Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Oregon St
Hannah Pitches Fresno State Past Oregon State
2/19/2000 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Feb. 19, 2000
FRESNO, Calif. - Fresno State rode the right arm of Shawn Hannah (Sr., Clovis, Calif.) to a 9-4 victory against Oregon State Saturday afternoon at Pete Beiden Field. The Bulldogs improved to 7-2 with the victory and extended their winning streak to seven games. Oregon State dropped to 1-4 for the season.
Hannah shut out the Beavers on three hits, walked three and struck out seven in his seven innings of work. He improved to 2-1 for the season. Over his past three starts, Hannah has posted a 2-0 record with a 1.83 ERA and struck out 14 hitters in 19.2 innings pitched. Nick Moran (So., Elk Grove, Calif.) relieved Hannah in the eighth and allowed four runs on three hits and struck out three in 1.2 innings pitched. Mike Hernandez (Fr., Fresno, Calif.) finished the game for the Bulldogs, allowing a RBI single and striking out one.
"I thought we played very well today," Fresno State head coach Bob Bennett said. "I thought Hannah pitched really well. He sucked it up and had good stuff. Whenever he faltered and walked guys, he rebounded and got the job done."
Fresno State jumped on Oregon State starter Scott Nicholson for four runs in the second inning and added five tallies in the seventh off a pair of Beaver relievers to put the game out of reach.
The Bulldog offense collected nine hits and drew seven walks off a quartet of Oregon State pitchers. Anthony Acevedo (Sr., Bakersfield, Calif.) led the way, going 3-for-4 with a run scored. Mike Bowlin (Sr., San Jose, Calif.) returned to the starting lineup and went 2-for-2 with a pair of doubles and tied his career high with four RBIs. Bowlin, who had been nursing a strained groin muscle, also walked two times and scored two runs. It was his first starting assignment since Feb. 6. Tom Creighton (So., Weldon, Calif.) and Josh Labandeira (Jr., Porterville, Calif.) each extended their hitting streaks to seven games and Simon Tafoya (Jr., Pittsburg, Calif.) added his first home run since May 15, 1998, a two-run shot to left field in the bottom of the seventh.
"Creighton had a key hit for us and Sim?n's home run opened up the game a bit," Bennett said. "Acevedo chipped in with three hits. We are playing as a team right now. We are picking each other up when we need to and that is what it's all about."
Nicholson allowed four runs on three hits and walked two in two-plus innings. He dropped to 0-2 for the season. The Oregon State bullpen allowed five runs on six hits and walked five in its six innings of work.
The three-game series concludes Sunday afternoon and Fresno State will try for its third consecutive series sweep. Left-hander Beau Hintz (So., Stockton, Calif.) is scheduled to make his second start of the season for the Bulldogs. Hintz (1-0) has not started a game since Feb. 6 and two of his starts have been wiped out by rain this season. Oregon State will counter right-hander with Mark Newell (1-0). First pitch is slated for 1 p.m. at Pete Beiden Field.
