Fresno State
flattens UH
McGehee, Gemoll crank out
homers to lead the Bulldogs
to a 10-3 victory
By Al Chase
Star-Bulletin
Mental mistakes and a lack of key hits translated into numerous missed opportunities for the University of Hawaii Rainbows yesterday at Rainbow Stadium.
When the Fresno State Bulldogs needed a big hit, someone delivered. None was bigger than Casey McGehee's opposite-field, two-run homer in the seventh inning that twisted its way over the right-field fence just inside the yellow foul pole. It didn't have the distance of Brandon Gemoll's fifth-inning blast, but it broke a 3-3 tie.
The Bulldogs scored five more late runs for a 10-3 victory in the opener of a three-game Western Athletic Conference series.
Gemoll's two-run shot put FSU ahead 3-2 at the time. His 13th roundtripper of the season was deep, so deep it cleared both right-field fences, the road behind the stadium and short-hopped the wire fence surrounding the Hawaiian Electric substation next to the ROTC building.
Yet, the game was even through six innings as both starting pitchers, FSU's Bob Runyon and UH's Jeff Coleman, helped create scoring opportunities, then managed to escape with minimal damage.
"Jeff was out of sync from the beginning. I told the guys we had to weather the storm and hope he got it together by the fifth inning. All he had out there was his competitiveness," UH acting head coach Carl Furutani said.
Twice Coleman hit Bulldogs when he was ahead in the pitch count. The second time came when the junior right-hander plunked Josh Labandeira leading off the seventh. One out later, McGehee homered on a one-ball pitch.
The Bulldogs, after surviving a one-out, bases-loaded situation in the bottom of the eighth, erased all doubt about the final outcome with a four-run ninth inning. All the runs scored with two down. Two singles and a sacrifice bunt set the stage for a key hit by Ben Fritz, who rifled a two-run double into the left-field corner.
The Bulldogs' ability to get key hits just continued a trend that began in the three-game series at Fresno in February.
"I thought they played pretty well against us in Fresno," FSU head coach Bob Bennett said.
"It was just fortunate that when we had the opportunities, we'd get a base hit.
"Today, it could have been completely different. If they get a hit in the eighth inning, it's a whole different ball game."
The 'Bows loaded the bases with one out in the eighth, but Chad Boudon's weak grounder to Runyon resulted in a force out at home. Brian Bock then grounded out.
Earlier in the second inning, with two on and no outs, Boudon's sacrifice bunt attempt was right back to Runyon for an easy force at third base. Bock then grounded into a double play.
Bock reached second on an error to start the seventh. But he took a step in the wrong direction and was out in a rundown on Tim Montgomery's grounder to the mound. On a wild pickoff throw to first, Montgomery was thrown out at third.
"We made a lot of mental mistakes and the guys know it," Furutani said. "That's not acceptable. We had an ugly game. You can flush it down the toilet."
Fresno State 10, Hawaii 3
| FRESNO STATE |
AB |
R |
H |
BI |
HAWAII |
AB |
R |
H |
BI |
| Myers cf |
4 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
Purtell cf |
5 |
0 |
3 |
0 |
| Lopez 2b |
6 |
0 |
1 |
0 Nogawa ss |
5 |
0 |
2 |
1 |
| Labandeira ss |
4 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
Guillen pr |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Gemoll 1b |
6 |
1 |
2 |
3 |
Omori 2b |
5 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
| McGehee lf |
4 |
2 |
2 |
2 |
Scalabrini 3b |
4 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
| Harper c |
2 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
Kimura 1b |
4 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
| Fritz dh |
5 |
1 |
2 |
1 |
Gilbride dh |
4 |
0 |
2 |
2 |
| Garcia 3b |
5 |
1 |
3 |
0 |
Boudon lf |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Walker rf |
4 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
Bock c |
4 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Guzman rf |
1 |
0 |
1 |
1 |
Montgomery |
4 |
1 |
1 |
0 |
| Runyon p |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
Coleman p |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Nieves |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 Pribble p |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
|
|
|
|
Sato |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
| Totals |
41 |
10 |
16 |
9 |
|
39 |
3 |
13 |
3 |
| Fresno State |
100 |
020 |
304 |
-- |
10 |
16 |
2 |
| Hawaii |
010 |
110 |
000 |
-- |
3 |
13 |
0 |
E--Garcia, Runyon. DP--FS 2; UH 1. LOB--FS 12, UH 9. 2B--Gemoli; Fritz 2; Kimura, Montgomery. HR--Gemoll; McGehee. SB--Purtell, Gilbride. SH--Harper
| FRESNO ST. |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO |
| Runyon (W, 4-0) |
8.1 |
13 |
3 |
3 |
0 |
6 |
| Nieves |
0.2 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
| HAWAII |
IP |
H |
R |
ER |
BB |
SO |
| Coleman (L,3-5) |
6.1 |
9 |
6 |
6 |
4 |
3 |
| Pribble |
2 |
6 |
4 |
3 |
0 |
1 |
| Sato |
0.2 |
1 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
0 |
WP--Runyon. HBP--Harper (by Coleman); Labandeira (by Coleman).
Umpires--Jim Burleson (plate),Gary Montalbo (first), Kelly Gonzalez (third).
T--2:42. A--2,097 tickets (573 turnstile).
UH Athletics
Ka Leo O Hawaii
