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BASEBALL NEVER TRAILS IN 5-4 WIN OVER NEVADA
4/29/2007
 SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Senior Mick Joyce pitched seven strong innings and Sacramento State never trailed in a 5-4 win over Nevada on Sunday at Hornet Field.
Joyce earned his third victory of the season after allowing just two earned runs and five hits in his seven innings of work. Relievers Cyrus Sarraf and Mitch Lively combined for the final two innings as Lively picked up his fifth save of the season.
Sacramento State (12-32 overall, 7-14 WAC), staked an early lead with a run in the first inning. A pair of walks and single by Blake Crosby loaded the bases with no outs for Gabe Jacobo. The sophomore, however, hit into a double play but allowed one run to score.
Nevada (25-20, 9-6) tied the game in the top of the second when a wild pitch allowed Konrad Schmidt to score. The Hornets answered back in the bottom of the inning with a two-out rally. Brett Tanigawa singled to center and moved to second on a wild pitch before scoring on a double from Gary Johnson.
The Wolf Pack pulled even, again, in the fourth with a single run. Two singles and a walk loaded the bases with nobody out. Joyce then got Matt Suleski to pop out to second base before Chris Siewert hit a sacrifice fly to center for the lone run of the inning. After another walk, Joyce ended the frame with a foul out to first base.
The Hornets took the lead for good with single runs in the fifth and sixth innings. After a walk, Crosby alertly took second on a wild pitch. That move allowed him to score on a double to left by David Flores. The sixth inning began with a bang as Montana Dye homered over the right center field fence for his fourth home run of the season and his second of the weekend.
Nevada scored one run in the eighth but Sacramento State was able to match that outcome in the bottom of the inning.
Sarraf stayed on to pitch the ninth and retired the first batter he faced. Jason Rodriguez then doubled down the left field line and the Hornets turned to Lively to close out the contest. Lively induced a ground out to second, which allowed Rodriguez to move to third. A bloop single to center by Schmidt plated the run and Terry Walsh singled to left to place runners on first and second. Lively, however, ended the game when Baker Krukow flew out to center field.
Joyce matched his longest outing of the season by throwing seven innings. The two runs scored against him were the fewest he has allowed this season since he held Loyola Marymount to one run in 5.2 innings on Feb. 3.
The Hornet offense was guided by Jacobo and Dye, who each had two hits. The pair were the most consistent members of the team during the week as Dye hit .455 and Jacobo hit .412 during the team’s four games.
Sacramento State will travel to Pacific for a non-league contest against the Tigers on Tuesday at 2 p.m. The team will then return home to host New Mexico State in a three-game series which starts on Thursday. The Aggies are currently a half-game ahead of the Hornets for the sixth and final berth into the WAC Tournament. First pitch on Thursday and Friday will come at 2 p.m. and Saturday’s game will start at 1 p.m.
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