Feb. 27, 2013
SANTA CLARA, Calif. - San Diego State got some timely hitting and quality pitching as it defeated Santa Clara, 7-4, in the second game their mid-week two-game set at Stephen Schott Stadium. With the victory the Aztecs ended a five-game skid and improved to 4-5 on the season
San Diego State got out of the gate quickly as it put a pair of runs on the board in the top of the first. Singles by Greg Allen and John Spirk were cashed in on Brad Haynal's two-run double to center field.
Junior right-hander Travis Pitcher made his first start on the mound for the Aztecs,, but ran into trouble in the second inning conceding a hit by pitch, RBI double and a walk before giving way to senior Ethan Miller.
SDSU extended its lead to 4-1 in its half of the fourth. Jake Romanski singled, Justin Gheorghe walked and Evan Potter was hit by pitch to load the bases and set the table for a two-run single to right by Allen.
The seventh inning was déjàvu was SDSU loaded the bases once again. This time Bollar was hit by pitch between walks to Steven Pallares and Potter.
Miller (2-0), meanwhile, was tossing 4.1 innings of shutout baseball allowing just three hits and a walk while striking out five. He gave to way Justin Hepner to start the bottom the seventh. Allen then laced his second two-RBI single of the afternoon to center field to give SDSU a 6-1 advantage before an infield hit by Tim Zier brought Potter home to give the visitors a 7-1 lead.
Hepner breezed through the bottom of the seventh, retiring the side in order but had trouble in his second inning of relief. In the bottom of the eighth, a pair of singles was followed by a home run off the bat of Matt Ozanne to left field to make it a 7-4 contest.
At that point the Aztecs brought closer Bubba Derby in form the bullpen. The freshman right-hander got the final two outs in the eighth and retired the side in order in the ninth to record his third save of the season. Three of Derby's five outs in the contest came via the strikeout.
The seven runs and 12 hits by SDSU were its highest totals since the season opener. Allen led the way with four singles, his second four-hit effort of the season, and he also drive in four runs. In addition, Jake Romanski tallied three hits and scored a run while Brad Haynal had a pair of hits including the two-run double.
San Diego State now returns home to host a three-game series against Seton Hall that gets underway with a contest on Friday, March 1, at 6:00 p.m. at Tony Gwynn Stadium. The first 500 fans at Friday night's opener will receive Tony Gwynn Jr. replica jersey shirts.