Fresno State Athletics
2003 Season in Review
6/3/2002 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
Junior infielder Casey McGehee lined a game winning RBI single in the ninth inning to beat Hawai'i: 5-4. McGehee's game winner plated junior infielder Ryan Haag who tied the game earlier in the frame on a two-out RBI single. The victory keyed a season high nine-game winning streak that was highlighted by the 25th annual Pepsi/Johnny Quik Classic title.
The Bulldogs posted a 6-0 record for the tourney and were crowned champions for the second straight year and the 13th time overall. McGehee and junior infielder Chris Patrick earned all-tournament honors. McGehee capped a 9-for-25 (.360) performance with a game-winning RBI double with one out in the eleventh inning of the championship game against Gonzaga to lift the Bulldogs to a 4-3 win. Fresno State continued the streak by taking the first two games against Minnesota before having it snapped in the series finale with a 14-1 loss to the Golden Gophers. The Bulldogs ended the month of March on a four-game winning streak that included an 11-4 weekday win over USC and a three-game sweep of conference rival Louisiana Tech.
The winning streak extended to five as Fresno State opened April at San Jose State with a convincing 9-3 victory over the Spartans to improve to a season best 19-13. However, the month proved to be difficult as the squad posted a 5-9 mark for the month. Two of the wins came against top-five opponents with a 7-3 triumph over top-ranked Rice and an extra innings victory over No. 5 Long Beach State 5-3. In the series opener against the Owls, Fresno State sent 11 men to the plate and scored six times in the bottom of the eighth inning en route to a 7-3 win. The win snapped the Owls' 19-game winning streak in conference play and 19-game unbeaten streak on the road. The Bulldogs were one of two teams to beat Rice twice this season with a 2-1 win in the final series of the season in Houston. Senior outfielder Scott Beshears hit a game-winning two-run homer in the eleventh inning against LBSU to lift the Bulldogs to victory. The game-winning homer was one of two walk-off homers the team MVP hit this year.
A 7-7 record in the month of May gave the Bulldogs a 30-29 overall record, clinching their 27th consecutive winning season and 16th straight year with 30 or more wins. Fresno State won its only three-game road series of the year by taking two of three from Nevada. Sophomore infielder Kyle Atrat capped the home schedule with a game-winning two-run double with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning to give Fresno State a 6-5 win over USC to complete the two-game season sweep of the Trojans.
The Bulldogs logged a 14-16 record in WAC play to finish third behind conference champion Rice and Nevada. Five Bulldogs garnered All-WAC honors as Beshears and Patrick were named to the first team while Haag, McGehee and junior righty Cody Smith were voted onto the second team. McGehee finished the year ranked sixth in school history in hits (249), ninth in RBI (131) and notched his third straight season with 80 or more hits.
