MENDONCA IMPROVES TO 2-0; BASEBALL DEFEATS SEATTLE U, 6-5, IN GAME TWO OF SERIES
2/25/2012
Sophomore Tanner Mendonca earned the win after allowing just one earned run.
SACRAMENTO, Calif. - Sophomore starting pitcher Tanner Mendonca allowed just one earned run over seven innings with three strikeouts and the Sacramento State baseball team clinched a three-game set against Seattle U by winning game two, 6-5, on Saturday at John Smith Field.
Game three of the series is tomorrow at 11:30 a.m.
The Hornets (3-3) scored six runs on eight hits with one error and the Redhawks (3-3) tallied five runs on eight hits with one error.
Junior Clay Cederquist went 3-for-4 with two RBIs to lead the Hornets at the dish while Mendonca was strong on the mound once again.
The sophomore from Visalia, Calif., threw a shutout last weekend in a 2-0 win over Cal State Northridge and was nearly as good on Saturday. Mendonca gave up six hits and two runs (one earned) in seven innings while recording three strikeouts and two walks.
Mendonca was in trouble early when, in the first inning, he loaded the bases on two singles and a walk. But with one out, he forced Bryndon Ecklund into a double play to end the inning. Mendonca did not face more than four batters in each of the next five innings but Seattle U was able to score two runs on two hits and an error in the seventh inning.
Through two games, Mendonca is 2-0 with a 0.56 ERA.
Seattle U starting pitcher Bryan Dalton was even better than Mendonca early, as the senior had a perfect game going until Cederquist singled in the fifth. He still had a shutout after the fifth but the Hornets pounced on the Vancouver, Wash., native in the sixth.
Scotty Burcham was hit by a pitch to start the sixth and the freshman moved to second on David Del Grande's sacrifice bunt. In the next at-bat, Andrew Ayers walked before Justin Higley singled to load the bases. Burcham scored after Derrick Chung's grounder to short was bobbled for an error and the bases were still loaded as Will Soto came up to bat. The sophomore third baseman smacked a ground rule double that rolled out of play down the left field line. The hit drove in Ayers and Higley while Chung came home on an RBI ground out by pinch hitter Greg Meyer. Cederquist hit another single to plate Soto and the Hornets never looked back.
Higley went 2-for-4 in the game while Soto, Meyer and Burcham also had hits. Seattle U third baseman Cullen Hendrickson went 3-for-4 with two RBIs and a run to pace the Redhawks.
Sacramento State 6, Seattle U 5 (Feb 25, 2012 at Sacramento, Calif.)
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Seattle U............ 000 000 203 - 5 8 1 (3-3)
Sacramento State.... 000 005 01X - 6 8 1 (3-3)
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Pitchers: Seattle U - Dalton, Bryan; Ewing, Evan(6); Stidham, Mason(8); Mack, Cory(8) and
Somers, Ryan. Sacramento State - Mendonca, Tanner; Leitao, Brennan(8); Davis, R.J.(9) and
Chung, Derrick.
Win-Mendonca, Tanner(2-0) Save-Davis, R.J.(2) Loss-Dalton, Bryan(0-1) T-2:16 A-293
Weather: 63 degrees, sunny, N 18 MPH
