Feb. 15, 2014
San Jose, Calif. --- San Jose State's late-inning comeback fell short on Saturday at Municipal Stadium, resulting in a 5-3 loss which allowed San Diego State to even the Mountain West (MW) series 1-1.
The Spartans were just 3-for-12 with runners in scoring position and left 11 men on base in the game. One of the Spartans' 10 hits was Matt Carroll's (1) sixth-inning two-run blast over the left field wall, but it wasn't enough to overcome SJSU's five-run deficit.
The real trouble started for SJSU (1-1, 1-1 MW) in the fourth, when the Aztecs (1-1, 1-1 MW) scored four runs on five hits making it a 5-0 ballgame. San Jose State head coach Dave Nakama called to the bullpen after starter Jonathan Hernandez (0-1) allowed two one-out singles. Then, Aztecs third baseman Ty France took Spartan reliever Logan Handzlik's second pitch into the right-center gap for a 2-RBI double. France scored on the next pitch when Brad Haynal hit a line-drive off the wall in left-center. San Diego State picked up its fifth run on an dribbler down the third-base line with bases loaded.
"We had one bad inning," Nakama said. "I like that we gave ourselves chances late in the game to come back. It's also a plus to get Handzlik some experience. He's going to be good down the road."
San Jose State made things interesting in the bottom of the ninth. Brett Bautista's first hit as a Spartan was a pinch-hit double to lead off the frame. He scored two batters later on Sheldon Daquioag's single to left making it 5-3. Matt Carroll represented the winning run at the plate, but went down swinging on a 3-2 pitch to end the game.
"It was good for our club to battle back in those later innings," Nakama said. "We have to hit better with guys on base."
San Diego State starter Mike RoBards (1-0) earned the win. He pitched 6.2 innings with Carroll's homer as the only breakdown. Bubba Derby allowed a run in 2.1 innings of work out of the pen for the Aztecs.
Hernandez was charged three runs on five hits in 5.1 innings for SJSU. Along with Handzlik, D.J. Sharabi also made his major college debut, throwing a hitless eighth and ninth for the Spartans.
San Jose State will send lefty Jace Puckett to the mound for tomorrow's rubber match with the Aztecs. First pitch Sunday is scheduled for 1:00 p.m. and can be seen live on the MW Digital Network.