12 runs. All nine Hornets recorded at least one hit in the ballgame.

The two teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday, May 22 beginning at 2:05 p.m. from Beiden Field on the campus of Fresno State.