March 30, 2014
Pullman, Wash. --- San Jose State gave up 20 hits to match a season-high and struggled to make plays on defense in a 16-3 loss to Washington State on Sunday at Bailey-Brayton Field.
The Spartans (8-21) had a 3-0 lead after two innings, but let the Cougars (12-13) score 16 unanswered in the remainder of the game. The loss gave Washington State a 3-1 series victory and leaves San Jose State with a 2-5 mark at the conclusion of its seven-game road trip.
"There were a lot of lost opportunities in this series for us," said SJSU head coach Dave Nakama. "There were some plays out there that I thought were errors. If we can make the plays on defense then we get out of the inning without the extra runs."
SJSU was not officially ruled for any errors in the game but the defense had a tough time getting the outs it needed. The Cougars went 8-for-15 (.533) and scored six runs in the contest with two outs.
The Spartans were in the driver's seat early on as Kyle Gallegos broke a scoreless tie in the second with a 2-run, bases-loaded single. Matt Lopez added another run for the Spartans with an RBI-single through the left side.
The Washington State scored a combined eight runs in the fifth and sixth innings, and added six more in the eighth. Kalei Contrades (2-2) started and took the loss for San Jose State, giving up four runs on eight hits in 4 1/3 innings. Six pitchers came out of the Spartans pen to allow 12 runs on as many hits.
Seven Cougars finished the game with multiple hits, including Ian Sagdal who went 4-for-5 with four RBI. Ben Roberts also tallied four RBI aided by his three-run shot in the sixth inning.
Alec de Watteville and Andre Mercurio each had five hits in the series to lead San Jose State. The Cougars outhit the Spartans 50-36 in the four-game set. There were nine errors charged to Washington State and two called on San Jose State.
Sunday also closed the book on the month of March where the Spartans went 6-13 with a .259 team batting average and carried a 6.22 ERA. De Watteville and Lopez let the SJSU hitters with at .339 and .333 respectively for the month.
SJSU returns home next week (4/4-6) for a three-game Mountain West series with the Nevada Wolfpack. It will be the second meeting of the year between the two teams. Nevada holds a 2-1 season-series lead.