Baseball upsets Fresno State
By Philip Keck
The No. 11 team in the nation fell last weekend to the crushing power of Bronco baseball. Santa Clara achieved a convincing upset against the Fresno State Bulldogs winning two out of three.
The Broncos began game one of the three-game series by taking an early five-run lead, scoring twice off of pitcher Bob Runyon and capitalizing on two Bulldog errors yielding a 5-0 score.
Unfortunately, the Bulldogs rallied in the fourth and fifth innings for eight runs, making it 8-5, the score at the conclusion of the game.
With this display of power it seemed as if the Bulldogs had displayed their dominance in the series, however, the Broncos proved that they will always be contenders.
Both teams came to play for game two of the series, but Santa Clara's hustle and desire overwhelmed the Fresno State's nine and manifested itself into eight runs, seven earned, with a final score of 8-4 on the side of Santa Clara.
"We wanted to win more," Saturday's winning pitcher, junior Matt Travis said.
The finale was the most exciting and closest of the three games. Striking first, the Bulldogs pushed one run across in the third inning off sophomore pitcher John Redmond. The score remained 1-0 until the sixth when senior Joey Gomes sent senior Pat Peavey and junior A.J. LaBarbera home with a single to right field.
A pitching duel forced the tempo for the rest of the game as Redmond and A.J. Ampi combined for nine strong innings. Redmond earned the win that gave Santa Clara a 2-1 series edge.
"It felt good [to] go out there and pitch well enough to give us a chance to win," Redmond said. "[It felt good] to win the series."
One of the key ingredients to winning this series was Santa Clara's hustle that cut through Fresno State. No matter what the Broncos did whether it was coming off the field, running out a ground ball, or sprinting back to position, the Broncos always gave their all.
"We are trying to develop a personality. Our players are always hustling wherever we go," Head Coach Mark O'Brien said. "Players take pride in the fact, in the attitude we develop."
This success against nationally ranked Fresno State has created an atmosphere of triumph among the team.
"This series gave our team confidence," freshman outfielder Ryan Chiarelli said. "It will make us work harder for the rest of the season."
"After beating a nationally ranked opponent two out of three, we know that the sky is the limit for us," sophomore pitcher Kellen McConnell added. "At the same time we have to keep in mind that the season is a marathon, not a sprint. It feels great to have a few good wins under our belt but we still have a very long way to go."
The Broncos continue their season this Friday as they host UC Santa Barbara in a three-game series starting at 3:00 p.m. on Friday. Game two is Saturday at 1:00 p.m. and the finale is Sunday at 1:00 p.m. All games are at Buck Shaw Stadium.