Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Southern Illinois
Diamond Men Rout Southern Illinois
3/9/2000 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
March 9, 2000
FRESNO, Calif. - No. 19 Fresno State rode the right arm of starting pitcher Shawn Hannah (Sr., Clovis, Calif) to a 12-0 victory against Southern Illinois Thursday night in the Pepsi/Johnny Quik Classic at Pete Beiden Field. The Bulldogs improved to 17-5 with the victory, while the Salukis saw their record drop to 7-5.
Hannah was outstanding in his seventh start of the season, as he came within one out of pitching his first career shutout at Fresno State. He shut out the Salukis on three hits and struck out a career-best 13 hitters in his 8.2 innings of work. Hannah improved to 4-2 for the season. Mike Hernandez (Fr., Fresno, Calif.) retired the final batter of the game to complete the Bulldogs' second shutout of the season.
"Hannah pitched a great game tonight," Fresno State head coach Bob Bennett said. "He started out a little shaky in the first, but he had better control as he threw more pitches. He was dominating at times. He had a good fastball and a really sharp curveball that was tough for their hitters."
The Bulldog offense tagged a quartet of Southern Illinois pitchers for 17 hits, including five doubles and a pair of home runs. Tom Creighton (So., Weldon, Calif.) led the way, going 4-for-5 with three runs scored and two RBIs. Creighton also clubbed his first career home run, a two-run shot in the sixth inning. Tony Guzman (Jr., Clovis, Calif.) also was 4-for-5 for the Bulldogs. Guzman scored a pair of runs and clubbed his third double of the season. Nick Garcia (Jr., Lakewood, Calif.) was 3-for-4 with a double and two RBIs. Josh Labandeira (Jr., Porterville, Calif.) added a pair of hits, including his second homer of the year, and Simon Tafoya (Jr., Pittsburg, Calif.) was 2-for-5 with two runs scored, a pair of doubles and two RBIs.
"We finally came around and started to hit the way we are capable of," Bennett said. "That was good to see. Creighton had a good game. Tony has been hitting the ball really well the past four or five games and is beginning to come around."
Southern Illinois starter Victor Hockett picked up the loss. Hockett allowed three runs (two earned) on eight hits and walked two in five innings of work. His record dropped to 0-2 for the season.
In Thursday's other games, Indiana State (7-4-1) and Temple (0-7-2) played to a four-all tie, Bowling Green (1-5-1) edged UNC-Asheville (3-7), 6-5, and Creighton (14-1) won its 11th game in a row, defeating Gonzaga (7-7), 11-2.
Fresno State returns to action Friday night when it will take on Indiana State for the right to play in Saturday's championship game against Creighton. Right-hander J.J. Durmanich (Jr., Merced, Calif.) is scheduled to make his first collegiate start for the Bulldogs. Durmanich is 1-0 with a 4.40 ERA in 14.1 innings pitched this season. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. at Beiden Field (A complete list of Friday's games can be found below).
Friday's PJQ Schedule
10 a.m. Gonzaga (7-7) vs. Bowling Green (0-5-1)
1 p.m. Southern Illinois (7-5) vs. Temple (0-7-2)
4 p.m. Creighton (14-1) vs. UNC-Asheville (3-7)
7 p.m. Fresno State (17-5) vs. Indiana State (7-4-1)
