April 10, 2009
Box Score
SPOKANE, Wash. - The 21st-ranked University of San Diego baseball team bounced back with a 9-2 win over Gonzaga University to even the three-game series Friday evening in a West Coast Conference game at Washington Trust Field at Patterson Complex.
With the win, the Toreros improve to 23-12 overall, improve to 7-1 in WCC action and have forced a rubber game with the Zags tomorrow morning at 11 a.m. With the loss, the Zags fall to 22-10 overall and 5-3 in the WCC.
USD wasted no time in scoring as in the top of the first inning the Toreros scored one run on one hit. Sean Nicol led off the game with a double to left center field and moved to third on a Chris Engell sacrifice bunt. After James Meador drew a walk, Nicol would come across when Nick McCoy reached on a fielder's choice to give USD a 1-0 lead.
The Toreros then doubled their lead in the second inning as they scored one run on no hits. Back-to-back walks by Bryan Haar and Zach Walters led off the inning and they each moved up a base on an Austin Green sacrifice bunt. Bran Farris then drove in Haar with a sacrifice fly to center field to give USD a 2-0 lead.
GU took back one run in the bottom of the third inning on a Ryan Weigand RBI sacrifice fly, moving the score to 2-1.
The Toreros then took complete control of the game in the top of the fourth inning, scoring three runs on three hits. Tony Strazzara led off the inning with a double to left center field. Back-to-back walks by Haar and Walters then loaded the bases with no outs, and after a GU pitching change, Jon Hotta, who pinch hit for Green, drove in Strazzara with a RBI single to left field. Michael Lugo then pinch hit for Farris, and drove in the final two runs on a two-run double to center field, to give USD a 5-1 lead.
After the Zags took back a run in the bottom of the sixth inning, the Toreros would score two more runs in the top of the seventh inning on RBI singles by Haar and Hotta to give the Toreros a comfortable 7-2 advantage.
Back-to-back solo home runs by Jose Valerio and Walters in the top of the ninth inning capped the scoring for the day and put the game at its final of 9-2.
Offensively for the Toreros, Walters led the offense as he went 2-for-2 with one home run and one RBI and Hotta also had a big day as he went 2-for-3 with two RBI.
AJ Griffin (6-1) picked up the win on the mound for the Toreros, as he allowed two runs on six hits, while striking out seven in 8.0 innings of work. Ryan Carpenter (4-3) was saddled with the loss for the Zags as he allowed five runs on two hits in 3.0 innings of work.
The Toreros will return to action on Saturday as they play a rubber game with Gonzaga at 11 a.m.
