SAN FRANCISCO — The San Francisco State baseball team resumed and won its season opener 7-5, and picked up a 9-1 victory on Tuesday, over Sonoma State.
- SF State and the Seawolves had the season opener last Tuesday, February 4 halted at 4-4 after nine complete innings.
- Combined with a series sweep this past weekend over Simpson, the Gators are now 6-0 to start the season and are off to their best start in over 15 years.
- As a team, the Gators are hitting .365 while holding opponents to .206.
- Thus far, Gators pitchers have combined for a 2.33 ERA and 61 strikeouts in 54 innings.
GAME ONE
- Rudy Aguilar singled and moved into scoring position on a wild pitch but was stranded in the top of the tenth. That nearly proved costly in the bottom half of the inning. Josh Medina singled and stole second, then was waived home on James Harwell's single to left field. Jonah Gonzales came up throwing in center field and fired a bullet on the line to Jason Hare. Medina avoided the initial tag but never touched home and Hare swiveled and applied the tag as Medina tried to dive back to the plate. Rudy Aguilar had a nice play at short for the final out of the inning.
- Hare led off the top of the eleventh with a six-pitch walk. With one out, Nick Upstill singled to left center, then Marco Salvetti broke the tie with a single to shallow right field that plated Hare.
- Nate Jenkins (1-0), who blew the lead in the eighth but pitched a perfect ninth before play was halted, returned to the mound on Tuesday and picked up the win. The defense picked him up in the tenth and he got a pair of outs in the eleventh. The game appeared to be over when Desmond Gates hit a routine ball to second base but took a nasty hop over Jackson Kritsch's head and into the outfield for an RBI single. Jenkins gave up another single to put runners on the corners but got Ben Sanderson to groundout to second to end it.
- Roberto Baldenebro (0-1) took the loss for the Seawolves.
GAME TWO
- A big fourth inning opened things up. Seawolves starter Demian White walked the bases loaded, which marked the end of his day. Kritsch greeted Ross Goldschlag with a single to third base, Rios drew a bases-loaded walk, and Aguilar singled home a pair to make it 4-0.
- The Seawolves almost got out of the fifth unscathed but Trevor Rogers recorded a two-out single, then Hare drew a walk. Kritsch came up again and sent a two-run double to left center to make it 6-0.
- Rios led off the sixth with a triple down the third base line and scored on Aguilar's RBI groundout.
- Sonoma State got on the board in the seventh with Harwell's bases-loaded walk.
- In the eighth, Thaddeus Wilson delivered a pinch hit RBI single. Gonzales, who was hit by a pitch earlier in the inning, scored easily on a wild pitch.
- After using all four starters in their weekend series, the Gators used five relievers on Tuesday. Luis Salinas made the spot start and struck out two and allowed two hits in three scoreless innings.
- Sebastian Selway (1-0) picked up the win with a pair of shutout innings.
- Mike Manley went an inning and two thirds and allowed the Seawolves' only run of the game.
- Brody Eglite struck out a pair in a perfect one and a third innings of work.
- Hudson Hartley gave up a hit and recorded a strikeout in the ninth inning.
- The Seawolves also used five pitchers.
The Gators open CCAA play at Chico State with a four-game series beginning Friday, February 14. Be sure to follow San Francisco State Baseball on Twitter and Instagram at @sfstatebaseball.
