Fresno State Athletics
Fresno State
Louisiana Tech*
Fresno State Drops 5-4 Decision To Louisiana Tech
4/14/2006 12:00:00 AM | Baseball
April 14, 2006
Ruston, La. - In a carbon copy of the previous night's game, Fresno State came in on the short end of a hard-fought extra innings battle with Louisiana Tech, falling 5-4 in ten innings on Sunday. Fresno State scored four runs early to best three Louisiana Tech runs in the first inning, but Louisiana Tech got one more to force the game into extra innings and beat a play at the plate in the tenth inning to get the win.
In what looked to be a slugfest early, Fresno State opened the game quickly with two runs in the first inning. Loren Storey picked up the first of two hits on the day with a single right back up the middle, and scored when Louisiana Tech outfielder Adam Cobb bobbled a single from Beau Mills, as the speedy Storey was waved in with the error. Christian Vitters drew a walk to extend the inning, and the Bulldogs put in a second run as Mills came around from second as Nick Moresi dropped in an RBI single to right field to give the Bulldogs an early lead.
Louisiana Tech took back the lead with a big first inning. Adam Cobb led off the inning with a single into left field, and after the Bulldogs picked up the first out of the inning on a fielder's choice, Louisiana Tech evened the score on a single and a double combined with a wild pitch, putting a Louisiana Tech runner on third base with one out. Eddie Romero came closer to exiting the inning with a strikeout of Ryan Hamilton, but a single just past a diving Beau Mills brought in a third run to put Louisiana Tech in the lead.
Answering back in the next inning, freshman catcher Danny Grubb led off the inning with a double down the left field line, and moved to third after a sacrifice bunt from Erik Wetzel, the Bulldogs took back the lead as Steve Susdorf pulled his second home run of the series and ninth of the season, heading just down the right field line and over the fence to take a 4-3 lead.
That marked the end of Louisiana Tech starter Jericho Jones' time on the mound, as Brandon Hudson took over, and a second part of the game began as Hudson remained in control and Romero settled down, as both pitchers began to put zeros up on the board.
Louisiana Tech finally tied the score in the fourth inning, taking advantage of two opening walks to push a run across despite a double-play from the Bulldogs to get two outs in the inning. A second wild pitch from Eddie Romero led to a second run, as Amos Ramon came home to tie the score at four.
Both teams survived all remaining scares through regulation, as the teams entered into the 10th inning. Fresno State made their case to get on the board in the 10th, as Kent Sakamoto hit a one-out double to left field, and new pitcher Amos Ramon intentionally walked Beau Mills to keep the double play alive. Christian Vitters went down swinging, however, and a groundout to shortstop by Nick Moresi keot the game tied.
The bottom half of the tenth opened with an out, as Brandon Miller snared a comebacker to get the first out of the inning, but Amos Ramon drew a walk to put the winning run on base. Ramon then reached second base after a balk call on Miller, but the Bulldogs drew closer to extending the game after Miller struck out Brian Rike for the second out of the inning. Louisiana Tech's Albie Goulder struck a single to dead center, however, and Ramon came around to score just beating a play at the plate on the throw from Moresi.
Fresno State will look to get a win tomorrow in the final game of the series, beginning at 1 p.m. Pacific. The Bulldogs with a win would regain control of the WAC's top spot, as the team currently sits a half-game back of Louisiana Tech following tonight's result.
