Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Hawaii Hilo
No. 17 Baseball Falls In Extra Innings
4/22/2000 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 22, 2000
KONA, Hawaii - No. 17 Fresno State saw its four-game winning streak come to an end on Saturday afternoon with a 5-4 loss in 11 innings against Hawai'i-Hilo. The Bulldogs saw leads of 3-0 and 4-2 evaporate in the late innings and they lost for the first time this season when leading after six frames. Fresno State dropped to 32-12 overall and 14-7 in the WAC with the loss, while the Vulcans snapped their six-game losing streak and improved to 15-28 overall and 6-18 in conference games.
"We didn't play like we've been playing of late," Fresno State head coach Bob Bennett said. "We had the lead and lost it. We normally don't do that."
Fresno State scored a run in the first inning and a pair in the fourth to jump out to an early 3-0 lead. Hawai'i-Hilo lit the scoreboard for two runs in the sixth to chase Bulldog starting pitcher Beau Hintz (So., Stockton, Calif.) from the game. The 'Dogs extended the lead to 4-2 with a run in the seventh, but the Vulcans knotted the game at four with a pair of tallies in their half of the inning against Bulldog closer Hans Smith (Sr., Central Point, Ore.) to send the game to extra frames.
Mike Hobbs led off the 11th with a ground-rule double to left field and advanced to third on Dana McCracken's ground out to second base. Brian Rooke followed with a slow roller to first baseman Brandon Gemoll (So., San Jose, Calif.), but Hobbs slid under catcher Ben Fritz' (Fr., San Jose, Calif.) tag to give the Vulcans the come-from-behind victory.
Hintz, who picked up a no-decision, allowed two runs on five hits and struck out four in his five-plus innings of work. Smith tossed the final 5.1 innings in relief of Hintz and picked up his first loss of the 2000 campaign. He allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and struck out four. His record dropped to 7-1 for the season.
Fresno State had 11 hits in the game, all singles. Anthony Acevedo (Sr., Bakersfield, Calif.) led the way by going 2-for-3 with a run scored and one RBI. Both Tom Creighton (So., Weldon, Calif.) and Gemoll extended their career-high hitting streaks to 15 and 14 games, respectively. Creighton also reached base by either hit, walk or hit by pitch in the 33rd consecutive contest. Mike Bowlin (Sr., San Jose, Calif.) and Simon Tafoya (Jr., Pittsburg, Calif.) each added a pair of hits for the Bulldogs.
"We didn't hit very well today," Bennett said. "We didn't catch and throw the ball very well either. We also made some base running mistakes that hurt us."
Fresno State returns to action on Tuesday, April 25, when it returns to the friendly confines of Pete Beiden Field to host San Francisco. It will be the beginning of an eight-game homestand. Right-hander Nick Moran (So., Elk Grove, Calif.) is scheduled to make the start for the Bulldogs. Moran will bring a 1-1 record and 3.90 ERA into the mid-week tilt. First pitch is scheduled for 7 p.m. and the game can be heard on KFSR (90.1 FM).
